Punch Heavy Plates Instead of Drilling or Burning Them

COMEQ, Inc. (White Marsh, MD), an importer of metal fabricating machinery and the exclusive U.S. distributor of Geka equipment for almost 40 years, recently delivered the world’s largest automated ironworker – a Geka Hydracrop 220 SD hydraulic ironworker with a semi-automatic gauging system and a punch tonnage of over 240 tons – to a customer that will use the machine’s capacity to punch a 1-9/16 in diameter hole thru 1-1/2 in thick A36 steel plate. This Semi-Paxy automated punch has a table size of 16 in Y direction and 40 in X direction and ball transfers (for easy movement of heavy parts) that reduce set up and layout time. The user can expect to reduce their production costs by eliminating time-consuming layout marking and the chance of error that is present with manual layout.

The hydraulic punch stripper that holds the material tight against the X and Y stops during the punching cycle also helps to reduce the potential deformation of the part when punching. The control is B&R Windows®-based with graphics and has a 15 in color touch screen for easy programming. The drive system uses B&R servo motors that rely on ball screws for accuracy. The control has a USB port and a port for network connectivity. Programming is made through Line Pro software developed by Geka that allows full tonnage for punching or low tonnage for spotting or layout. Because of the punching tonnage, the user can now punch heavy plates that would normally require drilling or burning. Punching is much faster and eliminates the extensive cleanup that is required when drilling or burning.

The user can also take advantage of additional stations because two operators can work at the machine simultaneously. The Punch is an independent station with the advantages described above. The user will add the capacity of the other operations he is doing on his existing machine. The second operating station (dual-cylinder machine) will allow him to increase his other built-in capacities as follows: shearing up to an 8 in x 8 in x ¾ in angle with a patented non-deform cut, shearing plate 30 in x ¾ in or 20 in x 1 in with adjustable rake angle, solid round and square bar shearing and the notching station with a capacity of 2-1/4 in wide, 4-5/16 in deep and 5/8 in thick.

The Geka Hydracrop 220 SD hydraulic ironworker is equipped with a hydraulic angle and plate hold down. When the operator steps on the foot pedal, it activates the hold down to hold the plate or angle tightly during the shearing function. This option provides better cut quality and promotes longer blade life. An electric length gauge/ cut-to-length system facilitates the cutting of shapes. The gauging table on the notcher allows the user to manufacture more accurate parts. As different jobs come up, the user can change the round and square bar blades to channel and beam blades within the machine’s capacity. Pipe notching and short bending can be done when the rectangular notcher is replaced with the appropriate tooling.

COMEQ, Inc., 10521 Industrial Park Road, White Marsh, MD 21162, 410-933-8500, sales@comeq.com, www.comeq.com.