A slitting machine, or slitter, is a crucial piece of metal processing equipment used to precisely divide wide coils of flat metal strip into narrower coils.
Function in Manufacturing
The slitting process is a prerequisite for many downstream manufacturing operations, especially in tube and pipe production. A wide coil purchased directly from a steel mill is often not the exact width required for a specific tube size.
The slitter utilizes two or more sets of hardened, rotating circular blades, known as rotary knives, positioned on parallel arbors. The metal strip is fed through these knives, which shear the material longitudinally like a pair of industrial scissors. The machine must maintain incredibly tight width tolerances to ensure the resulting narrow strips—or "mults"—are perfectly sized to form a tube or pipe of the correct diameter. This ability to customize coil width on demand is essential for minimizing material waste and optimizing the production efficiency of the tube mill.