Renovating, maintaining and rebuilding press tools is a growing business area at AP&T. Now the company wants even more customers to discover the opportunities afforded by the area.
“Over the past five years, we have single-mindedly worked to strengthen our offering within press tool maintenance and rebuilds, and the business has developed very positively. At the same time, we recognize that many more sheet metal forming companies around the world could benefit from our services,” says Ulf Andersson, who is responsible for aftermarket for Tooling at AP&T.
AP&T maintains and rebuilds press tools it has manufactured itself as well as tooling from other manufacturers.
“Hiring us to take care of tooling we have manufactured ourselves is a natural step for most of our customers. However, our expertise and extensive experience also mean we can take care of tooling from other manufacturers that might not operate in the market any more or that for one reason or another cannot supply the services the customer needs.”
AP&T’s role is to identify, understand and satisfy the customer’s needs in the best possible way.
“No matter which tools or customers are involved, we go beyond what needs to be done and proactively propose improvements that the customer might not have thought of. For example, we can oftentimes improve the performance and service life of an older tool substantially by giving it new coating or using parts with a new steel quality.”
AP&T also reviews the work process itself in terms of how measures can be implemented as quickly and efficiently as possible, every time.
“It is naturally critical to act quickly when the situation is urgent. But it is also important to have an ongoing dialogue with the customer so that everyone involved is kept informed of how the work is progressing, regardless of whether it is being done at the customer’s factory or at our service facility in Ulricehamn.”
The main goal for Ulf Andersson and his colleagues is to ensure that the customer avoids unplanned stoppages altogether.
“Keeping tooling in great shape is not only necessary to ensure high quality in the pressed part, it is also a necessary measure to prevent unexpected disruptions. The most beneficial solution for the customer is generally to sign a service agreement that guarantees well-structured and regular preventative maintenance,” says Ulf Andersson.