Auto Engagement and Disengagement of Universal Shafts in Roll Forming

In order to keep your roll forming operation productive and profitable, you need to be sure that you have the right machines with the right features to produce your end product. Many know that rafting a roll forming machine is the first step to improving efficiencies by reducing changeover times. However, when you want to squeeze the most out of your system by reducing your changeover times by even more, then an automated method of engagement/disengagement is required. In this post, we'll explain the concept of auto engagement and disengagement of universals in roll forming and the benefits this system upgrade can provide.

What is Auto Engagement/Disengagement?

When universals are only engaged and disengaged manually by your technicians, the changeover process can be significantly slower, as only one universal can be connected or disconnected at a time. The amount of time required to complete this task depends on the size of your roll forming machine and the accompanying universal shafts, as well as the quantity to changeover. However, when engagement and disengagement of universals is done using automation, the entire line can be disengaged or engaged at once.

Benefits of Auto Engagement of Universal Shafts

Auto engagement and disengagement of universal shafts provides a wide variety of time- and cost-saving benefits to your roll forming operation. First, the rafted design of the machine means that your changeover time will be dramatically decreased to a fraction of the time it would take to change out roll tooling individually. Shorter changeovers mean more product off the line and out the door, increasing productivity, and therefore profit, in the process. This setup also makes damage to the machine much less likely, meaning that maintenance time and costs will also likely be reduced.

At the same time, the automated nature of this technology eliminates hands-on contact with the universal shafts, meaning that your technicians no longer need to manually change the heavy shafts, reducing safety concerns. Automation also cuts down on human error, meaning fewer defects in your products caused by issues like a miscoupled shaft. All in all, switching to an auto engagement and disengagement system for your roll forming operation can improve your production significantly, making an investment in this technology a smart move in the long run.