The most discussed topic in the mold building industry today is cheaper tooling from offshore competition. Most often these discussions revolve around unfair low labor costs; however, many mold builders fail to realize that steel selection can play a major role in closing the price gap with offshore tooling.

Too often, moldmakers only look at the cheapest price-per-pound steel and ignore the real savings opportunities available above the waterline labor costs.

Steels that machine faster, achieve superior machine finishes to reduce bench time, weld better to ease design change or repair, do not require costly time off the machine for stress relieving and offer real labor (cost) savings. Fewer labor hours also mean improved leadtimes.

Real Tool Costs from Low Labor Cost Countries
Offshore tooling buyers focus on initial acquisition costs that are often well below half of the domestic quotes. These extremely low prices tend to come from Southeast Asian countries and China where labor costs are extremely low. The buyers are willing to ship the tool to a North American shop to bring it to operational specifications. There often are problems caused by miscommunication, lack of attention to detail or ignored specifications by the offshore shop.

One molder asked what grade of steel was used on his recently received tool. The reply from the Chinese tool builder was “yes”. However, these buyers of offshore tooling are willing to accept the additional costs. They believe that even if the additional costs double the original acquisition price, they still saved money. They fail to take into consideration the below waterline costs. If the domestic shops can get closer to the initial offshore price, built-in advantages below the waterline, such as language, geography and quality will help to recapture lost business.

Lower Cost Tooling from Higher Labor Cost Countries
Japan is another story. Japanese labor costs are now higher than ours. Japanese moldmakers build tools quicker and cheaper than we do-and make a profit. But how? The answer is in steel selection.

The earliest molds in both countries were made out of boilerplate-or whatever carbon steel was available. As resins advanced and production runs got longer, changes in the steels used were required. North American shops went to chrome moly steels that could be heat treated-first 4140, then the more highly refined P-20 (4130 modified pre-hardened to HRC 26/32) and finally hardened tool steels such as A-2, H13 and S-7. Each step was made to extend the life of the tool, but at the expense of machinability, production time, repairability or required heat treatment.

Through the 1950s and 1960s, the Japanese zeroed in on JIS (Japanese Industrial Standard) S55C as its core and cavity steel of choice. S55c is a 0.55 carbon steel supplied at a brinnell hardness of 220. They valued ease of machinability and the corresponding timesavings as well as ease of repairability over hardness. Adhering to strict preventive maintenance allowed the molders to successfully complete their production runs.

As the Japanese electronics and automobile industries began to ramp up, it became apparent that harder, longer-wearing, pre-hardened steels would be required due to ever-increasing volumes. But the tool builders resisted any change that would add to mold building leadtime and the molders resisted any change that would make repair or modification more difficult. It became incumbent upon the Japanese specialty steel manufacturers to design steel grades that would satisfy both the mold builders and molders.

Beginning with Daido Steel’s 1965 introduction of a steel grade named NAK80, followed by NAK55-a re-sulphurized version in 1975-and PX5-a low carbon-improved P-20 in 1989-that’s exactly what they did .

Each mill marketed its own variation under proprietary trade names of steels designed to keep labor time and cost low for the moldmakers and repair costs low for the molders. None of these grades were, or are now, identified by JIS or AISI standard designations. They are sold under the producing mill’s trade name, but as a group they are the dominant pre-hardened cavity and core steels used in Japan.