Ultra-thin metal sheets of Iron, Aluminium and copper are widely used in a wide range of industries due to their high formability and cost of manufacturing. Some of its applications include lead frames for semiconductor chips, covers and tab/bus-bar for lithium batteries in electric vehicles, pins/terminal contacts for connectors, laminated electronic sheets for vehicle motors, and needles for medical devices.

Currently, one of the most prominent methods for manufacturing these components is stamping. The conventional stamping production system involves the utilization of raw material coils processed through a decoiler system.

These raw material coils need to be continuously replaced with new ones once depleted, resulting in a prolonged downtime (stopping system time) lasting approximately 30-60 minutes. This delay not only leads to raw material losses but also contributes to the production of defective products due to changes in stamping speed.

The extended downtime and material losses contribute to low productivity and economic inefficiencies, with potential environmental repercussions due to solid waste. Hence an innovative welding solution coupled with a smart welding system is developed to address these challenges.

This is achieved by welding seamless butt joints of coil-to- coil (strips) configurations during the production thereby enabling continuous operation of the stamping production system with minimal or no downtime, significantly reducing material loss and defective product output.

This article is shared by Dilen Damian, Williams Nguyen, Van Anh Nguyen and Supriyo Ganguly