Meet the Huge Press Brake That Builds CI Equipment

We’ve been making press brakes for a long, long time. Countless CINCINNATI brakes have been created and shipped in the past 100+ years, but back in 1989, a special one was born. It was a huge one. With 22 feet between housings and 1,500 tons of forming capacity, it easily produced some of the largest parts that press brakes and laser cutting systems require.  

This giant press brake is still active today, but it never left the walls of our facility. See, for the past 30 years, we have used this massive AUTOFORM to form hydraulic tanks, laser frames and straighten press brake frames for our own equipment. It’s a total workhorse, and we put it in this role for one simple reason.

The Beauty of In-House Production
Here at CI, we strongly believe in doing all that we can in-house. By doing so, we are able to guarantee engineering expertise, product quality and cost control. Rather than sub-contracting high tonnage forming and straightening to someone else, this AUTOFORM was built for the task. The 1,500 tons of press capacity ensured it was big enough to handle all the potential work we’d give it. 

Updated and Upgraded
Of course, if a press brake has been working for literal decades, you’re going to need a few upgrades. This AUTOFORM has gotten a few of them, which include a backgage and modern touch-screen with graphical display control interface – the same one we use to upgrade our own customers. The AUTOFORM also had programmable sheet support added onto it, a useful and under-the-radar feature that we offer on other CI press brakes as well.

Available for Hire
When it comes to metal fabricating jobs, experienced operators are still required. You can perform theoretical calculations all you want, but as anyone in front of a press brake can attest, things don’t bend according to plan. A seasoned operator can easily jump these hurdles as they pop up in the manufacturing process.

That’s what you get at CI. On top of producing parts for our own equipment, the 1,500-ton AUTOFORM often produces parts for customers who need sub-contractors. Past jobs include special forming on a 3” aluminum plate, armor plating work and bodies for the Delta 5 missile.

For better parts and better machines, talk to CINCINNATI.
As of this writing, this particular AUTOFORM is hard at work on multiple projects and not available for new jobs. But whatever your need, be it a quality part or a quality machine, the CINCINNATI facility is stocked with machines and people with the drive and know-how to knock it out of the park.