Beckwood manufactures hot forming presses for Ducommun facility

St. Louis-based Beckwood Press Co., a manufacturer of custom hydraulic presses and automation systems and the Triform line of sheet hydroforming equipment, has partnered with aerospace industry company Ducommun Inc. to design and manufacture two new hot forming presses for Ducommun’s Parsons, Kan., facility.

The 200-ton press will be used to hotform titanium parts for a variety of aerospace platforms, including the new Boeing 737 MAX aircraft. It features a pneumatic dwell system that allows the primary electric motor and pump to be turned off during the extended dwell cycle, dual linear and pressure transducers in the main ram cylinders, and precision speed control to regulate ram speeds as low as 1/8 IPM.

The 570-ton hot forming/superplastic forming press will be used to form titanium structures for the Airbus A320 aircraft. Features include an automatic insulated door system for loading and unloading without affecting the press’s operating temperature, a bed shuttle system for loading and unloading parts and tooling, and a proprietary active level control (ALC) system to maintain bed-to-ram parallelism and reduce the effects of off-center loading.