Steel window and door reinforcement performs a pivotal role in performance and product service life. That service life is ultimately defined by zinc coating of the steel, or galvanisation, the process which protects steel from corrosion and rusting.
The challenge is understanding what you’re getting in a product which outwardly looks the same regardless of whether it’s what was specified – or wasn’t.
“The specification of galv steel, particularly in the fenestration industry, has been problematic depending on where you go for the product,” explains David Evans, Managing Director, Anglo.
“Steel reinforcement by definition serves a key function within the window. That is to provide it with its structural strength and integrity.
“And so it’s important for customers that they know that the steel that they’re getting is within specification.
“Windows suppliers have their reputation on the line and out of specification steels can dismantle it overnight.”
Rust problem?
Steel corrodes electrochemically when exposed to moisture and oxygen in air, causing it to rust.
Galvanising applies a layer of zinc to each face of the steel, which stops rust forming on the surface by creating both a physical barrier from the elements and also providing electrochemical corrosion protection for bare steel exposed by small nicks and scratches. The thicker the coating of zinc on a steel reinforcement, the longer its service life.
“In general, most of the galvanised steel we supply for applications in the window and door industry will range from anything from a Z140 coating up to a Z275 coating – although ultimately we can supply product to whatever specification our customers want,” explains David.
“There is always cheaper product out there somewhere but what you specify and what you get in reality can be very different.
“That’s why it’s important to source reinforcement from a reliable metal former.
“We have full traceability through the entire production process. This includes certification from the UK steel mills we source product materials from as well as certifying the product all the way through the production cycle, so we can guarantee our customers that they get the galvanisation that they’re expecting.”
Free galvanisation testing
Galvanised steel thicknesses are measured in four ways. This includes stripping and weighing; weighing the part before and after galvanising; and optical microscopy. Each of these takes time and is complex. The fourth, using digital coating thickness gauges is simpler and more accessible.
These electronic meters employ the principle of electromagnetic induction for measuring the thickness of a non-magnetic coating such as zinc on a magnetic substrate such as steel, giving a clear digital read out of the galvanised coating depth.
To help fabricators understand their galvanised steel supply better, Anglo has set up a magnetic galvanised gauge loan service, available free-of-charge to fabricators, regardless of whether they buy galvanised steel from Anglo or not.
To take a measurement, all fabricators need to do is make sure the sure the surface of the steel is dust and dirt free and take measurements at multiple points along the steel, the average of which gives the an indication of the coating thickness.
David continues: “We’ve been approached by several fabricators in the market, not only Anglo customers, but also fabricators that are supplied from system houses and from other roll-forming companies. And the number one concern they have is around what is the zinc coating level on the product they’re ordering, because it has a big bearing on the ultimate quality and durability on that product when it’s installed.
“And so what we’ve decided to offer fabricators in the UK, whether they’re Anglo customers or not, is access at no cost to a galv meter so that they can verify in-house the thickness of the galv coating that they believe they’re getting.
“The galv meter is very, very simple. It’s a digital meter, needs very little technical training. It’s simply a case of pushing the meter’s probe against the material in a range of spots along the metal to get an average reading.
“We’ll also supplying a conversion chart. So you can convert from that measurement given by the meter in microns which will translate directly then into the equivalent Z-coating designation of the steel.”
Galvanised steel window and door reinforcement cut-to-size
Anglo supplies galvanised window and door steel reinforcement in full bar length or cut-to-size. Investment and the evolution of its offer now means that orders are delivered in three-days, with many of its customers receiving twice weekly drops.
“There’s no commitment to buy complete bar length,” continues David. “You place an order, we get it cut and delivered. It eliminates scrap but also the requirement to have someone on the factory floor cutting it.”
Financial modelling by Anglo shows that the time you add in the costs of national insurance, employer’s tax, and pension contributions on top of salary, you’re eliminating around £30,000 a year straight away from your reinforcement costs by buying-in cut-to-size reinforcement direct. If you’re doing more volume this can be double or more – simply on labour, it says.
That’s before adding in other reduced overheads including wastage and skipping of off-cuts as well as freeing up square footage on the factory floor and warehousing – and importantly, contributing to your business’s environmental record.
“If you’re looking at your operational costs – and we have – square footage is a major one. Taking out a saw or maybe two, releasing warehouse and stillage space, gives our customers a lot more flexibility in the way that they use their existing space.
“This supports them in optimizing their own lines. Reinforcement is supplied by us on the day that they want it, it goes into production and it’s through the gate. You’re not tying up cash, you’re not tying up space.”
The UK’s most advanced roll forming line
Anglo was acquired by the global metals engineering giant, the Amari Metals Engineering Group in 2021, triggering a major investment programme and multi-million-pound restructuring of the business.
This has included its new double-sided roll-forming line, the most advanced roll-forming line in the UK. It features 24 forming stations, allowing Anglo to roll complex sections – in gauges ranging from about 0.8 mm, and everything in between up to 2mm.
The line also rolls directly from the coil, punching and cutting ‘on-the-fly’ as part of a continuous process, delivering significant efficiency gains, while investment in dedicated toolsets for each product brings increased precision to manufacture.
“We supply customers of all sizes, everything from the small one-man fabricator all the way through to the larger UK fabricators who are supplying large new build projects. Companies’ reputations are on the line when they’re supplying projects like that,” David says.
He concludes: “Our customers need the assurance that the quality of the reinforcement they’re getting is what they’re in turn certifying to their customer. And what customers of Anglo can be certain of is they are getting that quality.”
For more information about Anglo European visit www.angloeuropeangroup.co.uk email enquiries@angloeuropean.net or call 0161 231 2354.