The Art of Using the Roll Forming Process to Shape Metal

Since the discover by ancient peoples that metal can be liberated by applying heat to rock ore, methods for extracting and manipulating metal materials have been rapidly refined. The interest in metal working is sparked by modern society's need for metal products and tools. It seems like everything from household tools to automobiles and skyscrapers are products of metal forming. Today's population has become dependent on metal to complete daily tasks and function in society. For that reason, metal forming has become and increasingly important trade.

Roll forming is one method of metal forming. It is important to note that rollform can be written as either one word or separated into two words. These two forms of using the word "roll form" will be used interchangeably throughout this article. The art of roll forming is a continuous process. A roll forming machine consists of several sets of consecutive rolls. Each set of rolls is called a stand. As the metal passes through each stand it is only bent slightly. Therefore, each stand only incrementally contributes to the desired specification of the metal. The metal piece will continue rolling through the roll forming machine, being manipulated by each stand, until it reaches the desired cross-section profile. The practice of roll forming is best used when making parts with long lengths. Roll forming is a common way to form objects out of sheet metal.

A roll forming machine will shape a piece of metal into a specified cross-section profile. Simply put, a cross-section profile refers to the desired result, in other words, the concluding shape of the metal. A variety of cross-section profiles can be obtained through roll forming. Each desired shape, however, will require a specifically crafted roll tool. For example, on roll forming machine cannot produce a variety of differently shaped metal. One machine will produce a specific form. If another form is desired a new carefully crafted set of roll tools will be required. It may seem silly to possess a machine that only shapes metal into one form. One must remember, however, that roll forming machines are intended for industrialized purposes. Factories such as automobile plants or factories that produce aluminum cans require machines to make the same bends in the metal without requiring change.

Several different types of roll forming machinery can be purchased and developed to fit the cross-section specifications that are required. Some examples of roll forming machinery include rollforming presses, Stud and Track Rollformers, Purlinmaster Rollformers, Greenfield Stud Rollforming Lines, and Workhorse Series Rollformers. Rollforming machinery are also used in a variety of industries including building construction, garage doors, automotive, shelving and complex parts.

By Alice Lane