IAA - Dieless sheet metal forming

The majority of sheet metal in the automotive and many other industries is stamped into desired shapes by large presses equipped with heavy dies and moulds. These tools have to be machined out of blocks of metal and are typically the highest cost of metal forming operations for small production batches. Flexible forming processes eliminate the need for this part specific tooling, relying instead on universal tools, to produce a large range of geometries. A flexible metal forming process has been developed at the University of Bath as part of a EPRSC-funded PhD research project (“Extending the range of geometries in die-less sheet metal forming” https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=studentship-2103810 – student: Daniel Bowen). The machine is at the last stage of commissioning with the studentship funding ending in July 2022. DB and EL initially contacted the technology transfer team, regarding patenting the process. A patentability report recognised the technological potential of the process and identified potential commercial value. Following the report, an invitation was extended to apply for this internal IAA funding to conduct market research to better establish the value proposition of the technology strengthen any commercialisation programme applications. The primary purpose was to assess the viability of a commercialisation of the technology.