If you are among those who think that laser-cutting equipment and press brakes will one day make CNC punches obsolete, think again, cautions Susan Erler, product manager for Wilson Tool International, White Bear Lake, MN.
“There’s a misconception that a laser cutter and a press brake are always the better choice than a punch press, and that one day I will be out of a job,” she says half-jokingly. “What metal formers need to realize is that the precision stroke of a CNC punch press with the right tooling makes it the better choice for a range of forming operations. Take for example a perforated pattern; the punch press outperforms the laser. And when it comes to complex forms, precision tooling and stroke control enables a turret press to function effectively as a less costly mini press brake.”
Read the complete article in Metalforming Magazine.
November 01, 2019