One aspect is a hydraulic ironworker system having a hydraulic ironworker configured with hydraulic power to deliver controlled force to metal workpieces. An accessory tool is coupled to the hydraulic ironworker via a harness assembly and configured to receive the hydraulic power from the hydraulic ironworker. A remote pushbutton assembly is selectively coupled to the harness assembly and configured to control hydraulic power from the hydraulic ironworker to the accessory tool and further configured with an emergency stop button that, when actuated, disables all power to the hydraulic ironworker system. A safety plug assembly is configured to alternately couple to the harness assembly in place of the remote pushbutton assembly. Power to the hydraulic ironworker system is disabled until one of the remote pushbutton and safety plug assemblies are attached on the harness assembly.

A laser cutting method for a steel strip, includes cutting an end in a width direction of the steel strip including a joint obtained by joining a rear end of a preceding steel strip and a front end of a following steel strip by using a laser beam, wherein the steel strip is cut such that an interval between pieces of dross having an aspect ratio of 1.0 or more is set to 1.0 mm or more and an interval between dross having an aspect ratio of 1.0 or more and dross having an aspect ratio of less than 1.0 is set to 1.0 mm or more in the end in the width direction after cutting.

A process includes flexible rolling of a strip made of a metallic material, wherein a thickness profile with different sheet thicknesses along the length of the strip is produced such that successive regions of the flexibly rolled strip each correspond to a target thickness profile of a sheet metal blank to be cut out of same; determining a measured thickness profile of a plurality of successive regions of the strip; calculating a target position in the strip for a sheet metal blank to be cut out of the strip depending on the generated measured thickness profile of at least two successive regions of the strip; cutting the flexibly rolled strip by at least one cutting device along the target position for producing the sheet meal blank. A plant is further provided for producing a sheet metal blank.

Disclosed are an automatic shearing apparatus for a cold-rolled plate of variable thickness, and a shearing method using the apparatus. The method comprises that: a thickness gauge (4) and a length-measuring device (3) are successively arranged in front of shears (5); and a control device identifies the profile of a strip material passing through the thickness gauge (4) according to length tracing data and measured thickness values, and determines the position of the strip material at the shears (5), simultaneously compares the profile with the set profile of a plate of continuously variable thickness, and decides the action time of the shears. The apparatus and the method can efficiently and accurately shear rolls of supplied materials of continuously variable thickness into plates of continuously variable thickness which can be directly used by a user.

A cut-to-length steel coil processing line has an un-coiling reel, a temper mill, a stretcher leveler, a shearer, and a stacking apparatus arranged to sequentially process a continuous length of sheet metal. The line may be configured such that the continuous length of the sheet metal is directed from the uncoiling reel through the temper mill to the stacking apparatus without processing through the stretcher leveler when a determined thickness of the continuous length of sheet metal is at or below a selected measurement criteria. In the alternative, the line may be configured such that the continuous length of the sheet metal is directed from the uncoiling reel through the stretcher leveler to the stacking apparatus without processing through the temper mill when the determined thickness of the continuous length of sheet metal is greater than the selected measurement criteria.

In a manufacturing method of a thickness-varied metal plate, first, a cut plate is manufactured by cutting a metal plate having a constant plate thickness into a predetermined shape. Next, the thickness-varied metal plate is manufactured by rolling the cut plate using a processing machine including a pair of work rolls. Here, a radius of one of the pair of work rolls is varied in a circumferential direction and an axial direction. Accordingly, the thickness-varied metal plate manufactured by rolling the cut plate using the processing machine has a plate thickness varied in two different directions orthogonal to a plate thickness direction.

A process includes flexible rolling of a strip made of a metallic material, wherein a thickness profile with different sheet thicknesses along the length of the strip is produced such that successive regions of the flexibly rolled strip each correspond to a target thickness profile of a sheet metal blank to be cut out of same; determining a measured thickness profile of a plurality of successive regions of the strip; calculating a target position in the strip for a sheet metal blank to be cut out of the strip depending on the generated measured thickness profile of at least two successive regions of the strip; cutting the flexibly rolled strip by at least one cutting device along the target position for producing the sheet meal blank. A plant is further provided for producing a sheet metal blank.

A method for preparing a high-performance tantalum target, a high-performance target prepared by the method, and a use of the high-performance target. The method for preparing the high-performance tantalum target comprises: firstly, preparing a tantalum ingot into a forging blank by a method of cold forging in conjunction with hot forging; then, rolling the forging blank by a hot rolling method; and finally, performing leveling, and performing discharging, milling and surface treatment according to a size of a finished product, so as to obtain the tantalum target. The tantalum target prepared by the method has uniform crystallization, with a grain size between 50 m and 120 m. A texture component where a texture (110) dominants in the thickness direction of the target is obtained. A total proportion of three textures (111), (110) and (100) is between 40% and 50%, ensuring a consistent sputtering rate of the tantalum target during use.

A trim shear is adapted to trim the front and tail ends of a hot rolled product exiting from a rolling mill along a mill pass line and travelling at either high or low speeds, depending on the size of the product being rolled. The trim shear comprises a trim station having a high speed a set of trim knives configured and arranged to trim the front and tail ends of high speed products, and a different low speed set of trim knives disposed laterally from the high speed set of trim knives and configured and arranged to trim the front and tail ends of low speed products; and the trim station is transversely shifted with respect to the mill pass line to alternatively locate either one or the other of the sets of trim knives in an active position on the mill pass line.

Methods for making Ta sputter targets and sputter targets made thereby. Ta ingots are compressed along at least two of the x, y, and z dimensions and then cross rolled in at least one of those dimensions. A pair of target blanks is then cut from the cross rolled ingot. The resulting targets have a predominate mix of {100} and {111} textures and have reduced B {100} and B {111} banding factors.