Perhaps you’re familiar with the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears? In her quest for the perfect bowl of porridge, the perfect bed and the perfect chair, she tried out some bad ones along the way. With a hydraulic press, you can’t afford to make a mistake. The stakes are a little higher than just some lumpy oatmeal. This guide will give you an idea of what to ask, what to look for and what to consider when it comes to sourcing a hydraulic press that’s right for you and your business.

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You already know the advantages of a hydraulic press. You know it can perform at a demanding pace, within exacting tolerances and at an output that can’t be matched by hands-on, human labour. While these are important features, you should also be asking these questions:

What is the tonnage required to get the job done?

The beauty of a hydraulic press is that it’s fast and simple to adjust tonnage meaning that you can tune the press to exactly the right tonnage you need for the right job.

What kind of Press do I need 4-Post, Straight side, Gib guided or other alternatives?

Like the best of us, a hydraulic press can multi-task! A hydraulic press can be used on multiple jobs, different sizes and shapes of metal and offers a high degree of customizable options suitable to a wide variety of industries. While indeed a 4-Post or Gib guided hydraulic press might best suit a particular function – hydraulic presses in general still offer a flexibility not found in other machines. Just one hydraulic press can sometimes do EVERYTHING you need with their ability to perform a variety of tasks like: stamping, crushing, bending, molding, forming and drawing.

• An Open-gap press will give you, as the name implies, easy access from three sides giving you flexibility in where and how the machine is positioned in your facility. Sometimes also called C-Gap presses they are ideal for smaller shops.
• 4-Post or 4-Column presses are considered a good idea for applications where larger dies are required. A 4-Post also offers flow through capability with work entering at the front and exiting from the rear. This press offers good accuracy.
• Gib-guided presses offer superiority when it comes to off centre loading, are adjustable and ensure precise ram guidance. Also known as Straight-sided presses, they also offer rigidity when using progressive die applications. Tight clearance and fully adjustable left to right as well as back to front they provide great resistance to any lateral slide motion.

What accessories will I need?

Whatever you need, a hydraulic press will have it. From dwell timers to ejection cylinders, touch screen controls to servo-system adaptability, a hydraulic press can be customized to meet your exacting specifications. Die cushions, automatic cycling and sliding bolsters are still more options. Varying ram speeds and computerized dashboards mean you can maximize efficiency and precision on almost any type of job.

What is the cost of my investment?

Comparatively speaking, the cost of a hydraulic press is lower in terms of up front costs and your return on investment is excellent with efficiencies gained including faster production times, improved safety and lower labour costs. You’ll even be doing something good for the environment. With fewer moving parts, more energy efficiency and less fuel required to operate, they’re environmentally friendly too!

1. Tonnage. Is the tonnage required to do a job the same for a hydraulic press as it is for a mechanical press? The answer is yes. There is no real difference. The same formulae are used to determine tonnage. The tooling is usually interchangeable. There may be certain applications such as deep drawing where the full power stroke characteristic of a hydraulic press reduces the tonnage, but there are no known instances where using a hydraulic press requires more tonnage.

   Selecting press tonnage in the typical press room is often little more than guesswork. If, for example, a job is successful on a 100-ton mechanical press, it tends to stay there for the life of that job. The job may never have been tried at 75 tons or at 50 tons.

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   With a hydraulic press, however, you can adjust tonnage quickly and easily, tuning the press to precisely the right tonnage for each specific job.

2. The action of the machine. Even though the tonnage question might be settled, the question of the effect of the stroke on the work is often asked. Is it the same as with a mechanical press?

   The answer, again, is yes in most cases. There are some specific limitations. Drop hammers and some mechanical presses seem to do a better job on soft jewelry pieces and impact jobs. The coining action seems sharper if the impact is there.

   In deep drawing, however, the full power stroke of a hydraulic press produces significantly better results.

   Otherwise there are very few examples where the application of 100 tons of hydraulic force produces any significant difference in the character of the part given the same tooling.

   Shear in the dies will reduce blanking tonnage for hydraulic presses in the same way it does for mechanical presses.

3. Type of press selection. Open-gap presses provide easy access from three sides. 4-column presses insure even pressure distribution. Straight-side presses offer the rigidity required for off-center loading in progressive die applications.

   The more critical the work and the more demanding the tolerances, the greater the reserve tonnage capacity should be.

4. Accessories. Most hydraulic press builders offer a wide array of accessories. These commonly include:
   • Distance reversal limit switches
   • Pressure reversal hydraulic switches
   • Automatic (continuous) cycling
   • Dwell timers
   • Sliding bolsters and rotary index tables
   • Die cushions
   • Ejection cylinders or knockouts
   • Electronic light curtains and other devices
   • Touch screen controls
   • Servo system feedback for precise, consistent, repeatable stroke control
5. Quality. The industry offers various levels of quality. There are light-duty presses that are capable of "spanking" the work momentarily and reversing, and there are heavy-duty machines designed for general purpose metalworking applications.

   Here are just a few construction points that will provide a basis for comparison of one machine with another:

   1. Frame. Look at frame construction-rigidity, bolster thickness, dimensional capacity, and other factors.
   2. Cylinder. What diameter is it? How is it constructed? Who makes it? How serviceable is it?
   3. Maximum system pressure. At what psi does the press develop full tonnage? The most common range for industrial presses is 1000 to 3000 psi.
   4. Horsepower. The duration, length, and speed of the pressing stroke determines the horsepower required. Compare horsepower ratings.
   5. Speed. See page 5 to determine the speed of a hydraulic press.

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