Albina Co. Inc., located in Tualatin, Oregon, has mastered the craft of spiral bending large HSS sections using an induction heat bending process. In the summer of 2015, Albina developed their own custom induction heat bending equipment and controls through an intensive R&D venture. Albina’s induction heat bending process is fully automated, numerically controlled, and temperature monitored.
Shortly after going live with their induction heat bending process. Albina was inundated with HSS spiralling jobs coming from all over North America. After the first few months of operation, Albina was awarded an order that would be the ultimate test of what this machinery was designed to do. Spiral bending HSS 20” X 12” X .625” wall on a 13’ 9” plan view radius with a 14-degree pitch. Albina had never attempted to induction bend a member this large, to a spiral configuration, and to a radius this tight.
Albina’s induction heat bending process performed beautifully on the spiral stringers, deformation of the HSS in section was a minimal 1/8” maximum for each nominal dimension. Overall, 450 lineal feet of HSS 20” X 12” X .625” wall was spiral bent for this one project to tight tolerances and 0% rejection rate.
Over the last couple of years since this “test” Albina has continued to perfect their induction heat bending process making improvements along the way with each lesson learned. Albina has successfully spiral bent thousands of feet of HSS sections ranging from 10” X 3” to 20” X 12” using the induction heat bending process.
For more information please see the webpage below
https://www.albinaco.com/steel-bending-methods/induction-bending