A
Th e
Component Manufacturing dverti$er
Don’t Forget! You Saw it in the
Adverti$er
March 2020 #12248 Page #10
Sixty Years of Machines: Part IV: Early Roller Gantries
Joe Kannapell - P.E. Senior VP, MiTek USA www.mitek-us.com
T
he roller gantry dominates today’s truss production, but it hasn’t always done so, despite the fact that it hasn’t changed much over sixty years. The reason for its relatively slow ascendency is found in its origins and in its adaptations over this period. And along the way are some surprising lessons that still resonate. The patent holder of the gantry, Carroll Sanford, and his engineer, Jim Pool, didn’t exercise some creative genius to apply the principle of the “ringer washing machine” to truss production. They likely saw this appliance working in their homes, as did most Americans (this writer included) in the 1950s. But Sanford did have the foresight to gain a patent on this technology in 1965, which effectively barred competitive roller systems during its 17-year duration. While he retained the two roller “ringer” functionality in his finish press, he omitted the bottom roller on the gantry head. In its place, heavy steel tables and the familiar railroad track were employed to resist the pressure of the gantry. Some maintain incorrectly that this omission created the necessity for a finish press (see Part V next month). Sanford’s patent drawings contain some surprises, as his jigging tables have much more in common with C-clamp pedestals than modern gantry tables (shown here and below). The original Sanford walk-through tables facilitated waist-level operation, unlike current systems. And it also minimized material handling distances; cut parts were stocked immediately adjacent to their location in the truss. It may be said that the Sanford jigging derived from the pedestal model, as the C-clamp design was patented three years earlier.
Continued next page
PHONE: 800-289-5627
Read/Subscribe online at www.componentadvertiser.com
FAX: 800-524-4982