Coated steel positioning pin gives weld spatter no chance

Particularly reliable positioning pin – at least the same results can be achieved with a steel pin than with ceramic pins for the first time.

Positioning pins may be small and cheap parts, but they are very important – designers, maintenance engineers and system operators in body-in-white production know this best. After all, positioning pins that are exposed to resistance welding on steel sheets or experience significant wear are frequently replaced. This prevents damage to the positioning pins and components that can have serious consequences. But the frequent changes reduce productivity. OEMs want less maintenance and increased process reliability.

Ceramic positioning pins have been the norm in body-in-white construction until now. The reason: There was no suitable solution for steel pins combined with a coating for a long time; uncoated steel pins are not durable enough in highly stressed areas. But ceramic pins have defects. Their sleeves may become detached or break due to damage from weld spatter, wear or transverse forces when using a steel core. If this type of malfunction goes unnoticed, this may have serious consequences. The worst-case scenario: A number of manufactured parts are rendered unusable and this results in a halt in production. The positioning pins are therefore usually replaced at an early stage – long before damage occurs. However, what applies to a defect also applies to a change: production comes to a standstill.

The WSR positioning pins have been undergoing their probationary period in the series production of a major car manufacturer since September 2018. A complete success, as the first positioning pins still do not have any noticeable wear or weld spatter adhesion. That’s why the technical employees of the customer are sure that they can achieve more than a million cycles with the WSR positioning pins. The greater process reliability is not evident in the price: our positioning pins are in the same price range as ceramic pins. The customer is impressed by the performance and has therefore decided to replace his ceramic pins directly with WSR positioning pins.