Dowel Pin for Wire & Cable Management

Manufactured at McCormick Industries for a client in the electrical industry, the dowel pin described here was designed for use in wire and cable management applications. Constructed from 52100 alloy steel, it featured dimensions of .472″ in length x .118″ in diameter. The customer specifications called for heat treating as well as ferritic nitrocarburizing, a surface hardening process used to enhance resistance to fatigue, corrosion, and scuffing.

As the prime contractor, we took full responsibility for the end-to-end production cycle of the product, which involved a combination of in-house and outside processing. We spent time up front to verify that our three outside providers (for hardening, grinding, and nitrocarburizing) were qualified to meet a very stringent set of specifications. Process verification involved using independent third-party testing laboratories to confirm that each of the outside vendor’s processes were robust, repeatable, and able to consistently meet the customer’s exact specifications.

Primary processing took place in-house, where we used one of our multi-axis Swiss machine tools equipped with a high-pressure coolant system. This state-of-the-art technology effectively removes chips and keeps cutting tools cool and sharp, which allowed us to leverage rapid removal rates for higher throughput. The secondary tasks required strategic coordination with outside vendors to ensure timely delivery of a high-quality end product. We delivered burr-free machined parts for heat treatment prior to a grinding operation. The part was ground to a size that compensated for size changes that would occur during the final process of nitrocarburizing.

Numerous quality checkpoints throughout the production cycle confirmed we met the customer’s specifications for dimensional accuracy, hardness, surface finish, and corrosion resistance. The client was satisfied with every aspect of our work and continues to partner with us on challenging projects.

To learn more about this project or our production capabilities, contact us today.

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