Hydroforming Company Since 1923
When metal needs to take on complex shapes while maintaining structural integrity, hydroforming is an excellent option. This specialized metal forming process uses fluid pressure—up to 10,000 psi—to transform flat metal into precision components with exceptional surface quality.
At Jones Metal Products, we’ve spent over 100 years perfecting our hydroforming services. As the nation’s largest single deep-draw hydroformer, we’ve built our reputation on solving the metal forming challenges that other manufacturers can’t.
Our approach combines old-school craftsmanship with cutting-edge technology. When engineers face seemingly impossible manufacturing hurdles, they turn to Jones Metal for solutions that deliver both technical excellence and cost efficiency.
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Challenges We Can Solve With Our Precision Hydroforming Process
Hydroforming is a cold-forming method that deep draws metal and seeks a balance between the flow and stretching of material. If the metal flows too easily, it wrinkles; if it stretches too much, it cracks and breaks. At Jones Metal, we help customers overcome common hydroforming challenges with our years of experience.
Design Tolerances
They keep getting tighter. These tolerances aren’t always necessary to fabricate the assembly, but engineers are always looking for ways to guarantee that parts will fit perfectly together. Part tolerances greatly affect production costs and quality checks of the parts. Jones Metal’s engineering-oriented experts bring this into consideration when looking at drawings. We help customers decide the best and most cost-effective method for their parts.
Tight Corners
Hydroforming can create shapes with sharp-radius features by applying the right amount of pressure. This poses a challenge because the material must flow across the tooling, or breaks will occur. Jones Metal’s state-of-the-art facility has 11 deep-draw hydroforming machines, which allows our team to use the ideal size machine needed to produce each specific part. This helps prevent improper forming or material tearing.
Flat Surfaces
The flat areas of parts are among the most difficult shapes to maintain. For instance, a flat box top will tend to bow in forming. This is where a fabricator has a significant advantage; it’s a relatively simple matter to bend and weld a box together. Jones Metal has developed ways to maintain the shape of these parts. Hydroforming works best with materials that are difficult to form because it supports the entire surface of the blank as it is forming and controls the flow and stretch of the material.
Lubrication
It is not just about the type of lubricant used but how and where it is applied. Sometimes, the line between breaking and wrinkling a part is so small that the lubricant can become the deciding factor between success and failure. Jones Metal’s technicians precisely coat and lubricate tooling and material to minimize the risk of this factor.
Tool Design
This is especially challenging when it takes more than one tool to form a good part that meets the tolerances of a print. This comes into play when moving material into a difficult area that is causing breaks in the material. Jones Metal works with its customers to decide the best option for their design.
Parts We Can Hydroform
Hydroformed parts come in many shapes, sizes, and specifications. We can hydroform small, medium, and large parts, as well as irregular parts. While most companies in the industry focus on running larger orders at least 10,000 pieces–Jones Metal fulfills orders of any size.
Materials We Can Hydroform
- Aluminum
- Brass
- Bronze
- Stainless Steel, including 304, 316, and 409, 17-4, 17-7
- Clad Metals
- Carbon Steel
- Copper
- Galvanized Metals
- Hastelloy
- High Nickel Alloys
- Inconel
- Kovar
- Lead
- Molybdenum
- Titanium Grade 5, Grade 2, 15-15-15, 15-3-3-3
Deep Draw Hydroforming
Jones Metal can create deep drawn hydroformed parts from blanks up to 32.5″ with depths up to 12″ and diameters to 27.5″. We operate at forming pressures up to 10,000 psi, tackling material gauges up to 3/8 inches (steel) and 1 inch (aluminum).
The benefits of deep draw hydroforming metal include outstanding surface finishes, reduced tooling costs, and the ability to manufacture parts with irregular shapes while holding exceptionally close tolerances.
Fluid Cell Forming
The ability to manufacture long, deep-drawn, and complex shapes is possible at Jones Metal thanks to our fluid cell forming capabilities available at Jones Metal.
Fluid cell forming is a process that utilizes a fluid-cell press, or bag press, to form sheet metal into complex shapes. The press exerts high pressure, up to 11,600 psi, onto a flexible rubber diaphragm that forms sheet metal into shapes that meet precise tolerances.
Based upon field-proven technology, Jones Metal’s Quintus Technologies Flexform Fluid Cell Press enables the formation of small parts, shallow components, large panels, and complex deep-drawn shapes, such as a negative lip. Several parts can be formed at once in each tray, resulting in significantly faster prototyping, shorter lead times, and lower tooling costs.
As with hydroforming, our fluid cell press limits surface abrasion, translating into fewer resources spent on downstream finishing. This type of forming also enables parts that are thinner, yet still strong.
Benefits of Choosing Jones Metal as Your Hydroforming Company
Since 1923, Jones Metal has been working with customers to produce a diverse range of hydroformed metal products. When engineers need a company to make their most difficult parts, they know Jones Metal is the place to go. Assisting engineers with creating the impossible is part of our heritage. We offer our customers high-quality metal products by combining engineering talent, more than 100 years of experience, and the latest technology. We have a large facility, dedicated testing equipment, a prototype development program, and the ability to produce small and large-volume orders. As the largest single deep-draw hydroformer in the country, you can trust Jones Metal to fulfill your complex metal fabrication orders.
Benefits of choosing us for your hydroforming needs include:
Precise Tolerances
Hydroformed parts maintain precise tolerances, allowing irregular pieces to be easily formed. We can create all types of shapes and angles, all with minimal thin-out.
Quality Finish
Because hydroforming employs high-pressure hydraulic fluid to form parts to a cavity instead of a punch, pieces emerge with a near-perfect, quality finish free of burrs or scuffs, eliminating the need for finishing or polishing.
Cost Savings
Our hydroforming services in Ohio allow customers to reduce upfront costs associated with traditional metal forming and stamping because the process eliminates the need for expensive dies. Adjustments to forming tools during development of the first part are much less difficult and cheaper.
Economical Prototyping
For prototyping and part development, sheet metal hydroforming is an ideal process. With minor adjustments to the tooling and material thickness, we can produce new and improved parts in small runs for development and equipment modifications.
Jones Metal has the latest industry equipment and technical expertise to help you solve your engineering challenges. We are also NADCAP-approved, ISO 9001:2015 Certified (Without Design), and AS9100:2016 Certified. Contact us and we will be happy to work with you to find the best way to turn your production challenges into opportunities.
Industries We Serve
Aerospace
Aerospace and aircraft manufacturers search for outside processes for many of the components needed in the assembly of their highly complex products. When it comes to formed metal parts, they often require hydroforming. Hydroformed parts have minimal surface imperfections because tight specifications on contour and flatness can be achieved, and exotic materials can be utilized.
Defense
For manufacturers in the defense industry, precision and quality are two of the most important factors to consider when working with a metal processor. The defense industry requires high standards for mission-critical components, and hydroforming is an ideal solution for metal parts. Parts must be formed and finished correctly before they are added to the defense equipment. Our IT team has obtained the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) and we are International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) approved.
Medical
Keeping costs down, inventory readily stocked, and maintaining sanitization are critical for every medical practice. Hydroforming medical equipment starts with the need for a high-quality finish that offers longevity and easy sterilization. Hydroforming is often used to form components with detailed shapes that require smooth finishes. Parts with inverted folds, inverted lips, curves, and other shapes can be hydroformed while avoiding wrinkles, tears, and thin-outs of their metals
Research and Development
Hydroforming metal is a commonly used, cost-effective cold-forming process that works exceptionally well for prototyping used in research and development. Prototyping is an integral part of the engineering process and is used to test parts on a small scale before they are manufactured on a larger scale. It also enables engineers to bring their concepts to life.
Frequently Asked Questions About Hydroforming
We currently form material as thin as .005” and as thick as 1.25”.
One. Hydroforming can be used for very short runs when necessary. It really comes down to cost. The more parts you buy, the cheaper the cost will be per part. Our goal is to build relationships with companies, and sometimes, that starts with just one part. Not every company is willing to do this–that’s part of what sets Jones Metal apart as your hydroforming company.
The hard tooling only touches the inside of the part. The outside of the part is pressed in by a rubber bladder, which does not cause scratching or surface defects. We can also cover the outside of the part with a removable plastic coating. It can be removed after the forming process is completed, leaving a more pristine surface.
Using the deep draw hydroforming presses, you can form up to a 32” diameter blank, 27.5” forming diameter, and 12” deep. With the Fluid Cell Hydroforming press, you can form up to 72” in length.
Contact Us For Your Hydroforming Needs Today
At Jones Metal Products, quality is our top priority. We are dedicated to delivering ultra-precise products to customers on time and within their budget. Our team has deep industry experience and the technical expertise to create precision components. Call us today at (888) 479-9566 or reach us online to send us your drawings to get started with your hydroforming process.