In manufacturing and precision engineering, there are times when an off-the-shelf component simply isn’t good enough.
Perhaps a standard component doesn’t provide the accuracy required. Maybe tooling is wearing prematurely, causing unnecessary downtime and replacement costs. Or perhaps a component is needed for a specialist application and nothing commercially available quite fits the job.
This is where bespoke precision tooling comes into its own.
At Trio Tools, we specialise in manufacturing bespoke tungsten carbide tooling and highly accurate precision components to customers’ individual drawings and specifications. With more than 55 years of engineering experience, we can manufacture components to extremely close tolerances for customers across a wide range of industries.
If you can’t find what you need in a catalogue, there is a good chance that the answer is to have it made.
What Does Trio Tools Manufacture?
Although tungsten carbide tooling is at the heart of what we do, there isn’t a single standard type of customer or application.
Our manufacturing capabilities include:
- Internal grinding quills
- Precision grinding centres
- Mandrels
- Gauges
- Tungsten carbide wear plates
- Carbide-tipped tooling
- Tool steel components
- Roof tile wear parts
- Slippers and rollers
- Bespoke precision tooling
- Specialist small, highly accurate components
Many of these components are manufactured specifically for a customer’s individual application.
That means we aren’t simply supplying a standard part from stock. We work from customers’ drawings and specifications to manufacture tooling and components for the job they actually need to perform.
From a Drawing to a Precision Component
One of the major advantages of bespoke manufacturing is that the component is made around the application, rather than requiring the application to accommodate a standard component.
A customer may already have a detailed engineering drawing specifying exactly what is required. In other cases, they may have an existing idea or particular tooling requirement that needs developing into a finished component.
Trio Tools has decades of experience in understanding these requirements and turning them into precision-engineered components.
Material choice can also play an important role.
Depending upon the application, this could mean manufacturing in tungsten carbide, tool steel or another appropriate material.
The objective is always the same: to manufacture a component that meets the customer’s required dimensions, tolerances and intended application.
Why Use Tungsten Carbide?
Tungsten carbide is particularly valuable in applications where conventional materials may wear too quickly or where exceptional dimensional stability is required.
It combines extremely high hardness with excellent wear resistance, making it suitable for components exposed to demanding manufacturing environments.
This can be particularly important where tooling is subjected to repetitive use, friction or abrasive materials.
Wear isn’t merely an inconvenience.
A worn component can affect production accuracy, increase maintenance requirements, cause additional machine downtime and ultimately affect the consistency of the product being manufactured.
For the right application, investing in a precisely manufactured tungsten carbide component can therefore provide benefits well beyond the component itself.
When Microns Matter
There is precision engineering, and then there are applications where extremely small variations really matter.
Trio Tools can achieve dimensional tolerances down to one micron, with roundness values of less than 0.5 micron.
To put one micron into perspective, it is one-thousandth of a millimetre.
At this level of manufacturing, seemingly microscopic discrepancies can influence how a component performs.
It is why precision is particularly important when manufacturing components such as grinding centres, quills, mandrels and gauges.
This is also where specialist machinery, engineering experience and proper inspection become every bit as important as the material being machined.
Quality Isn’t Assumed, It’s Measured
Manufacturing something accurately is only part of the process. You also need to be able to prove that it is accurate.
Quality control has been an important part of Trio Tools for decades, and the company operates to ISO 9001 quality management standards.
Our dedicated inspection facilities include specialist equipment such as a Talyrond roundness measuring machine, Baty Shadow Graph, OGP non-contact measuring system, height gauges, micrometers and calibrated slip gauges.
This allows extremely accurate components to be inspected and measured against their required specifications.
For customers relying on precision components within their own manufacturing processes, that level of quality control can be crucial.
Who Uses Bespoke Precision Tooling?
One of the misconceptions surrounding specialist tooling is that it only applies to a narrow section of the engineering industry.
In reality, precision components are required throughout modern manufacturing.
Trio Tools manufactures precision tooling for industries ranging from building products to automotive manufacturing, while its specialist components are used by customers both within the UK and internationally.
Potential customers include:
Precision Engineering Companies
When extremely tight tolerances, dimensional accuracy and repeatability are essential, the quality of the tooling becomes critical.
CNC and Grinding Companies
Grinding quills, precision centres, mandrels, gauges and other specialist tooling can directly influence machining accuracy and the consistency of finished components.
Automotive Manufacturers and Suppliers
Automotive manufacturing frequently involves high-volume production coupled with strict dimensional requirements, creating applications where accurate and durable tooling is essential.
Roof Tile Manufacturers
Roof tile production provides an excellent example of the benefits of wear-resistant tooling.
Trio Tools manufactures specialist roof tile wear parts, including rollers and slippers, and can advise on appropriate grades of tungsten carbide for the manufacturing process.
Manufacturers Working With Abrasive Materials
Production processes involving abrasive materials can cause rapid deterioration of the surfaces and components they come into contact with.
Solid tungsten carbide, carbide-tipped and tool steel wear plates can be manufactured to protect machinery operating in these demanding environments.
Machine Tool Users
The accuracy of a sophisticated machine tool can ultimately be compromised by the component or tooling attached to it.
High-quality quills, centres and associated tooling help manufacturers make full use of the accuracy their machines are capable of delivering.
Production and Maintenance Engineers
Sometimes the issue isn’t designing a new product. It is keeping an existing production line operating efficiently.
Where a particular component is wearing repeatedly or standard replacements aren’t providing sufficient service life, a more suitable bespoke component may provide the answer.
Are You Experiencing One of These Problems?
You don’t necessarily need to know exactly which product you require before approaching a specialist precision tooling manufacturer.
The starting point may simply be a problem.
For example:
Your tooling is wearing too quickly.
Repeated replacement increases costs and can create unnecessary production downtime.
You can’t find the component you need.
An unusual dimension or specialist application may mean there simply isn’t a suitable off-the-shelf alternative.
A standard component isn’t accurate enough.
Some manufacturing processes require tolerances far beyond those offered by general-purpose components.
Your production process involves highly abrasive materials.
A change of material or the introduction of tungsten carbide wear components could dramatically improve component life.
You’re developing new machinery or a new manufacturing process.
Bespoke tooling can be designed and manufactured around the requirements of the application.
You have a drawing but need someone capable of manufacturing it.
This is exactly the type of specialist precision engineering work undertaken by Trio Tools.
Sometimes the Answer Isn’t in a Catalogue
Modern manufacturing is increasingly sophisticated, but some of the most difficult engineering problems come down to something remarkably simple: having exactly the right component in exactly the right material and manufactured to exactly the right dimensions.
That’s why bespoke precision engineering continues to be so important.
Trio Tools has been manufacturing precision tooling and components since 1966. Combining more than 55 years of engineering knowledge with modern precision machinery, specialist measuring equipment and extensive experience working with tungsten carbide, we can tackle applications where accuracy and durability really matter.
So, if you’re repeatedly replacing worn tooling, struggling to obtain a specialist component or have a drawing for something that needs to be manufactured to exceptionally close tolerances, don’t assume you have to settle for the nearest available standard part.
Talk to Trio Tools. If the component you need doesn’t exist off the shelf, we may be able to manufacture it for you.
Contact Trio Tools on 01277 814580 or email sales@trio-tools.com to discuss your requirements.