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Today’s modern manufacturing methods demand extremely high productivity levels with as little downtime as possible. The MetaLLife surface treatment provides a means for attaining this as well as helping to reduce manufacturing tooling costs.

WHAT IS IT? MetaLLife utilizes a well known principle of metallurgy regarding compressive stress layer generation in metals. Such a layer tends to reduce fatigue failure, and help retard or prevent crack initiation and propagation.

The MetaLLife treatment involves impacting a tooling surface with a controlled micro media to induce a beneficial compressive stress layer on the surface of the steel. Three important changes occur as a result.

ENCAPSULATING RESIDUAL LAYER - The generated compressive stress layer slightly work hardens the tool while replacing the normal surface tensile stresses that are left in a tool after sharpening or finish grinding thus making the tool more resistant to fatigue cracking.

MOST EXISTING GRAIN BOUNDARIES ELIMINATED - The impaction of the tool helps obliterate most of the grain boundaries and stress risers which then prohibits micro-cracks from initiating or propagating in these areas. It is these cracks that lead to tool chipping or edge breakdown.

ADDITIONAL COOLANT RESERVOIRS - At the time of surface impaction, tiny microscopic pockets are created that act as coolant reservoirs. These pockets trap lubricant, thus allowing a cooler operating temperature which helps extend tool life.

The documented test results on the accompanying page indicate what some of our customers are experiencing regarding tool life improvement. Since MetaLL ife® is not a coating or plating but an encapsulating metallurgical change in the tool’s surface, the tool may be resharpened without the loss of the compressive stress benefit on the cutting edge.

Applications include all types of tool steel with the exception of carbide composition materials.
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Tap cross sections showing layer of compressive stress and micro-sized pockets which help retain lubricant
 

WHAT IT CAN DO FOR YOU! - Normal cutting tool life can be dramatically increased by 100, 200, 300, 400% or more. Chip removal is improved due to the added lubricity of the tool. Breaking of the tool in high stress areas such as cutting edges, shoulders, and fillets is dramatically reduced or eliminated.

HOW IT IS DIFFERENT! - Unlike other processes that are performed at elevated temperatures, Metalife is an ambient process assuring that no tool distortion will occur. It is not a coating, plating, nitriding, vapor blast, ion bombardment, oxidizing, freezing, heating, or any other type of CVD or PVD treating process. No tolerance allowances are needed. Since it is a metallurgical change to the surface of the tooling, the process cannot strip or peel which is sometimes the case with other coated processes.

IN THE END, YOU AS A MANUFACTURER WIN by improving productivity, generating less downtime from tooling failures, and by experiencing considerable perishable tooling cost savings. Call us TOLL FREE today at 1-800-366-1973 for details on how you may immediately start to enjoy these benefits.