Metal roll forming might not be as simple as you may think; machines can come in a variety of sizes, product outputs, uses, speeds, and more. Our friends with New Tech Machinery break it down with their Rollforming Learning Center. “Whether you notice it or not, products made using the process of metal rollforming are everywhere. Items could include something as visible as metal roofing or garage doors, or products working behind the scenes, like pipes, window frames, and countless others.”
According to the Metal Construction Association (MCA), roll forming is defined as: “A continuous bending operation in which a strip of metal, typically coiled steel or aluminum, is passed through consecutive sets of rolls, or stands, each performing only an incremental part of the bend until the desired cross-section profile is obtained. Portable roll forming is ideal for producing parts with long lengths or in large quantities and are designed so they can be moved easily to various locations or job sites.”
The history of roll forming is an interesting one. Dating back as early as 600 B.C., this archaic rollforming typically involved hammering ductile metals found in the earth, including copper and gold, with hard objects until they were flattened or formed into a shape. More advanced forms of rollforming developed over time with one of the earliest known designs of a more modern rollformer belonging to Leonardo da Vinci with a 1480 sketch of a “rolling mill” depicting a material passing through cylindrical rollers to be flattened. The first actual industrial rollforming/metal working plant on record launched in the early 1600s in the United Kingdom.
With over 25 years fabricating and producing portable metal roll forming equipment, New Tech Machinery knows the importance of education on how metal roll forming began and why it’s still so important to this day, especially if you work in the metal fabrication industry. If metal roll forming machinery didn’t exist, humans would have to put forth significant extra labor using press brakes, folders, and other equipment to make metal products. Instead, machines produce and roll thousands of pounds of metal per day significantly increasing productivity.
ROLL FORMING EDUCATION AVAILABLE AT METALCON 2019
If you’ve come to METALCON shows in the past, you know that it is more than just exhibits. Attendees have the opportunity to learn from key industry experts on important topics. At METALCON 2019, one of these topics includes a special two-part program on Roll Forming for the Metal Construction Industry.
The first of the two-part program will be held on Wednesday, October 16 from 8:30 am – 12:00 pm and led by the following industry experts: Ryan Durst, Vice President Sales & Marketing, The Bradbury Company and Joe Beck, President, Beck Automation, Brian Rodgers, Sr. Application Engineer, Formtek, Inc., Andy Allman, President, AMS Controls Inc., and Steve Ebel, President, Roll Form Solutions Inc. They will cover the following topics: Considerations for Metal Building Roll Formers, Utilizing Exiting Capital Equipment and Tooling, Improve Profitability & Competitiveness through Computer Integrated Manufacturing and Proper Roll Form Tooling Setup and Troubleshooting. For details on Part I, please click HERE.
The second of the two-part program will be held on Thursday, October 17 from 8:30 am – 12:00 pm and led by the following industry experts: Brian Rodgers, Sr. Applications Engineer, Formtek, Inc., Paul Williams, Director of Sales, Hill Engineering, and Chuck Summerhill, Technical Sales/Engineer, TEKFAB. The following topics will be covered: Material and How it Affects Metal Building Products in the Roll Forming Process, Creative Options for Punching/Shearing/Cutoff Challenges in the Metal Building Industry, Advanced Roll Forming of Steel Framing Components, and Automation and Material Handling for Roll Formed Products – Emphasizing Operator Safety, Labor Reduction & High-Speed Production. For details on Part II, click HERE.
Part I is Session Number: SP4 on Wednesday, October 16, 2019: 8:30 AM – 12:00 PM and Part II is Session Number: SP8 on Thursday, October 17, 2019: 8:30 AM – 12:00 PM; Cost is $160 for each part. REGISTER TODAY.
This program is sponsored by the Fabricators & Manufacturers Association, International® (FMA).
