Bending of beams is often done to create curved steel monorails for material transport in factories and warehouses. Most commonly, the beams are curved the “easy way,” i.e. against the weak or y-y axis. Typically a trolley with a hoist hangs below the beam. Such transit systems are installed in new and existing plants. The person ordering the beam bending might be an engineer or a maintenance mechanic.
In addition to simple curving of these steel sections, beam bending to form offsets is often required. Although the radii are specified as well as the degree of arc and the straight between bends, what the customer usually needs is the straight ends to be parallel and the offset distance to be held to a given tolerance.
Beam bending can also create offsets with beams curved the “hard way,” i.e. against the strong or x-x axis. Much less common than offsets made the easy way, these hard way bends can create a change in elevation in a monorail system.
