ADDA FER

Universal forming line

In the last years, the request of higher production flexibility has grown more and more, forcing the technology in finding new solutions that permits to have short time in size change and less tooling needed to cover all the production mix.

Matching this wish with the big steps done by the electronical controls, Adda Fer has completed its product portfolio realizing new tube mills able to produce square and rectangular tubes with a universal set of rolls and with an automatic adjustment system controlled by the PLC. This decreases dramatically the time needed to change size and permits to have the possibility to produce all the sizes needed without delivery time lost for rolls manufacturing. Moreover, the direct forming of the 90° edges of these tubes, without passing from the round mother tube, permits also to save raw material.

In fact, this particular deformation of the metal strip interests a smaller area than the traditional forming and the thickness on the edges decreases instead of increasing as in the traditional forming when the round tube is squared.

For this reason, the starting width of the coil can be from 4% to 8% narrower saving tons of steel every year on the total production. The standard configuration of the mill is with eleven stands before the welding head, two or three sizing stands depending from the range of thicknesses required and two turk heads. The first five stands are used to form the lips from the flat strip. Then, four passaged complete the most of the forming using the internal rolls.

Two fin-pass stands are then completing the forming creating the V channel with the correct shape to weld the tube correctly. 

After the welding, scarfing and quenching, two or three sizing stands are calibrating the sides of the tube to the correct tolerance and two turk heads are straightening the tube before the cut-off. All the eleven stands before the welding and the sizing stands are driven with a dedicated motor for each stand and only the turk heads are idle.

The set up is made with hydraulic or electrical motors able to adjust the width of the forming stands, of the sizing stands and correcting the gap between the rolls for the correct thickness produced. The set of rolls is part of the machine and doesn’t require to be changed accordingly with the size. All the adjustment are done in automatic by means of the supervisor system.

Flexibility, quickness and technology! 

In one word: ADDA FER!