Metal Technology installs 1,200-ton press

Metal Technology (MTI) has installed a 1,200-ton press with CNC capabilities at its Albany, Ore., facility. The press expands the company’s deep-draw and forming capabilities in terms of diameter, length of product form, and wall thickness.

“The equipment's 84-in. stroke with 122 in. of daylight allows us to start with a 2-in.-thick titanium or tantalum plate and make it into a 65-in.-long seamless tube,” said Pat Coffey, vice president of operations.

Thicker material and material having denser properties can now be formed on the 60- by 60-in. press table. The equipment has been commissioned to form tractor-trailer receiver panels made from ½-in.-thick, high-strength carbon steel and complex stainless steel aircraft wing-ribs. Additionally, the press opens up new possibilities for the company’s offerings to the coatings and thin-film industries using tantalum, copper, titanium, and silver.

"The new press will allow us to deep draw up to 2-in. material and back-extrude product forms to thinner, longer dimensions than we ever have before," said Kirt Curran, manager of technical services.