TPT May 2024

INDUSTRY

World’s fastest tube mills to boost productivity and capacity at US producer

The high speed OTO tube mills from Fives are capable of producing tubular products at a record-breaking speed, the company said

“Thanks to our dedicated team of engineers and technicians, the four tube mills were commissioned in December 2023, just one and a half years after the order was placed, which was a challenge in itself,” added Luca Cagnolati, sales and marketing director at Fives OTO, a Fives subsidiary specialising in tube mills. Fives has been a market leader for OTO welded tube mills for over 40 years, having delivered more than 1,200 installations worldwide. It designs and supplies machines, process equipment and production lines for the world’s largest industrial players in various sectors such as steel, aerospace and special machining, aluminium, automotive and manufacturing industries.

panels and construction, in both the US and Mexico. “Our goal was to increase the overall efficiency of our plant in Rochelle, Illinois to achieve the fastest possible production in the shortest possible time, as well as to reduce manual intervention to almost zero in order to utilise our personnel for more skilled and productive tasks within the company. Our long-standing relationship with Fives led us to choose its high speed OTO tube mill technology with fully integrated automation to reach our goal,” said John Chatterton, group technical president at Zekelman Industries. “We are proud that we have been able to combine our high quality, high performance equipment with breakthrough technology designs that have enabled Zekelman Industries to set a production record in the manufacture of such tubes.

ZEKELMAN Industries has contracted Fives, an international engineering group, to supply high speed tube mills to increase its productivity capacity for the ever growing domestic US market. Zekelman Industries, one of the largest independent steel tube manufacturers in North America, was looking to increase production, save energy and enhance safety to stay competitive in the domestic market. Drawing on its technical expertise and capabilities, Fives designed and delivered four OTO tube mills that represent a world record in production. The high speed OTO tube mills from Fives are capable of producing tubular products at a record-breaking speed of 900ft per minute. The mills process tube and pipe from 18mm to 130mm in diameter for a wide range of applications, from conduit to solar

Fives www.fivesgroup.com

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MAY 2024