Metal Sheet Cutting Methods

With advancements in equipment and technology, some cap manufacturing machines now use a whole sheet punching process, eliminating the cutting step. This approach can save material but requires suitable punching machines. Despite this innovation, many manufacturers still rely on strip stamping. Below, we introduce the strip cutting process used for strip stamping.

Punching Methods

Cap production punching can follow two main arrangements:
1. Single-Row Arrangement

• Lower material utilization

2. Double-Row Staggered Arrangement

• Higher material utilization

Cutting Methods

Cutting methods are divided into straight cutting and wavy cutting:

• Straight Cutting:

Uses a disc cutter to produce straight strips.

• Wavy Cutting:

Uses a wavy cutter to create wavy strips, mainly for double-row staggered strips or whole sheet punching.

Cutting Equipment

There are two primary types of cutting equipment:

1. Disc Cutter
A disc cutter features pairs of disc blades on parallel shafts. Sheets are cut into strips using a rolling shear action. The width of the strips depends on the spacing between each pair of blades. Due to lower material utilization, disc cutters have gradually been phased out in cap material cutting.

2. Wavy Cutter
Often paired with a double-head automatic punching machine, this cutter uses interlocking wavy upper and lower edges to produce wavy strips. Compared to straight strips, wavy strips improve material utilization. However, each cap size requires its own wavy cutter, so changing cap sizes means swapping out the corresponding wavy blades. This method is now widely used for rolled materials.