Lafer Method
Together we pull out the best

Lafer Method: the design, together with the Clients, of customized solutions dedicated to the reduction of production costs for moulds and mechanical components.

Lafer has undertaken a new way in the idea of coating world. The coating is not intended as only a thin layer, maybe in competition with other suppliers, but as a part, even if specialistic, of a global process taking into account all the most important phases of a production system. Lafer Method consists in optimizing, together with the Client, all the factors of a production; materials, geometries, operational parameters, surfaces stresses, surfaces roughness, cutting edge roundness, thickness and type of coating. Our aim is to carry on process optimization with advanced instruments and innovative technologies internally available in Lafer; correct and certified tools resharpening, reduction of surface stresses, measurement of the surface stresses with big dimension diffractometer, specific surface roughness using many different methods of finishing techniques before and after the coating deposition, optimized cutting parameters with the support of electronic data sheet, development of dedicated coatings stoichiometries. Lafer idea is to apply this Method gradually on all the most important applications of tooling, forming and component industry: hobs, braze welded tools, moulds for plastic forming, mould for metal forming and components for automotive applications. Lafer Method has the final goal of improving the Energetical Efficiency, decreasing the cost/piece and the production costs.

Surface Engineering: is the new emerging department involved in the Lafer Method development. It has three main targets:

• Polishing and finishing of the surfaces: using many different types of new technologies (for example many different types of isotropic finishing, REM method, OTEC method, polishing, diamond finishing) surfaces quality of tools, moulds and components improves and it is possible to find the best Ra for every application. Polishing is classified according of a nine degrees Zanola finishing Scale, the extreme of this scale are ranging between the removing marks of mechanical work (SZ01) to mirror surfaces for optics environment (SZ17). At the end of this process all the pieces are demagnetized.
• Stress-relieving of surfaces: the residual stress of surfaces and materials is determined and measured in MPa with the x-ray diffraction technique, by a big dimension diffractometer specially made. Once that a stress value is eventually found and measured (for example +300 MPa) the stress-relieving is started using with a cycle specific for each product.
• Development of new coatings: we have an internal R&D center working on the set-up and optimization of new coatings. During the last years we have carried on development of Superlattice, CarbonLafer and DLC Lafer coatings and in year 2005 the new Tinalox and Alox SNB were offered to the market. In year 2006 it has been developed a new Cr-Al coatings obtained both by arc both by sputtering technique which has been exchanged, during year 2007 with really new and more performing coating called Hyperlox. We can now offer Aluspeed coating for machining magnesium and low-Si content aluminium alloys. Since 2009 Lafer had introduced the new coating DLC PVD.