Cold work tool steels are generally divided into Water-hardening, Oil-hardening, Air-hardening, Shock-resistant and special purpose tool steels.

Cold work steel is exposed to high stresses and requires great resistance against wear, impact and bending. The development of new steel grades is mainly guided by analyzing damage suffered by tools in various processes. In each area of use, properties are sought which will extend the working life of the tool. Different types of wear demand different types of steel. Product development is moving towards producing more robust steels with higher resistance to wear and greater durability.

We can help both the tool user and tool maker to choose the right steel and heat treatment for the application. This usually results in lower tooling costs, lower maintenance costs and less downtime.

Generally the term “hot work tool steels” includes tool steel which during application adapt to a constant temperature above 200˚C
As general, the term hot work tool steel means tool steel exposed to average temperature above 200 c during work

This group of materials enables the hot-forming of products made of iron and non-ferrous metals; also it meets the production of several non-metallic products such as tube and glass manufacturing. They are used in hot work processes such as pressure die casting, hot extrusion and drop forging

Because of exposure to high temperature and fluctuating thermal loads, hot work tool steels must exhibit good heat checking, good thermal fatigue resistance, hot strength, high temperature toughness and wear resistance properties


BOHLER ISODISC hot work tool steel is produced by utilizing homogenization annealing of ingots, a high ingot break down and special heat treatment methods for structure refinement and strategy is fulfilled in optimizing steel properties for an extended tool life and high level of hot tool performance

BOHLER ISOBLOC hot work tool steel was developed as a tool steel for dies and punches in warm and hot forging. This steel can be used for a variety of applications where hardness and toughness are required, accompanied with more homogeneity especially for large dies

Electro Slag Remelting (ESR) is a remelting process applied by BOHLER. In this process, reaction between slag and steel droplets results in a significant reduction in sulphur and non-metallic inclusions to gives more uniform mechanical properties in the longitudinal and transverse results in an ingot of a high homogeneity and freedom from macro – segregations

Plastic moulding is a part of our everyday lives. Mobile phones, spectacles, car parts, computer components, etc. are all produced by use of plastic moulds. The materials required for making these moulds require unique properties to fulfill and meet the product quality. This is why it is critical to choose the correct steel material for your plastic product. This means that plastic moulding is a demanding branch of industry, so severe environments put the steel material under stress.

As a direct declaration, (Choosing the right steel type is the solution)

Due to the needs of the various plastics moulding applications, Bohler- Plastic mold Steels are ideal where high polishability, improved resistance to corrosive and/or abrasive polymers, high thermal conductivity, uniformity and reliability are required.

One of the main steel groups to meet all demands of plastic and PVC industries are BOHLER plastic mold stainless steel types. They are metallurgically balanced stainless grades that have been specially developed and continually refined to meet the needs of the evolving plastic moulding industry.

For example, BOHLER M303 EXTRA is stainless martensitic chromium steel, offering excellent toughness, corrosion and wear resistance. It is characterized by improved machinability and polishability. BOHLER M303 EXTRA was developed for improved homogeneity ensuring excellent usage properties when compared to 1.2316. The main cause of M303 success is the prevention of delta ferrite in the matrix.

The more advanced BOHLER plastic mold steel materials are nitrogen alloyed stainless steels. They have improved thermal conductivity due to very homogeneous microstructure.

Corrosion resistance is also one of the properties extensively required for tools and dies dealing with plastic materials of corrosive filler components

BOHLER plastic mold steel group is one of the major steel materials used in the following applications:

• Moulds for chemically aggressive plastics
• Moulds for household appliances
• Extrusion tools
• Moulds for fittings

Additional advantages of the plastic mold steels we offer in Egyptian market are the high mechanical properties and good machinability. Our material BOHLER M238 is the ideal steel material having these properties beside its high Hardenability, good electrical discharge machining, good photo etching properties and good polishability.

BOHLER high speed steels are used for producing heavy high speed cutting tools such as drills, hobs, broaches and in a wide range of cold forming applications.

Bohler has developed Isodisc, a hot work tool steel produced by a homogenizing annealing treatment of ingots. This is a high temperature special heat treatment method for structurally refining ingots, optimising steel properties for an extended tool life and high level of hot tool performance.

As high performance steels high speed steel grades offer high hardness at temperatures up to 500°C and high wear resistance. High speed steel has more advantages to the standard high carbon tool steel. It has very high resistance against loss of hardness at higher temperature .This enables high speed steel to cut faster and to have more long life of too edge.

Thanks to alloying elements like tungsten, molybdenum, vanadium and chromium which are able to form carbides, high speed steel is able to withstand severe hot wear under fast cutting speed. To improve hot hardness and thermal stability, cobalt may also be added.

BOHLER develops and produces high-performance types of high speed steels. They are produced by powder metallurgy technology of 3rd generation. These materials are named MICROCLEAN, offering further improvements in wear resistance, thermal stability, fatigue resistance, toughness, high compressive strength and polishability and grindability. These properties are preventive and obstacle against shelling and chipping of tool edge.

Case Hardening Steels are characterised by a hard case and tough core, meaning they have a high surface wear resistance, and great core strength. This is achieved by carburizing the surface layer of the component, after which it is quenched and tempered.

The use of heat treatable steels covers the full range of mechanical engineering, especially where dynamic stresses are involved.

Application examples include:

• automotive parts such as crankshafts, axle shafts, steering components,
• shafts in locomotive construction, shipbuilding and heavy engines
• parts for machine tools and general mechanical engineering
• components and accessories for the oil and gas industry
• fastening elements such as high strength bolts
• landing gear and control elements in aviation
• gears and gear shafts.

In general, heat treatable steels include several types of steel materials. As classified to be heat treatable steels, we offer the following:

• medium cabon steel capable for hardening
• Cr and Cr- Mo steels
• Cr-Ni steels
• Cr- Mo- V Steel

In general, all grades are of Mn ≤0.9% age.

Steel grades are selected to meet property requirements for a given application.

Demands of higher strength and toughness require increasing alloy content for improved hardenability.

Adding 1% Cr increases the yield strength by approximately 50%; further addition of 0.25% Mo raises the strength and extends through-hardening property and is a barrier against temper brittleness.

Valuable properties are gained by our customers on dealing with steel V320. This material are supplied in the hardened and tempered state, having high yield point and high tensile sterength. This means that it can be used directly after machining without additional heat treatment, so our customers avoid the problems of size change and deflection accompanied with hardening after machining. This is critical for long shafts and connecting rods.