Rotary Engineering UK Limited Public Funding

The project is to provide consultancy and training support for a Growth Accelerator programme which will further the work done on a previous Smart project and current KTP project. The Consultant will advise us on aspects of business planning which are relevant to our current position and aspirations

To develop a high value, patterned metal laminate material using friction-stir welding for use in the jewellery and decorative metals industry.

Rotary Engineering UK Ltd will carry out a proof of concept study on the production of a high value, patterned metal laminate material (mokume gane) for use in the jewellery and decorative metals industry. Mokume gane (meaning wood grain metal in Japanese) is a premium jewellery product manufactured by bonding and patterning layers of different coloured metals such as gold and silver. Traditional production of mokume gane using diffusion bonding is difficult and expensive, involves multiple manufacturing stages, and is limited in the maximum size of sheet production. It also has a high failure rate and remains at the craft level, relying on the expertise of individuals with many years experience rather than a modern manufacturing technique. We have developed a novel method of producing a mokume gane type material using friction stir welding (FSW). By adapting FSW it has been possible to demonstrate bonding of many layers of dissimilar metals while simultaneously producing unique patterns in the metal, removing the need for a separate patterning stage. This approach minimizes processing, reduces waste and potentially lowers costs. The FSW technique avoids many of the problems experienced in traditional production, e.g. melting or lack of bonding, while allowing production of much larger sheet size and thickness. With this proof of concept funding we aim to develop our capabilities to produce a laminate sheet with commercially marketable patterns by FSW.

Rotary Engineering UK Ltd will carry out a feasibility study on the use of friction stir welding for the joining and patterning of dissimilar metal alloys such as copper, brass and silver. The end product is intended to be a decorative alloy used in jewellery etc. commonly known as "mokume gane" (japanese for wood grain metal). The use of friction stir welding to produce these hard to make materials is innovative as it both joins and patterns the material in the same process, saving time and money but also generating unique patterns not possible via other methods. Development of the technology using a realtively low cost machine could lead to its use by more SMEs and thus lead to further development of the technique of dissimilar metal joining for other industrial applications which have until now not been considered.