Neometrix / Metal Forming Machines / Hydraulic Shearing Machine / NMX-HGS-98

NMX-HGS-98 · ENGINEERED-TO-ORDER CLASS — DUTY · FRAME · HYDRAULICS · GUARDING · BUILD · PROVE

Hydraulic Shearing Machine. The gap decides the cut.

Name: Hydraulic Shearing Machine
Brand: Neometrix
SKU: NMX-HGS-98

A hydraulic shearing machine cuts sheet and plate to size between two long blades. A hold-down clamps the sheet, the upper blade comes down past the lower one, and a back gauge sets the length. Neometrix engineers it as a system: the frame, the hydraulics, the blades, the guarding and the proof.

So the machine has to set the blade gap for the material, clamp the sheet before the blade moves, and guard the point of operation on every side.

Discuss a shearing machine Capability note (PDF)

A hydraulic shearing machine on a plain white studio background: a heavy pale grey welded frame with two tall side housings and a long upper beam, two bright hydraulic cylinder rods rising from the top, a row of black hold-down cylinders along the beam, a flat bright table with support arms and a flat grey steel sheet, plain wire mesh guard panels at the front and the back of the blade, a hydraulic power unit with a black motor joined by two black hoses, and no people

Fig · 01 — A hydraulic shearing machine: a stiff frame, a long upper beam with its hydraulic cylinders and a row of hold-downs, a table with support arms, guards at the front and the back, and a separate power unit — illustrative render.

The result

a straight, square piececut to length, with a small burr

The gap

set for the materialand for its thickness

The hold

clamped before the cutso that the sheet cannot lift or slide

The guard

closed on every sideat the blade and at the hold-downs

Status

engineered to orderno delivered machine claimed

ISO 9001ISO 14001EN 13985 reference for guillotine shearsISO 12100 reference for machinery safety

Overview

What a shearing machine has to get right, and what goes wrong when it does not.

Because the cut is made in one stroke, and a wrong setting shows in the edge of every piece that follows.

The cutting zone of a hydraulic shearing machine on a plain white studio background: a long bright upper blade inclined along the bottom of a pale grey beam, a long bright lower blade along the front of a steel table, a row of black hold-down feet clamping a flat grey steel sheet, a narrow curled offcut strip on a tray below the blades, and no people

Fig · 02 — The cutting zone: an upper blade inclined to the lower one, the hold-downs that clamp the sheet, and an offcut strip lying on the tray below the blades — illustrative render.

The gap decides the cut.

What the machine is for

It cuts sheet and plate to size in a straight line, one stroke at a time. It serves fabrication shops, workshops and plants that cut flat stock before it is bent, pressed or welded.

How it cuts

The upper blade comes down past the lower blade, and the metal is sheared between them. The edge is partly a clean shear and partly a break, and how much of each depends on the gap.

Why the gap decides the cut

The gap between the blades is set for the material and its thickness. If it is too small, the blades wear faster and need more force. If it is too large, the edge gets a burr and rolls over, and the piece can distort.

Why the upper blade is raked

The upper blade is inclined to the lower one, so that the cut runs along the sheet and not along its whole length at once. The rake changes the force and the twist of the cut strip, so it is chosen for the material.

Why the hold-downs clamp first

The sheet is clamped before the blade moves, so that it cannot lift or slide as the cut starts. The clamping pressure also affects distortion, most of all in thin sheet.

Why the back gauge has to repeat

A back gauge sets the length of the cut piece. It must repeat, so that the tenth piece is the size of the first, and it must be square to the blade.

Why the guards close on every side

Accidents on a shear come from the clamps as well as the blade. So the point of operation under the blade and the hold-downs is guarded in front and behind, and the guards are interlocked.

Why the drive has a relief valve

Hydraulic cylinders give the force the stroke needs. A relief valve limits it, so that an overload cannot break the frame or the blade.

Why the blades are looked after

A blade dulls with use. A dull blade needs more force and leaves a poorer edge, so the blades are reground, turned or replaced on a plan.

The method

Duty, frame, hydraulics, guarding, build and prove.

Six steps in a fixed order. The gap setting and the proof are the two that a quick job skips.

1 · Duty

The materials, the range of thickness, the length of the cut, how many cuts an hour, and how the cut pieces are taken away are noted.

2 · Frame and blades

The frame is made stiff, so that it does not spring open under the cut. The blades are fitted with a gap that can be set for each material.

3 · Hydraulics

Cylinders drive the beam, a power unit feeds them, and a relief valve limits the force. The hold-downs have their own circuit and their own pressure.

4 · Control and guarding

The control sets the stroke and the back gauge. The guards close the point of operation on every side and are interlocked with the stroke.

5 · Build

The frame, the beam, the table and the supports are built and fitted, and the blades are set square to the table.

6 · Prove

The machine is run on the customer's own material, the gap and the edge are checked on trial cuts, the guards and interlocks are tested, and the record goes with the machine.

Which hazard, which safeguard

What can go wrong	Why it happens	What the machine does about it
The edge has a burr and rolls over	the gap is too large for the material	a gap set for the material and its thickness, and a trial cut to check it
The blades wear fast or chip	the gap is too small, or the cut is beyond the duty	a gap set from the duty, a relief valve that limits the force, and blades kept sharp
The cut strip twists or bows	the rake is too steep for the material	a rake chosen for the material, fixed or adjustable
The sheet lifts or slides	the clamp is weak or late	hold-downs that clamp before the blade moves, at a pressure set for the sheet
A hand reaches the blade or the clamp	the point of operation is open	guards in front and behind, interlocked with the stroke, and an emergency stop
Pieces vary in length	the back gauge moves, or is not square	a back gauge that repeats and is set square to the blade

The step people underrate is the gap. A machine with a powerful drive and a wrong gap cuts every sheet badly, and the blades pay for it.

Work content

What the machine contains, element by element.

Read it as a checklist: a machine missing a row will cut metal, but it will not cut it well or safely.

The back gauge of a hydraulic shearing machine on a plain white studio background: a long bright steel bar with stop fingers carried on two bright vertical screw columns, each with a black servo motor and a round gear box, a steel table with a row of ball transfer units, a grey sheet resting against the stops, and no people

Fig · 03 — The back gauge group: a bar with stop fingers on two screw columns driven by servo motors, and ball transfer units that let the sheet slide to the stops — illustrative render.

Element	What it does	What matters
Frame	carries the cut	a stiff welded frame with two side housings and a long upper beam, that does not spring open under the cut
Blades	shear the metal	a long upper blade and a fixed lower blade, with edges that can be reground, turned or replaced
Gap adjustment	sets the cut	a way to set the gap between the blades for each material and thickness, and to check it
Hydraulic drive	moves the beam	cylinders and a power unit, with a relief valve that limits the force so that an overload cannot break the frame
Hold-downs	clamp the sheet	clamps that act before the blade moves, on their own circuit, at a pressure that can be set for the sheet
Rake	shapes the cut	an upper blade inclined to the lower, fixed or adjustable, chosen for the material
Back gauge	sets the length	a back gauge that repeats, set square to the blade, manual or driven
Sheet supports	carry the sheet	a table and support arms that hold the sheet level, and a way to take the cut piece away
Control	runs the stroke	a control that sets the stroke and the back gauge, and starts the cut only when the guards are closed
Guarding	keeps hands away	guards in front and behind the blade and the hold-downs, interlocked with the stroke, and an emergency stop
Testing & documentation	prove the machine first	trial cuts on the customer's material, a check of the gap and the edge, a test of the guards and the interlocks, and a record the customer can inspect

The elements that decide the result are the gap adjustment and the hold-downs. The first sets the quality of the edge, and the second keeps the sheet where the blade expects it.

Full specification — expand

System	A stiff welded frame with two side housings and a long upper beam carrying the upper blade; a lower blade fixed to the table; adjustment of the gap between the blades; a hydraulic drive with cylinders, a power unit and a relief valve that limits the force; hold-downs that clamp the sheet before the blade moves; a back gauge that repeats the length; sheet supports; a control with stroke setting; interlocked guards at the front and the back, and an emergency stop; and cutting trials and documentation before handover
The One Idea	The gap decides the cut.
Why The Gap Decides The Cut	The gap between the blades is set for the material and its thickness; if it is too small the blades wear faster and need more force, and if it is too large the edge gets a burr and rolls over and the cut piece can distort
Why The Blade Is Raked	The upper blade is inclined to the lower so that the cut runs along the sheet; the rake changes the force and the twist of the cut strip, so it is fixed or adjustable and is chosen for the material
Standards	EN 13985 covers the safety of guillotine shears, and ISO 12100 covers the general principles of design, risk assessment and risk reduction for machinery. This page prints none of their requirements, and no edition year. Approval of a machine rests with the customer and the authority they name; none is claimed here
Configurations	A swing-beam shear, a variable-rake guillotine shear, and a shear with a controlled back gauge
Scope Boundary	This page is the hydraulic shearing machine, which cuts flat stock to size. It is not a press brake, which bends the sheet (see hydraulic press brake), not a general press, which forms a part between dies (see hydraulic press machine) and not a tube bender, which bends tube round a die (see hydraulic tube and pipe bending machine). It does not decide the cutting plan, and it does not replace the operator's own judgement. No certification or accreditation is claimed here
Status	Neometrix engineers hydraulic shearing machines to order, and no delivered hydraulic shearing machine is claimed.

Configurations

One method, three ways to build the machine.

The method, the safety design, the hydraulic logic and the proof are shared. What changes is how the upper blade moves, and how the length is set.

Swing-beam shear

An upper beam that swings on pivots, with a fixed rake, for general cutting

For a shop that cuts a range of sheet with one machine: the beam swings the upper blade past the lower, and the rake is set once, at the design.

Variable-rake guillotine shear

A rake that can be changed, for thin and thick material on one machine

For work that changes between thin and thick sheet: the rake is changed for the material, to keep the force and the twist of the cut strip in check.

Shear with a controlled back gauge

A back gauge driven and set by the control, for repeated lengths

For many pieces of many lengths: the control moves the back gauge to each length, and the length repeats from the first piece to the last.

And the part that is not equipment at all, yet decides all three: the duty and the cutting plan. They are written from the customer's own material, thickness and work, not from the machine.

The drawings

A reference set, drawn as real CAD sheets.

Two sheets of one reference configuration: the hydraulic circuit of a hydraulic shearing machine, and its general arrangement with three details. They show the power unit, the hold-downs with their clamp switch, the two shear cylinders, the machine in elevation and section, the gap between the blades, the rake of the upper blade and the guards. They carry tags and letters only. Every force, thickness, length, gap, angle and quantity is fixed by design for the customer's duty.

Reference drawing sheet one, the hydraulic circuit of a hydraulic shearing machine. A power unit with a reservoir, a motor and pump, a filter, a relief valve and a gauge feeds two functions. The hold-downs are fed through a solenoid valve and a pressure reducing valve, with a pressure switch that confirms the clamp. The two shear cylinders, one at each end of the upper beam, are fed in parallel through a second solenoid valve. A legend, a table of what each step does, seven notes and a title block stamped reference configuration, not for construction

Fig · 04 — Sheet 01, the hydraulic circuit: the power unit, the hold-downs with their reducing valve and clamp switch, and the two shear cylinders, in the style of the graphical symbols of fluid power. Reference configuration, tags only.

Reference drawing sheet two, the general arrangement and details of a hydraulic shearing machine. A front elevation shows the two side housings, the upper beam driven by two shear cylinders, the row of hold-downs, the table, the guard panel, the back gauge and the power unit. A section at the blades shows the lower blade, the upper blade with the gap, the sheet clamped by a hold-down and the back gauge stop. An item list numbers ten parts. Detail A shows a right gap against a gap that is too large, Detail B the rake of the upper blade, and Detail C the guards in front and behind the blade. A title block stamped reference configuration, not for construction

Fig · 05 — Sheet 02, the general arrangement and details: the machine in elevation and section, a right gap against a gap that is too large, the rake of the upper blade, and the guards. Reference configuration, letters only.

Every real machine is drawn for its own material, its own thickness and its own work. These sheets are the arrangement and the order of working that a project set starts from. Approval of any drawing rests with the customer and the authority they name; none is claimed here.

PDF · two sheets

Reference drawings — hydraulic circuit and arrangement

PDF · capability sheet

Hydraulic shearing machine — what Neometrix engineers

Where it is used

Wherever flat stock is cut to size, and the edge has to be right.

The common thread is a sheet or a plate, a straight cut, and a piece that goes on to be bent, pressed or welded.

Fabrication shops

Where plate and sheet are cut to size before they are bent and welded, and the cut pieces have to fit.

Sheet-metal workshops

Where many sizes of thin sheet are cut every day, and the back gauge and the hold-downs matter most.

Plants and maintenance workshops

Where flat parts are cut to make or repair equipment, and one machine serves several materials.

Training and tool rooms

Where trainees learn to set the gap and the hold-down, and the machine is guarded so that they can learn safely.

Watch

See it in motion.

A short walkthrough video of the Hydraulic Shearing Machine.

FAQ

Common questions.

Longer answers, for readers who want the reasoning.

Q · 01 What does a hydraulic shearing machine actually do?

It cuts sheet and plate to size in a straight line. The sheet is laid on the table and pushed against the back gauge. The hold-downs clamp it, and then the upper blade comes down past the lower blade and shears the metal between them. Hydraulic cylinders move the beam, and a relief valve limits the force. Guards close the point of operation on every side while the blade moves. The machine does not decide what is cut. That comes from the cutting plan, and the machine is built, set and proved to carry it out.

Q · 02 Why does the gap between the blades decide the cut?

Because the edge is made where the two blades pass each other, and the gap sets how the metal parts. The gap is set for the material and its thickness. If it is too small, the blades rub and wear faster and the cut needs more force. If it is too large, the metal is pulled over the lower blade before it parts, so the edge gets a burr and rolls over, and the piece can distort. A gap that suits one sheet does not suit another, which is why the machine has a way to set the gap, and why the setting is checked on a trial cut.

Q · 03 Why is the upper blade raked, and can the rake change?

Because a blade that is inclined to the other cuts along the sheet from one end to the other, instead of along its whole length at once, and that lowers the force. The price is that the rake also changes how the cut strip behaves, and a steeper rake can twist it. A swing-beam machine has a rake that is set when it is designed. A variable-rake machine lets the rake be changed, so that thin and thick material can both be cut well. Which one suits a shop depends on how much its material changes.

Q · 04 Why do the hold-downs matter, and why are the guards on both sides?

The hold-downs keep the sheet where the blade expects it. They clamp before the blade moves, so that the sheet cannot lift or slide as the cut starts, and their pressure is set for the sheet, because too much distorts thin sheet. They are also a hazard, and accidents on a shear come from the clamps as well as the blade. So the point of operation under the blade and the hold-downs is guarded in front and behind, the guards are interlocked with the stroke, and an emergency stop is within reach. The machine will not cut with a guard open.

Q · 05 Is this the same as a press brake, a press or a tube bender?

No, and the differences are worth stating precisely. The hydraulic press brake page covers bending the sheet that this machine cuts. The hydraulic press machine page covers forming a part between dies. The hydraulic tube and pipe bending machine page covers bending tube round a die. This page is the hydraulic shearing machine, which cuts flat stock to size. It does not replace any of them, and it does not claim what they claim a second time.

Q · 06 Has Neometrix built one of these?

We would rather answer this plainly than let a page imply otherwise. Neometrix engineers hydraulic shearing machines to order, and no delivered hydraulic shearing machine is claimed. What stands behind the offer is adjacent: Neometrix engineers a hydraulic press brake (see the hydraulic press brake page), a general hydraulic press (see the hydraulic press machine page) and a hydraulic tube and pipe bending machine (see the hydraulic tube and pipe bending machine page). The cylinders, valves, pump, motor, blades, bearings and guards are catalogue items, bought in, not invented. What Neometrix engineers is the machine around them: the frame, the hydraulics, the gap and the rake, the guarding and the proof. So the honest position is that the machine is engineered to order, the neighbouring disciplines are in the building, and the first machine of this exact kind will be built around the customer's own material and work rather than taken off a shelf.

Q · 07 Which standard applies, and what can the machine not do?

EN 13985 covers the safety of guillotine shears, and ISO 12100 covers the general principles of design, risk assessment and risk reduction for machinery. This page prints none of their requirements, and no edition year: those come from the standard the customer names. The machine cuts flat stock to size. It does not decide the cutting plan, it does not bend or form anything, and it does not replace the operator's own judgement. This page claims no certification or accreditation. No force, thickness, length, gap, angle or quantity figure is printed here, and approval of a machine rests with the customer and the authority they name; none is claimed here.

Q · 08 What do you need from us to quote?

Six things, and most of them describe your work rather than the machine. First, the material: what is cut, and whether it changes. Second, the thickness: the range from the thinnest to the thickest sheet. Third, the length: the longest cut, and the size of the sheets. Fourth, the rate: how many cuts an hour, and how the pieces are taken away. Fifth, the back gauge: whether a manual gauge is enough or the lengths should be set by the control. Sixth, the site: the power supply, the floor and the access. From that we come back with a machine concept, a test plan you can check, and a budgetary price.

The neighbouring pages, and how they differ from this one.

Three neighbours: one bends the sheet, one forms a part between dies, one bends tube.

↗ The press brake

Hydraulic Press Brake

Bends the sheet to an angle - where this page cuts the sheet to size before it is bent.

↗ The press

Hydraulic Press Machine

Forms a part between dies - a different job from cutting flat stock in a straight line.

↗ The tube bender

Hydraulic Tube and Pipe Bending Machine

Bends tube round a die - where this page cuts flat sheet and plate.

Browse all Neometrix product lines.

Get a quotation

Tell us the material,
and the cut it has to make.

The projects desk replies within two working days with a machine concept, a test plan you can check, and a budgetary quotation. Write to [email protected] or use the form.

Enquire — shearing machine Capability sheet (PDF) +91 7777 876 876

ISO 9001 / 14001 ENGINEERED-TO-ORDER CLASS — HYDRAULIC SHEARING MACHINE DUTY · FRAME · HYDRAULICS · GUARDING · BUILD · PROVE — THE GAP DECIDES THE CUT. ENGINEERED IN NOIDA · INDIA