Cutting Spring Stack Costs by 90%
When a customer brought us a spring stack package spec’d for sourcing through a French manufacturer using Inconel 718, we saw an opportunity to rework the material specification and save considerable cost for them. What followed was a sourcing exercise that found an alternative steel and coating combination capable of matching the performance at a fraction of the cost. Here’s how we cut the price of a specialist downhole component by roughly 90%, without compromising on shock load, rebound rate, or corrosion resistance.
Overview
The challenge
The customer came to us with an existing product package they wanted to use as a buy house arrangement. It was a spring stack spec built around Inconel 718 as the base material, sourced from amanufacturer in France. Inconel 718 is a specialist, expensive nickel alloy, chosen because the springs needed to perform in a high temperature, high corrosion, hot mud, downhole environment.
We took on the full technical brief including shock load requirements, rebound rate, and the material specification needed to meet both the mechanical and environmental demands. The spec worked on paper, but manufacturing in Inconel 718, on top of routing the order through an external buy house, made it an expensive way to solve the problem.
Rather than simply place the order as specified, we treated it as a sourcing exercise. Could the same performance be achieved with a different, more cost-effective material and manufacturing route, without compromising on any of the technical requirements the customer needed?
Overview
How we helped
We approached one of our own trusted suppliers with the brief and asked whether they could producethe spring stacks directly from Inconel 718. They couldn’t, but came back with an alternative, which was to use a lower grade steel that could match the same heat rating if paired with an anti-friction coating to compensate for the corrosion resistance Inconel 718 provided naturally.
We already knew of several coatings capable of delivering the resistance needed for that environment, so we sourced the spring stacks made from the lower grade steel with the right coating applied. The result matched the shock load and rebound rate of the original spec, held up to the heat and corrosion demands of the environment, and came in at roughly 10% of the original cost. The customer trialled the new spring stacks, and they performed exactly as needed.
Overview
The benefits
Since the trial, we’ve supplied these spring stacks on a recurring basis, roughly two to three times a year. Beyond the initial cost saving, this arrangement has protected the customer from further price rises, since Inconel 718 and similar specialist materials have continued to increase in cost since the original spec was drawn up. It’s also removed the sourcing burden from the customer entirely. Rather than manage a supply route through a buy house and an overseas manufacturer, they now have a direct, reliable supply of a component built to their exact performance requirements, at a fraction of the original price.
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Time to talk
If a specialist component in your supply chain is costing more than it should, we can help find a smarter way to source or manufacture it. Get in touch to talk through your requirements and see if there’s an easier and more cost-effective route to the performance you need.
Testimonials
What our customers say
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Coburns are a reliable and reactive supply chain partner, always willing and open to discuss and drive change initiatives.
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Highly recommend, knowledgeable, reliable and easy to deal with.
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Working with Coburn Fasteners is a simple and easy process. Whether you send an email or speak over the phone, nothing is inconvenient and they will do their up-most to help you. I would highly recommend Coburn Fasteners for a quote. Their fast and efficient service and delivery lead-time is excellent compared to a lot of vendors.
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Coburn Fasteners is a responsive and reliable supplier that helps SLB efficiently source off-the-shelf and buy-house items. Their support reduces the need to onboard multiple suppliers and simplifies the procurement process and help us improve work efficiency and workload management.
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When Jeremy approached us and said he could help with our kitting, it suddenly dawned on me just how inefficient our existing process had become. As our product range rapidly expanded, the time and effort involved in sourcing, designing and assembling kits in-house was becoming a real drain on the business.
