Tools
The basic tool kit carried by the plumber working on metal roof coverings will be adequate for small Traditional system jobs in copper. These would include shears, pliers, mallets and turning and forming blocks. Other basic items include swivel bending machines and folding benches for folding 1 or 2m long copper sheets for profiles.
Portable hand-formers, as well as motorised deforming machines with various ancillary tools, are available for drawing and upsetting standing seams of curved areas such as domes. These machines can punch, notch, upset, draw and flange.
Mechanisation
Based upon the Long Strip system, machines continue to be developed for factory or site prefabrication and mechanised seaming, reducing installation time - and cost. Specialist machines now include edging and folding machines for the production of double lock standing seams.
Machines can also form single and double sided upstands on copper strip in one operation, with variable upstands. On some models, the copper strip is delivered from the roller pre-profiled on both sides, with allowance made for lateral transverse expansion within the double lock standing seams.
With the increasing popularity of copper, specialist roofing contractors are ensuring a bigger share of this growing market by investing in mechanisation systems. |
