Precision Metal Products, Inc. (PMP) is the largest privately owned, high-velocity forging company in the world. PMP’s fully integrated manufacturing capabilities enable the company to convert raw materials into precision-forged and (if required) machined parts while maintaining high performance, manufacturing and quality standards. PMP’s experience and craftsmanship in forging precise net and near-net forgings and machined components has made the company a leader in producing precision-forged and complex-machined forgings. The company provides its customers with a full array of on-site manufacturing and production services. This begins with pre-design involvement to maximize cost containment, to achieve fast turnaround from initial product design to full-scale production, and to produce precision-forged products that will reduce overall project costs. PMP is well known for precision-crafted products, quality workmanship and its ability to manufacture close-tolerance net- and near-net-shape forgings for orthopedic, medical, aerospace, defense and industrial applications.

Founded in 1963, PMP was established and began manufacturing operations as a metal forging and fabrication company, initially specializing in forged and machined metal products for the growing aerospace industry. The company rapidly gained a solid reputation as a dependable subcontractor for precision-forged parts and components for major companies supplying weapon systems to the U.S. defense industry and the armed forces.

Craftsmanship and Experience

Shaping metal into precise forgings is an art form requiring expert craftsmanship and experience. Applying these assets, PMP continues its tradition of forging today’s exotic metals into precision metal components using modern manufacturing techniques and equipment. PMP begins the forging manufacturing process by utilizing the latest computer-aided-design (CAD) software programs to ensure the finished product will meet all required specifications. PMP has a full-service metallurgical laboratory plus an experienced staff of product design engineers, quality control professionals and expert metal fabrication and forging personnel to oversee and control all critical stages of the metal forging process.

Solving Customer Problems

Enlarge this picture A PMP associate removes a billet from the preheat furnace.

Since PMP started manufacturing metal forgings and fabricating metal components, customers have on numerous occasions challenged its staff by asking them to develop ways to efficiently manufacture a new product design or to make an existing product lighter, stronger and/or less costly to produce. PMP’s engineers, product designers and forging and metal production personnel have always responded to customers’ requests and challenges with innovative solutions. For example, an engineer at one of the company’s long-standing aviation customers sought help with an expensive problem. The customer was redesigning components for an aircraft. In the new aircraft’s design, the structure required 24 new metal components that had to be manufactured from a lightweight and expensive exotic metal alloy, but the customer was concerned that the cost and manufacturing expense for these 24 components would drive costs way beyond the projected completion target price. The engineer provided his 24 component drawings to PMP and outlined his concerns to them.

PMP’s engineers, product designers and manufacturing personnel reviewed the drawings and came up with a simple but practical solution. PMP’s personnel designed a group of 10 forged shapes using the customer’s specified metal to replace the 24 components thought to be required. This innovative approach allowed PMP to streamline several manufacturing steps, increase the utilization of the metal alloy, improve the production process flow and reduce potential product defect levels. PMP’s forged design solution also allowed the customer to eliminate welding many of these 24 components into the aircraft’s assembly, speeding up their overall manufacturing time. The customer was so impressed with PMP’s solution to their problem that they incorporated PMP’s forged-part drawings into their official product engineering/specification drawings for these components.

Developing New Products

Many customers call upon PMP’s expertise to help them develop new metal products or improve existing ones. Recently, the company helped the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Kansas City Plant (KCP) conduct a metalworking study to determine how to control the strength and grain structure on 304L stainless steel during the forging process. PMP worked closely with KCP’s engineering personnel to run a series of metal heating and forging tests on 304L stainless, the results of which were published by KCP. The study noted that the yield strength increased with strain from about 0 to 0.7 EQPS (Equivalent Plastic Strain) for forged 304L stainless steel. However, higher strain levels of 1.4 to 1.8 EQPS decreased yield strength due to recrystallization. The study concluded that strength and grain structure of 304L stainless steel forgings may be controlled using two parameters: forging temperatures and shape change (i.e. applied strain).

Company Capabilities

Enlarge this picture A heated billet is placed on the forging press.

PMP is a full-service manufacturing company with a full complement of production equipment to handle almost any type of metal forging or fabrication project. PMP has nine percussion screw presses (500-7,000 tons); seven high-velocity forge presses (125,000-300,000 foot-pounds); five mechanical presses (75-1,500 tons); and three hydraulic presses (300-1,200 tons) that can produce almost any desired end product. PMP’s presses – along with its multiple machining units, turning centers, machine lathes, milling machinery, surface grinders, radial drilling, welding and other support equipment – provide the company with a tremendous manufacturing capability. This capability and the company’s in-house product design, metallurgical expertise, process testing capability, production controls, engineering and forging expertise, and its exacting quality program allow PMP to meet its customers’ expectations for precision-forged/machined components.

PMP has the ability to forge and/or machine virtually all forgeable alloys, including aluminum, cobalt-chrome-molybdenum, C103, customer-specified special alloys, Inconel, maraging steel alloys, stainless steel, 4130 steel and titanium. Using these or other customer-specified alloys, PMP’s employees manufacture precision closed-die forgings ranging from under 1 pound to 80 pounds and up to 250 square inches in plan area. Bringing all its assets to bear, PMP can manufacture precision components for products ranging from finely crafted orthopedic implants to very thin but extremely strong missile fins.

PMP provides total in-house product and process control, including raw-material procurement, testing, forge and machine-tool design, tool and die fabrication, and quality manufacturing through the complete forging process. Post-forging services such as heat treating, cleaning, chemical milling, machining and nondestructive testing convert raw forgings into finished products according to the customer’s application specifications, order requirements and needs. The company holds the ISO 9001:2008 quality certification, as well as AS 9100, ANAB and BSI quality certifications. PMP is also registered with the U.S. Department of Defense as a certified U.S. Military Parts Supplier.

PMP has developed its reputation as an industry leader in forging and machining metal components because of its dedication to producing strong, reliable products meeting precise product specifications. Some of the many products manufactured by PMP include: commercial aircraft parts; aircraft engine and structural products; medical/orthopedic implants; military and defense-related components such as aircraft engine parts, airfoils, bulkheads, flexible transmission couplings, forged missile skins, forged warheads, missile/rocket-guidance fins, missile spars and rocker motor canisters; and other aerospace structural components.

Many of the components produced by PMP are used on numerous well-known and long-serving military and commercial aircraft and military weapon systems. The company produces aerospace and aviation components for the McDonald Douglas C-17 Globemaster U.S. Military Jet Transport; the Boeing 747; U.S. Missile Systems (TOW, Sidewinder, AIM-9X, AMRAAM, SM-3 and Tomahawk); U.S. Armed Forces Helicopters (Apache, Black Hawk, V-22 Osprey and Sikorsky CH-53 Sea Stallion); and U.S. Military Jet Fighters, such as the F-16 Falcon, F-18 Hornet, F-22 Raptor and the latest U.S. & NATO Joint Jet Fighter, the F-35.  

For further information on Precision Metal Products readers may call 619-448-2711; fax 619-448-2005; e-mail sales@pmp-elcajon.com; or visit www.pmp-elcajon.com.