Unveiling the Challenges in Measuring Cold Forming Tooling Performance

In an industry driven by speed, precision, and cost, the performance of tooling is critical. Yet, despite its impact on quality, efficiency, and profitability, many cold forming companies still do not measure tooling performance in a meaningful way. Understanding why this is the case can help decision-makers identify internal barriers and uncover opportunities for improvement.

Below are 10 key reasons why measuring tooling performance remains a challenge for many cold forming companies:

1. Lack of Time and Resources

Many cold formers operate with tight schedules and limited resources. They prioritize production targets over data collection and analysis, believing that dedicating time to monitoring tooling performance will slow down operations or require extra manpower.

2. Inadequate Systems and Processes

Some companies lack proper systems or standardized processes for measuring tooling performance. Without the right tools or established methods, it's challenging to gather reliable data, making the effort seem more trouble than it's worth.

3. Focus on Immediate Cost Savings

Cold formers often focus on minimizing upfront costs, like choosing cheaper tooling options, rather than investing in monitoring and optimizing tooling performance. They may also be unaware of the long-term savings and efficiency improvements that performance measurement could provide.

4. Reactive Maintenance Culture

In many cases, tooling issues are only addressed once a failure occurs. This reactive approach to maintenance discourages proactive monitoring and performance tracking, leading to recurring problems and missed improvement opportunities.

5. Lack of Training or Awareness

Operators and managers may not have the training to recognize the value of tooling performance data or understand how to interpret and act on it. Without a clear business case or education on the potential benefits, measurement remains a low priority.

6. Limited Digital Infrastructure

Some cold formers still rely on manual processes and legacy machinery that make digital data capture difficult or impossible. Without sensors or connected systems, tracking tooling lifespan, changeovers, or wear rates becomes a laborious and error-prone task.

7. Resistance to Change

Even when the potential benefits are clear, change can be uncomfortable. Teams accustomed to "the way it’s always been done" may resist implementing tooling performance measurement practices due to perceived disruption or fear of added scrutiny.

8. Unclear Accountability

Tooling often sits in a grey area between production, engineering, and purchasing. When no single person or department is responsible for tooling performance, it becomes easy for the issue to be overlooked or deprioritized altogether.

9. Inconsistent Tooling Usage

High part variety, frequent tool changes, or shared tooling between jobs can make it difficult to attribute wear or failure to specific factors. This variability creates complexity in tracking performance trends, leading some companies to abandon the effort.

10. Focus on Output Over Optimization

In many cold forming environments, the pressure to keep machines running and hit daily output targets outweighs the motivation to improve tooling performance. If production continues, inefficiencies go unnoticed, and measurement feels like a non-essential luxury.

By addressing these challenges and putting the right systems in place, cold formers can transform tooling performance from a hidden cost into a strategic advantage. Measurable gains in tool life, production uptime, and unit cost aren't just possible—they're proven.

At Major Industries Ltd, we specialise in performance tooling designed to deliver consistent, long-term value. Our partners are already seeing real results: lower production costs, higher gross margins, and smoother operations across the board!

If you're ready to take the guesswork out of tooling performance and start achieving measurable improvements, let’s talk. We’ll help you make high performance your new standard—simply and effectively.