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hidden lv defects
What sourcing teams often miss when reviewing stamped low voltage terminal specs and quotes.
Issue 090
🔥 The Problem: Tiny Errors, Big Electrical Risks
If you’ve ever chased down an overheating terminal or an unexplained voltage drop in a low-voltage power unit, you know how elusive these problems can be.
And more often than not? It’s not bad metal or sloppy plating. It’s geometry. Even slight misalignment in tabs, crimps, or contact faces creates additional resistance — and when that happens inside a sealed or heat-sensitive assembly, the problem builds fast.
You’re Already Watching the Right Things
You’re juggling spec sheets, compliance rules, and tight build windows. So when field failures show up, it’s frustrating to realize the root cause started at the stamping die — not the end of the line.
What this really means is: terminals may be low voltage, but they demand high-precision process control.
What Great Teams Do Differently
Low-voltage stamped terminals are high-use parts. They get plated, pressed, crimped, inserted, and sometimes molded. That makes consistent geometry — not just dimensions — essential.
Here are three ways top sourcing and engineering teams reduce risk:
🧩 1. Form the profile — not just the shape
Even if the cut is perfect, a formed terminal with bowed tabs, uneven crimps, or edge burrs can create a poor contact surface. That lowers the effective area and raises contact resistance. Precision dies that control spring-back, burr size, and form height are key to repeatable builds.
🧪 2. Factor in plating buildup
Tin, silver, or nickel plating can add between 0.00005–0.0003″ per side, depending on the process. That can affect insertion force, current-carrying capacity, or fit. The best teams model both the raw and plated condition, and coordinate die allowances with finishing specs to avoid rework later.
đź“ś 3. Back it up with traceability
When you’re building into UL- or IEC-certified assemblies — or working under DFARS or RoHS requirements — documentation isn’t optional. It’s required. Full traceability of base metal and plating batches should be locked in and repeatable. Otherwise, you risk audit flags or requalification delays down the road.
âś… What Better Looks Like
When terminals are built for compliance from the start — with forming, plating, and packaging all dialed in — you avoid:
🧯 Electrical issues during validation
🧪 Plating-related rework or fit failures
📉 Cost creep from spec drift and unplanned cleanup
🗂️ Audit exposure from missing documentation
You protect the part, the system, and the spec — without inflating the BOM or waiting on rework.
Want a sanity check on your stamped terminals?
Gromax Precision Die & Mfg., Inc. specializes in designing and manufacturing precision metal stamped parts and tooling, including progressive stamping dies and custom equipment. With an on-time delivery rate of 99.68% and a defect rate of just 0.066%, the company ensures exceptional reliability and quality.Â
Gromax is ISO 9001:2015 certified and ITAR registered, serving industries such as medical, defense, aerospace, industrial automation, and automotive with high-quality, innovative solutions.