FUSA offers a complete integrated line as a single source for your metal tile panel business. FUSA´s hardware partner is the world leader in tile panel forming lines. Over 40 custom-designed lines have been supplied all over the world. The leading tile panel producers in North America are using these machines.
Extensive experience in integrated sheet metal production lines where the metal tile panel lines are only one specialty application. Thus, FUSA is able to offer all kinds of sheet production lines for your needs.
is done with a highquality, gentle forming process.
- offers stationary tile press in the standard line configuration
- a flying tile press available which will increase the output of the line by 30 percent.
- Automatic panel stacking systems are available and capable of various kinds of stacking patterns, including the pyramid stacking.
- roof ridge cap presses for different cap designs.
In addition to these standard designs engineered roof tile panels for 15 years, and thus, has accumulated lots of tool design experience. We welcome customer panel design suggestions.
Metal roof tile panel was developed in Scandinavia twenty years ago.
The Scandinavian roof tile panel is produced in North America from 48´
mother coil width (elsewhere 1220-1250 mm is the most common). Scandinavians
are enjoying the quality of the metal roof and European, or Spanish, looks of
conventional tile. In the early 1990´s, the metal roof achieved a stunning
60 percent market share in residential roofing.
Around the 14h century, the first roofs in Europe were covered with metal sheets. There is, therefore, a record of the history of metal roofing, although it is impossible to say what the lifetime of an individual metal roof will be. Metal roofs that were built as early as the 18th century are still in good condition! Modern metal roofs are made mainly of precoated galvanized steel or aluminum sheets; copper is used in some special applications.
Major developments in metal roofing really started in the middle of the1970's when the new Tile Effect designs--imitating traditional clay and cement tiles--were presented. At the same time the new color-coated materials made it possible to achieve the looks of original tile.
The new idea was adopted especially in Scandinavia. The roll forming industry there immediately found out the great business opportunities the new product made possible in the roofing market where clay and concrete tiles, asphalt composite shingles, and fiber cement panels dominated.
In only ten years, precoated steel has achieved the market leader
position in Scandinavia in residential housing. At the moment, up
to 50% of new roofs are made of color-coated metal, especially in Tile
Effect shapes. In the reroofing business, the figures are even higher--up
to 75%.
The Tile Effect sheets are most often delivered in full vertical lengths--panels running from the ridge down to eaves--making the actual installation time minimal.
Metal does not break, shrink or burn, proving it a long-lasting and safe roofing material.
A variety of different designs are available for Tile Effect in a large number of colors and coating materials. Industry is also using embossed and multicolored materials to differentiate products from one another. Also, the metal tile panels may be post-coated; also an aggregate stone coating is gaining interest.
Metal is an environmentally friendly and recyclable material,
factors that continue to grow in significance in today's ecologically conscious
world.
Since the technology has mainly been developed in Scandinavia, the most advanced designs and solutions are Scandinavian.
In general, the manufacturing process of Tile Effect sheets is very straight forward. The 48" wide mother coil--typically 26 gauge steel or aluminum--is formed into the desired shape using a conservative roll forming process. The tile step is then stamped in a specially-designed hydraulic press. Finally, the sheet is cut to the desired length and stacked.
There are obvious possibilities to enhance the total output of
the line. Foremost, the production of the tile panel is dependent
on the cycle time of the press. A stationary tile press is
the most common choice, and the material is stopped while the tile step
is formed. A flying press option is also available, where the material
flow is continuous. The take-off may be also expedited and automated
with a stacker.
The critical item, and the most demanding part in the manufacturing
process, is the tile step press, especially the tool technology, because
it ultimately determines the quality of the tile panel. Although
the latest machining technology is used, the professional touch of a craftsman
is essential. The market would not accept any deformation of the
panel, not to mention any process-damage on the coating.
The operation of the line is very simple because everything is controlled
by a single PLC. The operator sets the lengths and amounts of the
panels to be formed for the order. The PLC control system takes over
from there. The panel may also be produced in various step lengths,
the most common being 16". By turning a scale at the control
board, one may produce quite different-looking panels by altering the step
length and not pay a dollar more for this operational flexibility.
For marketers and specifiers of the tile panel, it is important to understand
this special capability.
All the tile lines are custom designed, most of them to produce a single tile design. As any roll forming machine, the line may be rafted and tooled to produce other trapezoidal panels as well. Some of the tile panel's basic profile designs are suitable also to be produced without steps. This would add a nice-looking trapezoidal panel to the panel manufacturer's offering.
FUSA Tech, of Reston, Virginia, has worked for two
years to meet with the new challenges, and has developed a new type of
Tile Effect panel with concealed fixing. The panel is produced typically
using a 24" wide coil generating an 18" cover width. Concealed fix
panels are smaller than conventional Scandinavian vertical panels and are
produced in 8' long modular sheets. The panel has a tongue and groove
engagement with adjoining panels. The installation of these smaller
panels is easy, self-guiding, and fast. Panels have pre-punched oval
holes at the fixing flange, greatly facilitating the fixing. These
oval holes allow for thermal expansion of the panel. A smaller sized
panel is easy to handle on a roof, yet it is big enough to warrant fast
installation. Since the panel is narrow, the installer does not need
to step on it, again making the installation faster and safer.
From the manufacturer's point of view, this new panel is very attractive
because it is shipped in standard lengths. This is unlike conventional
tile panels, which are manufactured according to customer's orders and
in full vertical lengths of the roof. The modularity of the concealed
fixed panel also makes the manufacturing process efficient and lowers the
cost of the product. In addition, the distribution of a modular panel
may use conventional channels, making it possible to cover new markets
and secure faster market penetration.
The concealed fix approach requires a narrow panel in order to withstand the wind uplift forces. A production line for a narrower panel is shorter, meaning also less invested dollars. Because the new panel is modular, the line can be used for three-shift production. As a result, the feasibility numbers of this new machine are very favorable. The new concealed fix tile panel was introduced at the NRCA show in Orlando this February and the feedback from the industry was very congenial. Manufacturing of the panel will be commissioned in the United States in the early fall of this year.
Industry has developed new coatings suitable for tile panels. In Scandinavia, the trend is more flexible and thicker coating types; also, a satin finish is more desirable than a high gloss surface. A new polyurethane-based coating has been developed and is now on the market. It is competitively priced compared to commonly used PVF2 coatings. In the United States and the Pacific area, new multi-colored coating options are available, and will make the product even more attractive to both the producers and the users.
Represented by: FUSA Tech, Reston, VA
20190, ph (703) 481-9308, fx (703) 481-9309