S heet metal forming involves the creationof surfaces which, depending upon theirown complexity, enable adjustments to

be made at the right time and to the desiredlevel of precision and quality. This is a keyconcern for the technicians working for theengineering department at Fontana Pietro.

Fontana Group activities encompassengineering; die design and construction; car body production and interior designconstruction. Fontana Pietro is the Group’sheadquarters in Italy and has been thedomestic and international reference point forthe design and manufacture of stamping diesin sheet metal forming for over 50 years. Itserves well known, prestigious automotiveOEMs around the world.

To meet the needs of its customers in termsof lead time, precision and quality of surfaces,Fontana Pietro started testing the featuresoffered by AutoForm-ProcessDesignerforCATIA in2013. This software is dedicated to the rapidcreation of high quality CAD surfaces.Following positive feedback, the software wasbought and implemented internally within itsproduct development process to optimise themethodologies and strategies already in place.

Staying inthe CATIAenvironment“We are satisfied”, said ValentinaCavenago, Senior Die SurfacesTechnician, Fontana Pietro, “withthis collaboration with AutoForm

ISMR February 2015 | sheetmetalplus.com | 37

FOCUS ON CAD/CAM

AutoForm-DieDesignerplus. These surfaceswere not easy to handle within CAD. It becameclear that this procedure was slow, complexand, above all, time-consuming for the creationof CAD quality surfaces which could beimmediately used in CNC machining,” addedRiccardo Brivio, R&D Engineer, Fontana Pietro.

AutoForm-ProcessDesignerforCATIA software iswhat AutoForm itself terms ‘the strategicmissing link which enables the user to create adie layout, which includes not only the drawingbut also all secondary operations, without havingto leave the CATIA environment’. The software,says AutoForm, fulfils these requirements andoffers significant benefits in terms of timereduction and fewer mistakes made.

From theory to practice To assess the operating potential andadaptability of AutoForm-ProcessDesignerforCATIA,the engineering department carried outthorough tests on a designated project of oneproduction line. At the same time, two furtherprojects were carried out implementing thestrategies currently in use.

“Each of the three projects”, explainedCavenago, “employed the same work phases.We noticed that, when applying the features ofAutoForm-ProcessDesignerforCATIA, thedesignated project clearly showed relevanttime savings.”

When compared to a CATIA license, thesoftware can be used during the runningsession by adding the AutoForm-ProcessDesignerforCATIA license every time it isrequired. At the same time, the softwareallows for a high quality level of data update.

“Our objective”, continued Cavenago, “is touse AutoForm-ProcessDesignerforCATIA with anyof our customers’ files. We hope to create aneven closer connection between AutoForm-DieDesignerplus and AutoForm-ProcessDesignerforCATIA to reproduce theparameters already defined during simulationon surfaces or drawbeads.”

In accordance with customer requirements,better integration is required with even moretargeted features to make these proceduresfaster and more efficient. AutoFormEngineering has already planned a new marketrelease to make some of these functionsavailable. This release will be an update, to befollowed by others, that will make the softwarefaster and immediately effective, even whenimplemented with other software systems.

Quality in focus“The positive feedback received on theperformance of AutoForm-ProcessDesignerforCATIA

has convinced Fontana Pietro to extend the useof it to other departments within the company,such as in its Die Process Engineeringdepartment. The die process engineer’s job isfacilitated, especially when elaborating the earlyproduct development phase, thanks to thevalidity and speed of analysis. What is significantare the benefits and advantages that include there-use and reproducibility of data, the efficientexchange of data (internally among departmentsand externally among OEMs and their suppliers)and the rapid creation of a die layout thatincludes drawing as well as all secondaryoperations,” added AutoForm.

“The various sketches and constructionelements used in CATIA V5 are assembled in a

few, very powerful features which enable easyand rapid surface design. A comprehensibledata structure simplifies the usage of thesenew features and improves collaborationinternally. The surfaces created arecharacterised by a significantly reducednumber of control elements and appropriatesurface continuity. These high quality surfacescan immediately be used for furtheroperations, such as over-crowning,compensation or CNC machining.”

“Over-crowning,” concluded GuglielmoOleari, R&D Engineer, Fontana Pietro, “will bethe object of further and future operatingstrategies by our company. Rules will begenerated to further reduce the time needed todevelop surfaces.” �

36 | sheetmetalplus.com | ISMR February 2015

does not offer solutions for those working inthe design and manufacture of stamping diesand, more importantly, it does not fulfil ourspecific needs,” pointed out Giuseppina Milani,Die Surfaces Coordinator, Fontana Pietro.

The creation of surfaces is becoming acritical aspect in this complex market wherethe competitive edge is timing. Theengineering department at Fontana required adirect connection, not a manual transition,between the conceptual creation of surfacescarried out by engineers and the creation ofsurfaces which can be immediately used forCNC machining.

“We had a fast and efficient simulationmethod based on surfaces created with

Engineering to investigate the benefits offeredby the AutoForm-ProcessDesignerforCATIA

software. From the very beginning, it hasdemonstrated the potential to meet our needs.”

AutoForm-ProcessDesignerforCATIA, one of thesoftware products which AutoForm offers forthe die-making and sheet metal formingindustries, connects competence in sheet metalforming with the effective design functionalitiesof CATIA V5. This software enables company-wide workflow standardisation and a significantreduction in the time needed to create highquality CAD surfaces.

“CATIA has been used in our engineeringdepartment for over 25 years. Although it iscertainly a powerful system, it unfortunately

After thorough testing, Fontana Pietro selectedAutoForm-ProcessDesignerforCATIA software for its internal product development process

DIE DESIGNIN CATIA ISMR SAYS:

“ The creation of surfaces is becoming a critical aspect in thiscomplex market where the competitive edge is timing”

Valentina Cavenago, Senior Die SurfacesTechnician at Fontana Pietro

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Fontana GroupWith its claim “where ideas takeshape”, Fontana Pietro isconsidered the ‘technologicaltailor’ of sports cars for itsexpertise in turning challengingideas into feasible andextraordinary shapes.

Founded in 1956 as aworkshop for mechanical andtrimming jobs, it is now dividedinto three divisions: engineering,manufacturing and assemblingof steel and aluminum parts forBody-in-White. Its head office inCalolziocorte (LC) manages twofactories in Italy, one in Turkeyand one in Romania.

It is now a global leader,employing 700 people, 60 ofwhom work in the engineeringdepartment alone. Constantlyoriented towards innovation andcontinuous improvement,Fontana Group activelycollaborates with universitiesand research centres. TheFontana Group uses tools andtechnologies that includeAutoForm software and, inparticular, AutoForm-ProcessDesignerforCATIA for therapid creation of high qualityCAD surfaces. www.fontana-group.com

AutoForm Engineering GmbHAutoForm offers softwaresolutions for the die-making andsheet metal forming industriesalong the entire process chain.www.autoform.com

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