Aluminum bending

The metal bending process in Minifaber

Aluminum is particularly valued for its lightness, stiffness, and electrical and thermal conductivity. 

Among the many types of metalworking, Minifaber also performs aluminum sheet metal bending. This process is done with a machine, the press brake, which uses a blade and V-die to apply pressure to a flat aluminum sheet to obtain different shapes. Combined with the shearing and stamping processes, aluminum bending aims to obtain semi-finished products of different types. It is therefore applied to a very wide range of sectors, as we will see later. 

The topics covered on this page are:

• How the sheet aluminum bending process is done

• What an aluminum press brake looks like

• What are the application areas of sheet aluminum bending.

The aluminum bending process in Minifaber 

Sheet aluminum bending is one of the easiest processes to perform because of the properties of this material: its malleability and lightness allow it to be bent according to the customer's drawing specifications. 

In Minifaber, the process is done in several steps.

• Initial design: our Engineering Department sits down with the customer to outline the best strategy to produce the finished or semi-finished aluminum product, including considering feasibility at all stages of the project;

• Considering the machine and tools: depending on the type of project, we assess which of our sheet aluminum brake presses to use, considering their stroke, opening, maximum force, overall dimensions, and tool sizes. We also decide which ones to use based on our knowledge of the fleet of tools in the company;

• Adopting appropriate safety measures: in this step, which precedes the actual fabrication, all the necessary safety measures area adopted to protect operators while they work. All of Minifaber's machines comply with the latest European safety regulations;

• Bending: we proceed to the sheet aluminum bending stage, which is completed with extreme precision thanks to our technologically advanced machines. All of our press brakes are programmable to minimize the possibility of error. 

Sheet aluminum press brake: what it is like

Aluminum press brake have a structure composed as follows: 

The beam

This is the moving part of the machine on which the blades are installed. Depending on the type of fabrication, it slides vertically following the dimensions translated by the numerical control. 

The bed

The bed is located under the beam, and the dies are installed on it. There may be a crowning (or cambering) system inside it to compensate for beam deformation. This system may vary with the type of machine and design purposes. 

The side frames

These are the side structures that delineate the width of the aluminum press brake frame.

The computer numerical control (CNC)

This is the interface between the operator and the machine. The CNC offers multiple programming modes: numerical and graphical. In numerical programming, the operator enters data in numerical form into the appropriate cells, while graphical programming involves using two- or three-dimensional graphics showing both the bending sequence and the finished part. 

The backgage

This device sets the correct bend length of the aluminum sheet and consists of a beam with two or more stops mounted on it. These stops are free to move sideways to the desired position. This device facilitates operations while minimizing the risk of error. 

The application sectors of sheet aluminum bending 

The application areas of aluminum bending are diverse, because this type of fabrication can be used to make prototypes and batches, even in small runs, with considerable cost savings. 

It is used for the electromechanical, lighting, gas distribution, EV charger, home appliance and furniture sectors.