Bespoke Cold Rolled Sections

Cold rolling is a manufacturing operation used to turn a block of metal into a thinner sheet. By reducing the thickness of the metal, the metal is more pliable, and can subsequently be shaped, ready to be made into an end product, which can then be used in a variety of industries. Due to being able to control the yield strength of the metal, cold rolling is used when metal needs to be shaped without the risk of it snapping or breaking.

Cold rolling is often used as it boasts advantages over other similar processes, such as hot rolling or press braking. Namely, cold rolling increases the yield and tensile strength of the metal, whilst maintaining a good quality surface finish.

Hot rolling heats the metal before rolling it, whereas cold rolling consists of working with a coiled metal strip that is ready to form after being decoiled and straightened.

This creates some differences in the end product. For instance, cold rolled metal has a better surface finish, and a more accurate shape; hot rolled metal may have some surface imperfections, or a rough surface.

However, the hot rolling process is quicker and cheaper, due to the limited steps, but may need additional secondary operations in order to get the workpiece to a higher quality finish.

Cold rolled metals are usually made for products needing precision and accuracy; cold rolled metals may often be used as part of an overall consumer products such as home appliances or furniture, but can also commonly be made into strips, sections, and bars which are used across various sectors. Cold rolled steel can even be made into vast sections, for the building of train carriages or aerospace machinery.