Sinker EDM uses shaped electrodes to create complex cavities through electrical discharge. Ideal for hard materials, it produces intricate molds with exceptional accuracy, essential in aerospace and precision manufacturing.
Wire EDM employs a thin wire electrode to cut workpieces through electrical discharge. Achieves high-precision cuts, perfect for thin-walled components, precision gears, and complex profiles in manufacturing.
Hole-drilling EDM creates micro-holes in hard materials using rotating electrodes and pulsed discharge. Produces extremely small diameter holes with precision, used in fuel injectors and precision instruments.
Electrical Discharge Machining Services
We are always at your service when you need
Electrical discharge machining, also known as EDM, is a process that uses sparks to cut shapes out of a workpiece.
Abismould offers sinker and wire EDM machining services whether you need a single part, batch of prototypes, or a production order.
Instant Pricing & DFM
Parts as Fast as 7 days
Tight Tolerances
Faster Lead Times
World-Class Machine Shops
Flexible Pricing
Electrical Discharge Machining (EDM) Materials
A2 Tool Steel
Tool Steel has excellent wear resistance and toughness, commonly used to make fixtures, tools, tool holders, gauges, and punches.
Aluminum
Aluminum offers a unique combination of properties including high strength-to-weight ratio, excellent corrosion resistance, malleability, and good thermal and electrical conductivity.
Brass
360 Brass (free-machining brass) is a versatile material for various industries. Common applications include gears, lock components, pipe fittings, and decorative parts.
Cast Iron
Cast Iron is commonly used in various industrial applications such as gears, bases, pulleys, and bushings.
Copper
Copper 101 and 110 have unmatched thermal and electrical conductivity, Commonly used in high-performance electrical components such as transformers, generators, motors, and switchgear.
Stainless Steel
Stainless Steel is a popular and highly versatile material known for its exceptional strength, and durability, along with high temperature, and corrosion resistance. It is widely used in industries such as construction, automotive, aerospace.
Steel
Fictiv offers a wide variety of steel options.. Alloy and carbon steel are particularly useful for creating fixtures, mounting plates, draft shafts, axles, torsion bars, gears, bolts, studs, shafts, and structural components.
Titanium
Titanium is lightweight, strong, biocompatible, and highly resistant to corrosion. It is commonly used in industries such as aerospace and medical devices.
About Electrical Discharge Machining
Fictiv provides two varieties of Electrical Discharge Machining (EDM) techniques, which are effective for creating deep cavities and intricate geometries including gear teeth and keyed holes. Since EDM operates as a non-contact manufacturing process without applying mechanical cutting forces to the workpiece, it is especially suitable for machining fragile or thin-walled components.
Wire EDM
In wire EDM, the metal workpiece is immersed in a dielectric medium while an electrode wire carrying electrical current passes through the submerged component. The electrical discharge generated by the charged wire produces sparks that erode the material, creating the required component geometry.
This wire EDM technique is particularly well-suited for applications where there is sufficient access space for the wire both above and beneath the part feature being machined.
Sinker EDM
The initial phase of sinker EDM involves creating an electrode that mirrors the geometry of the desired cavity. During the sinker EDM operation, this energized electrode is lowered into the metal workpiece while both are immersed in dielectric fluid.
The electrical current flowing through the electrode generates sparks that gradually erode the metal, producing the required internal feature geometry.
EDM Machining – Applications
Specialized EDM components and wire EDM manufacturing services find extensive use across diverse sectors including aviation, aerospace, marine, automotive, electronics, medical equipment, and printed circuit board fabrication, among other industries. Wire EDM services excel in producing custom components that demand intricate geometries and profiles, or when working with extremely hard materials while maintaining precise tolerances for both small-scale and large-volume production. Components featuring delicate structures can also be successfully processed, enabling the creation of extremely fine apertures without part deformation due to EDM's contactless machining nature.
Construction – Wire EDM services accommodate heavy-duty industrial applications and construction projects. These machines excel at cutting rigid materials, with wire EDM components frequently utilized in manufacturing metal tools and structural elements.
Automotive – Wire EDM systems are optimal for creating automotive mold components for the vehicle sector, enabling customization of complex holes and cavities for parts including bumpers and plastic components.
Aviation – Wire EDM machines are perfect for manufacturing components that cannot tolerate stress and elevated temperatures while requiring precise tolerances. The aviation industry depends on wire EDM technology for producing accurate parts for engines, turbine blades, and numerous other critical components.
Manufacturing – The precise tolerances achievable through EDM make it valuable for tool and die fabrication. Many tool and die fixtures necessitate hardened materials that are challenging to machine conventionally and are well-suited for EDM processing.
EDM Machining Problem
What kinds of gears can Fictiv manufacture with electrical discharge machining?
EDM technology encompasses two primary variants, each offering distinct capabilities for gear production. Wire-cut EDM is suitable for creating both internal and external gear configurations, provided the workpiece contains adequate clearance or apertures for wire electrode passage. Ram EDM demonstrates similar versatility in machining internal and external gears while excelling in the fabrication of geometrically complex gear forms, including helical gear configurations.
What materials can Fictiv cut with EDM?
The application of both wire and ram EDM is limited to conductive substances, since the removal mechanism depends on electrical discharge between electrode and workpiece material. Consequently, EDM operations are predominantly restricted to metal-based materials.
What is electrical discharge machining?
Also referred to as spark machining, EDM is a material removal process that utilizes controlled electrical discharges to erode material from workpieces without direct tool contact. The absence of mechanical forces makes this technology particularly suitable for machining fragile or intricate parts.
What are the types of electrical discharge machining?
The EDM manufacturing process consists of two fundamental variants: wire electrical discharge machining and die-sinking EDM, both particularly effective for creating deep recesses and sophisticated features like gear teeth and keyway slots.