Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, this is a completely different manufacturing process which will provide engineers with abundant new opportunities as well as a few new constraints.  For more information contact our experts.

Absolutely not, any tube profile may be used.  For sake of availability; we generally always use round tube for prototyping, however there are instances where significant process savings can be achieved by using a different profile.  For more information contact our experts.

Yes, during standard production our quality assurance team is able to trace tubing back to a specific production order and supplier.  For more information contact our experts.

Annealing is typically required when stainless steel tube is used and bent or preformed prior to hydroforming.  Once the formability is used up (material is work hardened) it must be restored in order to further form the part.  For more information contact our experts.

Absolutely, there are numerous parts and assemblies already being used in current vehicle manufacturing processes.  Everything from low volume niche products, automotive parts, plumbing and faucet fixtures to high volume appliance parts can be hydroformed.  For more information contact our experts.

Generally speaking we see cycle times between 18-25 seconds depending upon the manufacturing requirements and equipment capabilities.  For more information contact our experts.

Standard tube diameters are available up to 5”.  Wall thicknesses can be supplied from 0.9 to 5.0 mm depending upon the diameter.  It is possible to supply to customer specific dimensions in rounds and other shapes.  For more information contact our experts.

In principle every steel grade can be successfully applied in a hydroforming process.  It should be noted, depending upon requirements, steel grades which have a high elongation and high n-value work best in the hydroforming process.  For more information contact our experts.

Yes, the use of pickled material is strongly advised.  For more information contact our experts.

Typically this weld bead can be removed; it is becoming standard practice in tube hydroforming.  The bead can be removed with a rest height of approximately 0.2mm.  For more information contact our experts.

The Finite Element Analysis (FEA) forming analysis software tool is used to determine a shape’s potential for hydroforming.  This analysis will predict the how the material will be affected by the hydroforming process.  For more information contact our experts.