Custom Laser Welded Hollow Profiles for Drilling Machines
Drilling machines work through concrete, rock, and soil across all kinds of geological conditions. They are used for avalanche barriers, foundation stabilization, anchored retaining walls, and embankment stabilization. Because the drilling activity puts components under continuous mechanical stress, the profiles built into the machine have to be extremely strong and precise. For this project destined for Germany, the customer needed a custom hollow tube section that could hold tight dimensional tolerances and a controlled surface finish, in a geometry that standard catalogue sections could not provide.
A Custom Section Designed with the Customer
Working together with the customer’s technical department, Montanstahl analysed the application requirements and developed a laser welded special hollow profile that met both the technical and economic targets. The agreed specification called for welded radii no greater than 2 mm, tight straightness and twist tolerances, a satin polished surface finish, and machined focal edges. The combination of precise laser welding with controlled finishing produced a section with the geometry and surface quality the drilling application needed.
From Carbon Steel Prototype to Stainless Steel Production
Montanstahl delivered the first prototype in carbon steel S355J2. The bar was tested directly in the drilling machine, which allowed the section’s tolerances and surface finish to be refined iteratively. Once the final design was validated against both the technical and economic requirements, production of the first eight bars began. A subsequent evolution of the profile was supplied in stainless steel, chosen for its corrosion resistance in the demanding conditions the machine operates in.
Application Context
This case sits in Montanstahl’s drilling machines and civil engineering segment, where laser welded special profiles are chosen when a custom hollow section has to combine mechanical strength with tight tolerances and a controlled surface finish. Working from a prototype through to refined production is a route Montanstahl follows when the application requires close collaboration between the customer’s technical team and our production. Profiles of this kind are supplied worldwide for drilling equipment used in geotechnical and construction applications.