A UK engineering specialist has completed its largest-ever rapid tooling project as demand for shorter lead times intensifies. MetLase, which is a joint venture between Rolls-Royce and Unipart, has designed and manufactured a stainless-steel tool measuring 4 m in diameter and capable of holding a component 2 m tall.

The company met the challenge of the major aerospace customer head-on, with manufacturing sign-off and delivery completed in just one month; 150 days quicker than the client would have previously expected. It is just one in a list of notable successes from the Yorkshire-based firm, which harnesses the design skills of a 25-strong engineering team and innovative joining solutions that replace traditional welding process.

“Typical conventional tooling approaches often take a massive block of material and then machine away the unrequired bits to form the tool,” says Richard Gould, business development manager at MetLase. “We take a different stance, basically laser cutting sheet metal, usually stainless steel or titanium, into lots of different elements. These are then joined to form the tool using our own manufacturing technique, removing the need to weld them together and endure the distortion that usually comes with this process.”

He continues: “Everything is controlled ‘in-house’ at MetLase. We’re always adding to our standardised feature library and parametric modelling system that allows us to instantly access formulas for creating tools for specific applications. All of this means we can work with customers to reduce lead times to weeks if not days, ensuring the client has more time for iterating their component design before signing off the tooling. As well as the time saving, our service can also help mitigate massive financial costs associated with last minute changes.”

For further information
www.metlase.com