Feintool steps up cooperation with leading international universities

29 March 2006, Feintool, a world leader in fineblanking/forming technology, is involving a number of leading international universities even more closely in its high-tech R+D activities. At the same time, one of the company’s state-of-the-art fineblanking presses is being taken into service for research purposes at the RWTH technical university in Aachen, Germany.


Feintool’s success as a technology leader in the fineblanking/forming sector can be ascribed both to the pioneering spirit and determination of company founder Fritz Boesch and to the fact that he was quick to initiate cooperation in the research and development field with technical universities in Germany. Since then, other cooperation projects initiated in Switzerland and China have also been yielding good results.


Feintool university colloquium in Aachen

At a university colloquium in Aachen organized by Feintool with four selected international universities, a new joint approach was defined and decided. The aim is to pool specialist knowledge, focusing on innovations that will help to secure the leading position of this globally applied technology in future too. New, complex applications as well as further improvements to existing fineblanking/forming processes – from both the technological and the economic angle – will expand the market for this technology and make it accessible to new sectors.


Feintool wants to work together with the world’s best universities to find the right mix of theory and practice – i.e. scientific knowledge combined with state-of-the-art technology and practical skills – to secure the industry’s competitive position. With professors Fritz Klocke (RWTH Aachen), Hartmut Hoffmann (UTG Munich), Pavel Hora (ETH Zurich) and Xueyu Ruan (SRI University Shanghai) attending the colloquium, the project has got off to a good start. The presence of Board Chairman Fritz Boesch and CEO Reto Hartmann underscored the importance Feintool attached to this event. As project leader, Feintool Group’s CTO, Arthur Locher, is responsible for ensuring that the R+D results are harnessed systematically for securing Feintool’s technological lead – paying due attention, of course, to protecting the various universities’ intellectual property rights. Feintool also plans to involve its key clients in the process.


Feintool fineblanking press taken into service in Aachen

As part of Feintool’s university colloquium, a modern fineblanking press manufactured by Feintool was put at the disposal of RWTH Aachen’s machine tool test lab (WZL) for research purposes. The research team headed by Professor F. Klocke will use the press to examine and optimize production processes, i.e. the interaction of the press with the tool, steel alloys and lubricants. The press was officially handed over in the presence of Feintool’s group management and the institute’s directors.

Contact Information

Urs Feitknecht

Corporate Communications

Feintool International Holding

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