WCA January 2010

Photo credit courtesy of Mevis SpA

Bending and forming

A n encyclopaedia entry on the metalworking processes observes that the bending of metal “takes significant but not Herculean effort.” To the visitor to a state-of- the-art wire making plant, the high-speed bending and forming operation may appear to take no effort at all. A two-dimen- sional wire former producing directly from coil; a rotary air bender shaping sharp angles and radius bends; a CNC sys- tem turning out double-centred eye loops.

These, and a host of other mar- vels of smoothness and repeat- ability, are accomplished with no visible hand on the controls. This degree of wire shop effici- ency is of course the result of the patiently accumulated and applied expertise – the significant effort –of successivegenerations of dedicatedbendingand forming professionals. Here, Wire & Cable ASIA reviews some of the outstanding pro- ducts and services of the current crop of these specialists.

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Wire & Cable ASIA – January/February 2010