PharmaGrade® Steels
Selecting the right steel for each individual application is key to the successful performance of your tablet compression tooling. Good steel selection will achieve an optimum balance of the following properties:
Toughness
Abrasive wear resistance.
Adhesive wear resistance
High hardness levels
Compressive strength
Corrosion resistance
Good machinability and formability
Clean structure
Abrasive wear resistance.
Adhesive wear resistance
High hardness levels
Compressive strength
Corrosion resistance
Good machinability and formability
Clean structure
All of our PharmaGrade® steels are ESR refined at no extra cost.
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Suitable for general-purpose applications.
Features
- Harder & more wear resistant compared to equivalent steels used for tablet tooling
- Very high toughness properties
- High strength profile
- Good polish-ability (due to ESR process)
Benefits
- Long tooling life
- Resistant to fracture
- Reduced tabletting problems (i.e. sticking etc)
Application
For standard application on punches. Especially deep cupped tips and complex shapes.
A great solution when corrosion resistance is a primary requirement.
Features
- Excellent corrosion-resistant properties
- Good polish-ability (due to fine carbide structure)
- Optimised for PharmaCote® products
- Higher chrome content than HPG-S and HPG-P
Benefits
- Extended tooling life when compressing corrosive formulations, using wash-in-place (WIP) systems, and/or using aggressive cleaning processes
Application
For punches and dies.
A sintered micro-grained tungsten carbide cemented with cobalt.
Features
- High compressive strength
- Extremely high wear resistance insert
Benefits
- Reduced die bore wear
- Reduced die bore ringing
- Good tooling life when compressing abrasive formulation
Application
Used for dies only.

Suitable for formulations that are particularly abrasive. Superior quality to other 'premium' steels available in the industry.
Features
- High wear resistance
- High compressive strength
- Good polish-ability (due to ESR process)
- High chrome content
Benefits
- Long tooling life
- Resistant to fracture and die bore ringing
- Reduced tabletting problems
- Improved corrosion resistance
Application
For standard application on punches and dies.
A specialist powder metallurgy grade steel with uniform carbide distribution and small carbide size giving extremely high wear resistance.
Features
- High wear resistance
- Extremely high compressive strength
- Reduced risk of formulation reacting to elements within the die material
Benefits
- Reduces die bore wear
- Reduces die bore ringing
- No black marks on tablets
Application
A specialist solution for dies.