How is a Steel Die Made 

Steel dies can be costly due to the high-tech machinery, top notch materials, and specialized skilled labor required for their manufacture. These complex tools are typically custom made in a matter of days, depending on your packaging provider.

To better understand how the steel dies work, take a journey through The BoxMaker’s creation process from design conception to the finished die:

 Step 1: After a project order is submitted, The structural design team creates design use CDR drawing and sends it to our local die cutting manufacturing partner.

Step 2: The die cutting manufacturer uses a laser cutter to burn the drawing into the wood. The design team indicates on the CDR drawing what type of steel rule is needed for each portion of the product. There are many different rule options, each one built to accommodate the specific corrugated thickness, flute size, and type of action the rule needs to perform – a score, perforation, a slit-score, or cut, to name a few.

Step 3: The die cutting manufacturer prepares sending a file . The producer cuts, bends, and notches the steel into the specific length and shape needed.

 Step 4: The bent and cut rule are manually pounded into a laser-cut board. A portion of the steel rule has been inserted into this small flatbed die with intricate shapes. The more detailed designs require more labor, and sometimes hand-bending each piece of rule. Then, the operator pounds in the steel rule into the wood of this rotary die with a rubber mallet — a laborious and taxing step in the creation process.

Step 5: After the steel has been pounded into the wood, foam rubber pieces in different densities and heights are glued onto the die. These various pieces of foam help the die to bounce off the corrugated board. The grey foam surrounds the rule to allow for the corrugated to push off of the rule, and the cream foam is used so that the corrugated scrap will pop out after being cut.

Step 6: Create a sample of the die, known as a pound-off, and compare it to the original CAD drawing before the order is run to make sure that the die is exactly what our client is looking for.

Learn More :  http://jigscut.com/