---
title: "Partimation — know if it forges, before you cut a die block"
url: https://partimation.com/forging/
description: "Feed ForgeDFM a part and it screens it for closed-die forging — draft, and the undercuts a closed die can never core out — prices press tonnage, billet, flash, and die tooling, and shows the quantity where forging beats machining. Start free."
product: "ForgeDFM"
domain: forgedfm.com
---

# Know if it forges — and what the die pays back — before you cut a die block.

*Forgeability · draft & flash · die tooling · quantity economics*

Feed ForgeDFM a part and it screens it against closed-die forging — draft, and the undercuts a closed die can never core out — prices the press tonnage, billet, flash loss, and die tooling, and shows you the quantity where forging beats the machined-from-bar alternative.

- **Pass/fail on undercuts** — closed dies can't core — any undercut is flagged before you cut steel
- **Tonnage, sized** — press tonnage from plan area and the alloy's flow stress
- **Flash priced in** — billet weight includes the flash and tong-hold that get scrapped
- **Vs. the alternative** — should-cost curve against CNC-from-bar so you know the crossover qty

Free to start · no credit card · your files stay yours.

## A closed die can't core an undercut — find out before you cut one.

- **A part reaches the die shop before anyone checks it can close** — Closed-die forging can't core an undercut — no slide, no lifter, just a redesign. That's usually found after the die's half machined, not on the drawing.
- **Flash and billet loss get guessed at** — Every closed-die forging scraps flash and tong-hold as part of the process — treat it as a rounding error and the quote is wrong before the press ever cycles.
- **Nobody shows you where forging actually wins** — Forging's tooling is expensive and its piece price is cheap — whether that trade is worth it depends entirely on quantity, and that crossover rarely makes it into the quote.

## The forging screen, the tonnage math, and the crossover quantity.

- **Undercuts, screened — Closed-die geometry checked before you commit** — The same geometric undercut scan the rest of the suite uses flags anything a closed die can't release — forging is the one process where that finding is a hard fail, not a redesign nudge, and ForgeDFM says so plainly.
- **Tonnage from first principles — Press tonnage from plan area and flow stress** — Tonnage comes from the part's projected area against the alloy family's published flow-stress band — aluminum, steel, or copper — not a guess, and it sets the press rate that drives the quote.
- **Flash and billet, not hand-waved — Billet weight includes what gets scrapped** — Flash and tong-hold loss are built into the billet weight before the price is struck, with saw and flash-trim labor costed as their own stations.
- **Know the crossover — Should-cost curve against the machined alternative** — Die cost is real money up front; the should-cost curve shows the exact quantity where forging's cheaper piece price pays that back against machining from bar stock.

## Four steps from a part file to the quantity where forging wins.

1. **Drop a part** — Upload the STL or STEP model.
2. **Check draft & undercuts** — A pass/fail read — closed dies can't core, so any undercut is flagged plainly.
3. **See tonnage, flash & die cost** — Press tonnage, billet + flash weight, and forge + trim die tooling, priced.
4. **Compare the quantity curve** — Should-cost against CNC-from-bar, with the crossover quantity shown, not asserted.

## Start free. Upgrade when it's winning you work.

Priced for a single engineer screening a part and a forge shop quoting dies alike. Forgeability screens are unmetered — run as many parts as you like.

| Tier | Price (EUR / USD / GBP) | What you get |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Free | €0 / $0 / £0 | 10 parts a month; Draft + undercut screen; Advisory tonnage / tool-cost estimate; No credit card |
| Pro | €199 /seat · mo / $199 /seat · mo / £169 /seat · mo | Unlimited parts, full should-cost curves; Die tooling breakdowns; Vs.-machining comparison; 30 simulation runs a month |
| Shop | €699 /mo · 5 seats / $699 /mo · 5 seats / £595 /mo · 5 seats | Everything in Pro; Your press & die-block rates; Quote calibration + API access; 150 pooled simulation runs a month |
| On-prem | €15k yr 1, then €10k renewal / $15k yr 1, then $10k renewal / £12.5k yr 1, then £8.5k renewal | Runs on your hardware; Unlimited simulation, no metering; Signed updates, never phones home; 10 seats · optional device lock |
| Enterprise | from €25k / from $25k / from £21k /yr | Multi-site licensing, custom processes and rules, a model tuned on your own quote history, and an SLA. |

EUR and GBP prices exclude VAT, added at checkout where it applies. Early adopters keep their price as the suite grows.

## In the cloud by default. Behind your firewall when it has to be.

- **Cloud — Nothing to install** — Sign in and screen a part from any browser. We run the compute, ship the updates, and keep your data yours — the shared model only ever learns from your own jobs to calibrate your rates.
- **On-prem & air-gapped — For parts that can't leave the building** — Aerospace and anyone under NDA can run the whole thing on their own hardware. Licenses and updates are signed files — it never phones home, so an air-gapped install stays air-gapped.

## Forging shares its tool economics with molding and tooling.

- [MoldDFM](https://partimation.com/molding/) (molddfm.com) — Injection molding — draft, wall thickness, undercuts, gates, cooling, and tooling.
- [ToolDFM](https://partimation.com/tooling/) (tooldfm.com) — The tooling engine underneath — dies, molds, patterns, and core boxes, priced and amortized the same way everywhere they show up.
- [See all modules](https://partimation.com/#modules) (partimation.com) — Machining, fabrication, casting, additive, assembly — the full Partimation suite.

## Frequently asked questions

#### Will a closed die be able to make this part?

A closed-die undercut scan hard-fails geometry a closed die cannot release. There is no slide and no lifter in a closed die, so an undercut is not a nudge toward a redesign — it is the redesign, and every other number on the quote rests on it. Finding that on the drawing costs an afternoon. Finding it with the die block half machined costs the block.

#### Where does the press tonnage number come from?

Tonnage is sized from the part's projected plan area against the alloy family's published flow-stress band — aluminum, steel, or copper. That tonnage picks the press, and the press rate is what drives the forming line on the quote. The band is published closed-die practice rather than your own press history, so you can trace the figure and check it against what your shop actually runs.

#### Is flash and tong-hold loss in the billet weight, or added later?

Flash and tong-hold loss are built into the billet weight before the price is struck, not added back as a percentage afterwards. Saw and flash-trim labour are costed as their own stations on the route. Closed-die forging scraps that metal every cycle, so a billet priced at net part weight puts the quote under water before the press has run once.

#### At what quantity does forging beat machining the part from bar?

The should-cost curve puts forging against machining from bar stock and returns the exact quantity where forging's cheaper piece price pays back the die. The crossover is solved in closed form, not eyeballed off two lines on a chart. Die cost is real money up front and quantity is the whole argument, so the answer you need is that one number.

## Related pages

- [ToolDFM](https://partimation.com/tooling/)
- [MoldDFM](https://partimation.com/molding/)
- [ProcessDFM](https://partimation.com/process-selection/)
- [MachDFM](https://partimation.com/machining/)

## Put your next forging through it.

Screen a real part free in your browser, or book a walkthrough set up for your press rates and die-shop numbers.

## Tell us about your forgings.

We reply within one business day.

> ForgeDFM's tonnage and cost model is published closed-die practice, not shop-calibrated data — treat it as rougher than the casting engines until it's checked against your own press. Undercuts are a hard fail here: a closed die genuinely can't core one. Machining allowance and heat treat ride the routing plan, not this screen alone.