Swaging is a forming process in which a sheet or tube passes between two profiled wheels that form a bead or a raised profile into the surface. Swaging stiffens thin sheet metal without adding material, and is widely used on pipes, ducts and cladding.

Flanging is the forming of a sheet edge to a specific angle, usually 90 degrees, using sets of wheels. The resulting flange serves as preparation for a subsequent seamed joint or as a stiffener for the edge itself.

Seaming refers to joining two sheet edges by interlocking, formed profiles, without welding, riveting or gluing. Seamed joints are the most common way to connect individual duct sections tightly and mechanically in duct manufacturing.

A bead sits within the sheet field itself and is mainly used for stiffening, without changing the edge. A flange, by contrast, forms directly at the sheet edge and prepares it for a seamed joint or additional stiffening.

Beads increase the stiffness of a sheet without significantly increasing weight, and are often used on pipes, ducts and large sheet metal parts to prevent deflection or vibration. Certain bead shapes are also used as a step to nest two pipe ends into each other.

On a swaging machine, the sheet or pipe is placed between two shaping wheels. As the wheels rotate, the workpiece runs through while the wheel profile forms the desired bead, flange or seam. Depending on the model, the drive is manual or motorized.

A wheel pair consists of an upper and a lower wheel with matching profiles that together create the desired forming in the sheet. Different wheel pairs are fitted to the machine for different bead, flange or seam shapes.

Common wheel types include flanging wheels for turning up flanges, swaging wheels for pre-forming beads, chamfering wheels for tapering off a bead, double-seaming wheels for preparing seamed joints, as well as square wheels and crimping wheels for special steps and profiles.

For beads and flanges on straight pipes and small parts, the Swaging Machines RAS 11.15/11.35 or the Swaging Machine EasyFormer are suitable. Elbows for air ducts are usually produced with a combination of the Lockforming Machine SpeedySeamer, the Rounding Machine VENTIrounder and a Ducting Machine DuctZipper. For elbow segments that need a flange, the Flanging Machine RAS 21.20 is also used, and for round tube connections the Seam Closing Machine RAS 25.15.

When making an air duct elbow, a seam is first formed into the still-flat sheet with the SpeedySeamer. A rounding machine such as the VENTIrounder then rounds the sheet without flattening the seam that is already there. Finally, a Ducting Machine closes the seamed joint between the two duct halves in a single pass.

The RAS 11.15 and RAS 11.35 are compact, handy swaging machines for the workshop and the job site. They are suited to common swaging and flanging tasks on pipes and sheets and, thanks to their low weight, can also be used on the move.

The RAS 11.15 is driven manually via a hand crank. The RAS 11.35 has a motor drive with continuously variable speed, adjustable via a rotary potentiometer on the machine stand. A foot switch also controls forward and reverse running on the motorized version.

The standard equipment of the RAS 11.15 and RAS 11.35 already includes 9 wheel pairs for all common swaging and flanging applications, so no additional investment is needed to get started.

The machines are suited to repair and maintenance work, small batches, and mobile use on the job site, for example with extraction tables, smoke filters or custom ventilation solutions, where a stationary large machine is not needed.

Both models have a center-to-center wheel distance of 50 mm, a maximum sheet thickness of 1.25 mm, and a maximum working depth of 200 mm. The RAS 11.35 reaches up to 20 meters per minute via its motor drive and features motorized forward/reverse running, while the RAS 11.15 is fully manually driven and is available as a bench-top or stand version.

The EasyFormer is an intelligent swaging machine that forms beads and flanges on pipes and sheets and automatically reproduces the taught workflow. It is suited to companies that want to carry out recurring swaging and flanging work with consistent quality and without any programming knowledge.

On the first workpiece, the operator presses the "Teach" button. The touch control then automatically registers when and how far the upper wheel is set, and when a change of direction occurs. On every following workpiece, the machine automatically clones this learned sequence; the operator only needs to guide the part and set the working speed with the foot switch.

The RAS 12.35 version is designed for applications up to 1.75 mm mild steel, while the larger RAS 12.65 version processes mild steel up to 3.0 mm thick.

If a hazardous situation occurs during operation, the UnLock function opens the upper wheel of the EasyFormer instantly as soon as the operator pulls one of the UnLock levers on the right or left of the machine frame. This release also works during a power outage or an electrical overload.

Available stop plates for the EasyFormer include a large stop plate with a 360 x 330 mm contact surface made of high-strength, ground material, a split stop for small stop dimensions, a stop plate for insulating pipes, as well as a round stop and a special stop for the bevel flanging wheels.

Speed is continuously variable from 0 to 28 meters per minute, controlled via a sensitive foot switch with soft start. The center-to-center wheel distance is 63 mm, and the maximum working depth (reach) is 250 mm.

The RAS 21.20 is a proven machine for the ventilation industry, used to turn up flanges on straight, round and curved elbow segments for air ducts. The forming wheels turn the flange up to 90 degrees and prepare the sheet for the following seamed joint.

The RAS 21.20 prepares elbow segments for both Pittsburgh seam and snap-lock seam connections. An additional attachment for the cam-standing seam also cuts and forms the cams needed for that connection, if required.

The working speed of the RAS 21.20 is continuously variable between 0 and 9.4 meters per minute. The machine can also be operated from a standard 230V household outlet.

Large flanging rollers ensure a clean, wrinkle-free result even on tight radii. An automatic sheet guide further eases the work, and widened table supports at the infeed and outfeed support the sheet during forming.

The RAS 21.20 processes sheet thicknesses of up to 1.5 mm.

With the standard forming wheels, flange heights of 6 to 15 mm are possible, and with the automatic sheet guide, either 8 or 10 mm. The minimum internal elbow radius is 100 mm for a 90-degree elbow segment and 130 mm for a 180-degree elbow segment. The machine itself measures 600 x 600 mm.

The DuctZipper-V forms and closes the seamed joint on small and medium-sized, already rounded air ducts in a single pass, instead of carrying out the three classic steps of seaming, seaming and closing separately.

The sheet guide system, with three short and three long arms, ideally supports the sheets of small and medium-sized air ducts as they run through the machine and travels together with the AutoPilot from the infeed to the outfeed side. For multiple seamed joints, it also takes on a transport function for the sheet placed crosswise on it.

The DuctZipper-L is specifically designed for large duct cross-sections and closes even 1500 x 1500 mm cross-sections with just two operators and without significant physical effort. Smaller and medium-sized ducts can be handled by a single operator.

On the DuctZipper-L, the working position is rotated 45 degrees and the horizontal leg of the duct rests on the table, which allows even large and heavy cross-sections to be positioned easily, without having to maneuver them in on their edge. The horizontally lying duct also needs less space, since the side length rather than the diagonal determines the working area. The DuctZipper-V, by contrast, is especially suited to small and medium-sized ducts.

The SealJet is an optional feature, which can also be retrofitted, that additionally applies sealant to the seamed joint as it passes through the machine. The sealant provides corrosion protection, meets current hygiene requirements, and, thanks to fast evaporation, still allows trouble-free manual sealing afterward if needed.

The SpeedySeamer forms seams into straight sheets for air ducts before they are rounded and closed. Two sets of rolls set up at the same time allow matching seam types, such as Pittsburgh seam / standing seam or snap-lock seam / cam-standing seam, to be produced without any changeover.

At a speed of 16 meters per minute, the SpeedySeamer produces several hundred meters of air duct seams every day. Roller shafts mounted in roller bearings, together with a wide gearbox, ensure accurate profiles and high seam quality.

Yes. Besides galvanized mild steel, the SpeedySeamer can also produce stainless steel air ducts for smoking chambers, laboratory installations or systems handling aggressive media. An automatic lubrication system is required when processing chrome-nickel steel (INOX/CrNi/1.4301) and ensures reliable wetting of the sheet surface.

Because certain seam types always work as a pair, for example Pittsburgh seam with standing seam, or snap-lock seam with cam-standing seam, both matching sets of rolls can be set up in the machine at the same time. This avoids a changeover between the two corresponding seam types.

The SpeedySeamer processes sheet thicknesses of up to 1.5 mm.

The VENTIrounder rounds the inside and outside elbow cheeks of air ducts whose sheets already have a pre-formed seam, without flattening the existing seam.

Classic rounding machines have continuous shafts. Since already seamed sheets have a profiled seam, setting the wheels to the seam thickness produces poor rounding results, while setting them tighter flattens the seam and damages the shafts over time. The VENTIrounder solves this problem with segmented wheels.

The common seam types in duct manufacturing are the Pittsburgh seam, the snap-lock seam and the standing seam. If the VENTIrounder is equipped for all three seam types, it can be switched between them with just a few adjustments, thanks in part to 12 hardened, slidable forming wheels on each shaft.

The VENTIrounder processes sheets up to about 1500 mm in width, with material thicknesses of up to around 1.25 mm.

The RAS 25.15 closes seamed joints on round tubes, for example when manufacturing pipes and fittings in ventilation technology.

The Seam Closing Machine RAS 25.15 closes seams with widths of 10 mm and 13 mm on round tubes. Changeover between inside and outside seams takes only a few seconds, and turning the tube doubles the usable working length of the machine.

The RAS 25.15 processes sheet thicknesses of up to about 0.88 mm, on tube lengths of up to 1520 mm.

The RME is a three-roll rounding machine that rounds flat sheets into tubes quickly and easily. Crowned rolls ensure the best results when rounding thin sheet, and a swing-out upper roll allows convenient removal of the finished rounded tube.

Yes. By angling the rear roll, the RME can also round conical shapes, in addition to classic cylindrical rounding of tubes.

The RME is available in five sizes: RME52/103, RME52/128, RME60/103, RME60/128 and RME70/153, with working lengths from 1030 to 1530 mm and roll diameters from 52 to 70 mm. Depending on the size, the maximum sheet thickness ranges from 0.9 to 1.5 mm. All versions have three rolls and are driven by a 230V single-phase motor.

First, a lockforming machine such as the SpeedySeamer forms the seam into the still-flat sheet. A rounding machine such as the VENTIrounder then rounds the shell sheet without damaging the seam. If a flange is needed, the Flanging Machine RAS 21.20 additionally turns the edge up to 90 degrees. Finally, a Ducting Machine DuctZipper closes the two duct halves together in a single pass.

For insulated pipes, the RAS Swaging Machines 11.15/11.35 or the EasyFormer with a special stop plate for insulating pipes are suitable, matched to the larger outside diameter of insulated pipes. For round connections, the Seam Closing Machine RAS 25.15 is also used.

A flanging wheel, also labeled BC, forms a straight flange at the sheet edge, typically in preparation for a seamed joint or as an edge stiffener.

A bevel flanging wheel, labeled BD, forms a flange at a defined angle instead of straight, which is needed for certain seamed joints or connection geometries and requires a specially designed stop.

A swaging wheel forms a bead in several, gradually increasing steps instead of forming it completely in a single pass. This protects the material and improves the forming result, especially on thicker or more sensitive sheets.

A chamfering wheel lets a bead taper off in a controlled way at its edge, so that no sharp transition occurs between the beaded and unbeaded areas of the sheet.

A double-seaming wheel forms both profiles needed for a seamed joint at the same time, or in immediate succession, so that two matching sheet edges can later interlock and close the seamed joint.

The Pittsburgh seam is a common seamed joint used in duct manufacturing, in which one sheet edge is formed into a narrow, upright rib that is folded into a matching groove on the opposing edge and then pressed closed.

The snap-lock seam is a seamed joint in which the two sheet edges lock into each other through a springy, clamping profile shape, allowing fast assembly without additional tools.

The standing seam is an upright seamed joint in which the formed edges stand perpendicular to the sheet surface, often used together with a Pittsburgh seam on the same air duct component.