One of the most important factor to be considered for the analysis of sheet metal forming processes is the tool surface description for arbitrarily- shaped sheet metal parts. In the present study , finite element approach is used to describe the arbitrarily shaped tool surface. In finite element mesh approach, tool surfaces ar, described by finite elements. The finite elements mesh description of the tool surface, which is originally described by CAD data, needs much time and time-consuming graphic operation. The method, however, has been widely used to describe a complex tool surface. In the present study, the contact searching algorithm for the finite element mesh approach is developed based on cell strategy method and sheet surface normal scheme. For the verification purpose, a clover cup drawing, Baden-Baden oilpan problem and a trunk floor drawing were investigated. The computational results based on the finite element approach were compared with the results of available parametric patch approach and experiments