By Maria Simeonova
By early 2026, tungsten became an active supply-chain risk for manufacturers using carbide tooling.
For Exactaform, and for the customers we support across aerospace, automotive, motorsport and wider manufacturing, the issue is that the market become harder to predict on day-to-day basis. That also remains the challenge we face today, and it affects how tooling is quoted, planned, stocked and repeated.
Throughout 2025, tungsten prices climbed sharply, with industry reporting showing increases of more than 1800% across key tungsten raw materials including ammonium paratungstate tungsten (APT). As a result, by early 2026, prices had moved into record territory of 300%.
"The entire industry is facing unprecedented disruption on an increasingly frequent basis, and the highs and lows feel more extreme. This is certainly one of the most significant shifts in the globalisation model and evidence of how much impact that another country can have on our own industry locally and abroad. Now, more than ever, manufacturing and engineering must use ingenuity and innovation to connect with our customers to deliver value far beyond the product.”
Jamie White, Managing Director
Material prices, availability and lead times are not always within a manufacturer’s control, but recycling, reusing, logistics and tool optimisation is.
This guide brings together Exactaform’s technical knowledge, our experience supporting customers across high-value manufacturing, and the practical steps we look at when carbide cost, wear, availability or repeatability become harder to manage.
Start with looking at the material being machined, the operation, tolerance, finish requirement, batch size, current tool life, wear pattern, machine conditions and the cost of any interruption. These details show whether the current tooling is still the right one, or whether the process is already carrying avoidable risk.
In some cases, adjusting cutting data, better coolant delivery, improving chip evacuation, a regrind service, or a more structured approach to repeat ordering might suffice. A tooling change is only recommended when it improves the wider process, not just because another option exists.
The price of the tool is often the first thing people focus on, but it is rarely the full cost of the process. Tool life, change frequency, machine interruption, inspection time, rework risk, stock availability and delivery confidence all feed into cost-per-part.
A cheaper tool that wears quickly can cost more over time, but a more advanced tool may be unnecessary if the application does not demand it.
“What does this process cost us to run” is the main question you need answers for.
Carbide is the practical choice for many machining applications, particularly for ferrous materials like cast iron or steel.
However, for wear-heavy applications, PCD or diamond-coated tooling may also be worth reviewing. PCD is suited to abrasive non-ferrous materials, composites and high-volume operations, whereas diamond-coated carbide can sit between standard carbide and PCD, offering a practical option where standard carbide wears too quickly but a full PCD solution is not required or commercially justified.
For selected abrasive drilling applications, Exactaform’s newly designed Aero-CARB 2 Flute Double Margin Diamond Coated Drill gives manufacturers higher wear resistance, cleaner holes and fewer tool changes.
Regrinds, retips and refurbishment can help manufacturers extend tool life, reduce replacement spend and ease pressure on new carbide input. But the value depends on having the right process in place.
A good regrind programme should define what the tool needs to achieve when it returns to production. In some cases, that may mean restoring a sharp cutting edge. In others, it may mean returning the tool to a defined geometry or full OEM-level standard.
Exactaform supports Level 3 regrind services, helping customers protect tool performance, consistency and process confidence across repeat applications.
Typical regrind levels include:
Level 1: Tool reground to restore sharpness
Level 2: Tool reground to a defined geometry
Level 3: Full OEM-level regrind and refurbishment
The right level depends on the tool, the application and the performance objective. The aim is not simply to make a tool last longer, but to return it in a condition that supports the wider process.
For critical repeat tools, agreed reorder points, reserved capacity, urgent turnaround support or min-max stock arrangements can also help protect production continuity.
Building a tooling plan that gives you more control over cost, availability, repeatability and process confidence, can be the biggest benefit/time investment.
Our engineers and experts produce blogs, guides and case studies that help answer the biggest tooling questions.
