Stamping (also known as
pressing) is the process of placing flat sheet metal in either blank or coil form into a
stamping press where a tool and
die surface forms the metal into a net shape. Stamping includes a variety of sheet-metal forming manufacturing processes, such as
punching using a
machine press or
stamping press, blanking, embossing, bending, flanging, and coining. This could be a single stage operation where every stroke of the press produces the desired form on the sheet metal part, or could occur through a series of stages. The process is usually carried out on
sheet metal, but can also be used on other materials, such as
polystyrene.