WEMO / Industrial equipment
Rethinking the assembly. Keeping the function.
A sheet-bending tool holder redesigned around functional requirements to reduce assembly complexity and tolerance build-up.
The business challenge
WEMO develops custom production lines for sheet-metal processing. A tool-holding component combined four CNC-milled elements with pins, washers and screws: 22 parts in total. Tolerance build-up made manufacture and assembly complicated.
Requirements before geometry
The part needed to rotate around its connected axis, hold different inserts and preserve critical functional surfaces. Working from these functions and the applied loads, the design was reworked using generative design and assessed for stress and deformation.
A different production approach
The resulting stainless-steel design was produced using selective laser melting. Consolidating the assembly into one component simplified the supply chain and reduced assembly complexity. The original published case also reports a 60% weight reduction and lower production cost.
What this demonstrates
A successful redesign protects the function while challenging how it is achieved. The opportunity was not merely a different production process, but a simpler component and a more manageable manufacturing route.
Results and experience relate to this customer application and its specific requirements.