What Is a Flanging Service?
Flanging involves creating a protruding cylindrical part on a component to enhance attachment and strength. This term, originating from the French “roulette” for “something small and turning,” plays a crucial role in mechanics, electronics, building materials, and fluid-carrying pipe connections to prevent leaks and ensure compatibility.
Uses of Flanging Services
Flanging is critical in applications requiring secure connections without slippage, such as in building drainage systems, automobile axles and exhaust pipes, and the anti-breakaway collars in railway vehicles.
Principle of Flanging Services
Flanging incorporates standard machining processes like turning, cutting, and sheet metal working, with specific techniques tailored for creating flanges.
1. Lathe Turning
Applied to round parts, this method forms the flange’s basic shape, with additional steps for bolt threading holes and threading as needed.
2. Cutting
This method is preferable for square flanges or those with complex geometries.
3. Sheet Metal Processing
Sheet metal flanges are shaped through press bending or drawing.
4. Bending
Adjustable for different angles, V-bending, L-bending, and U-bending techniques are selected based on the flange’s intended application.
- V-Bending: Allows for adjustable bending angles, facilitating non-right-angle flange formation.
- L-Bending: Creates a right-angled flange on one side only.
- U-Bending: Forms right-angle bends on two sides of the flange.
5. Drawing Process
Utilizes a die and blank holder to shape parts, including flange formation, ideal for container production.
Types of Flanging Services
Flanges can be bent, shrunk, extended, or composed, each offering unique geometries and challenges.
1. Bending Flange
A straightforward process bending the end of a blank, typically producing straight processing lines.
2. Shrinkage Flange
Features a convex arc, requiring attention to prevent wrinkles and sagging during machining of fan-shaped ends.
3. Elongation Flange
Forms a concave arc, stretching the material and necessitating care to avoid cracking.
4. Composite Flange
A complex process combining bending, shrinking, and stretching to achieve a constant flange height with arbitrary shapes.
How to Select Flanging Services
Flanging enables easy creation of screw holes and strong welding connections, particularly beneficial for curved surfaces where dirt accumulation is minimized. However, it poses challenges with soft materials and thick plates due to deformation risks and high loads. Limited threading may also lead to thread wear over time, suggesting alternative methods for enhanced durability.