Cold forming is a high speed production process by which a section of sheet metal is cut to precise dimensions and then placed in a series of moulds in which it is deformed at high speed to obtain the desired shape. Larger/smaller diameter, larger/smaller length or removal of material by cutting and/or perforating.
The material is deformed beyond the elastic limit and then assumes the form of the mould. The material is not pushed however beyond the yield point (breaking load) in order to avoid fracture. The only exceptions are the cutting and/or perforating operations.
The material does not reach the recrystallising temperature but it does however undergo strain hardening. Cold forming traditionally has remained at the level of a technology based on experience. This has been changing since electronic data processing has made it possible to use increasingly sophisticated programs for analysis and finite element simulation.