Schlüsselwörter: Umformwerkzeuge / hochfestes Aluminium / Beschichtung / Simulation / FEM / With the ambition for improved efficiency of energy and resources the light weight construction in engineering and vehicle construction and therefore also the usage of light but high strength aluminum alloys gains importance. Components made from new composite materials and combinations of materials offer the ability of considerable decrease in size and weight compared with conventional materials. But in the forming machining of such materials the mechanical and thermal demand on the tools is much higher. Especially the higher affinity towards adhesion and the abrasive impact of embedded reinforcement particles is critical. Simultaneously the usage of lubricants and release agents shall be reduced due to antipollution reasons. Therefore an improved wear resistance of the tool surfaces by coatings or modification of the surface layer is necessary. Generally it is not enough just to coat the existing tools but tool geometry, coating-substratematching and coating thickness has to be adjusted to the loading. For that purpose the method of finite elements (FEM) is a good choice. In the subproject B1 of the SFB 692 numerical models for analyzing and optimizing of coated tools for high strength aluminum alloys are to be developed. A main part of this work is the determination of model parameters. Even here the FEM in combination with experimental analysis is used. The article describes the approach via selected examples of DLC coatings. Preliminary studies pointed out the suitability of DLC coatings despite the high carbon affinity of the aluminum.