Existing or New Equipment?
When deciding whether or not to produce these panels either as an expanded line or a new product, you must decide if your return on investment (ROI) makes sense for your business model. The rule of thumb is if you must run at least 500,000 linear feet of sheet metal to justify purchasing a new, complete roll forming line.
If you have an existing roll forming line and are planning to run fewer than 500,000 linear feet of sheet metal, you must calculate the current capacity of your line to see if the new components can be run on it. You might be able to retool your existing line, which can be a big cost savings.
Of course, the type of product you are going to run and its requirements (number of passes, horizontal spacing, roll space, and so on) will dictate whether you can run it on existing equipment. Your tooling vendors should be able to help you with this determination.
If you do not have an existing roll forming line or have insufficient capacity on your current equipment, you will need to purchase a new, complete line. New lines come in many configurations; some are high-speed, in-plant machines while others are less capital-intensive feed-to-stop and portable units for smaller footage requirements. The portable machines usually are entry-level, with capacities limited to the smaller footage requirements of on-site fabrication.
