BALFORD.Metalworking engineering answers

Dies, tooling and tool room

What is a progressive die and when is it economic?

Answer

A: An MOQ is a hard floor on the quantity a supplier will accept. A lot charge is a floor on the amount billed for one production run, so the supplier does accept a smaller quantity but the fixed cost is recovered in the price. Both are calculated from the same fixed cost per lot. Q: Does Balford have a minimum order quantity?

ProcessDies, tooling and tool room
Material / topicwhat is a progressive dieprogressive die stamping

Sources

  1. How Are MOQ And Lot Charges Calculated In Metal Stamping?
    A: An MOQ is a hard floor on the quantity a supplier will accept. A lot charge is a floor on the amount billed for one production run, so the supplier does accept a smaller quantity but the fixed cost is recovered in the price. Both are calculated from the same fixed cost per lot. Q: Does Balford ha...
  2. Custom Metal Stamping Services | Tooling & Quotation | Balford
    Tool build and tryout - on Balford production presses, so the sample comes off the process you will be supplied from. First article inspection - dimensional results against the confirmed drawing. PPAP-aligned documentation - at the level your quality department specifies. Series production - with lo...
  3. Custom Metal Stamping Services | Tooling & Quotation | Balford
    Question What we tell you Which tool type? Single-hit, progressive or transfer - recommended from the annual volume and the number of operations, including the volume at which the cheaper route would have been right What does the tool cost? Quoted per project, split into design, build and tryout, wi...
  4. How Are MOQ And Lot Charges Calculated In Metal Stamping?
    There is no fixed minimum order quantity. The practical minimum follows from the process: a single-operation die makes a small first batch economic, a progressive tool only pays back at volume, and an externally applied finish carries its own batch minimum. The order-quantity position and the publis...
  5. Progressive Die Metal Stamping | Balford
    Progressive Die Metal Stamping We run coil-fed progressive die stamping with tight tolerances and repeatable quality. Energy-efficient, low-waste production. Contact us for a quote. Progressive dies and progressive stamping dies are the same tool seen from two sides: the die is the tool, and the pro...
  6. Lead Time and MOQ | Deep Drawn Parts
    There is no fixed MOQ. The practical minimum follows from the process: a single-operation die makes a small first batch economic, a progressive tool only pays back at volume, and an externally applied finish can carry its own batch minimum. Send the target quantity with the drawing and the review wi...

What an engineer still needs from you

  • material and material condition (grade, temper)
  • material thickness, plus the key diameter, height and wall thickness
  • tolerances, burr direction and the visual acceptance standard
  • annual volume - it decides whether tooling is single-hit, progressive or transfer
  • surface finish, and any secondary machining, annealing or plating

Need a DFM feasibility assessment for your project?

Send the engineering drawing (STEP or PDF) with the material grade, thickness and annual volume. Balford engineers then check it against the process window - draw ratio, wall thickness, tolerances, blank and tooling route - and come back with what is feasible and what is not. An answer on this page cannot replace that review.

Upload a drawing for DFM reviewHow the DFM review works

Related questions

This page is an engineering answer, not a quotation and not a dimensional acceptance. It is generated from Balford's published material and held to the verified company fact sheet.