UNDERSTANDING ALUMINUM EXTRUSION PROFILE TYPES

Parco’s American-made t-slot aluminum extrusions are 100% compatible with 80/20 aluminum, T-Slots, Faztek and many more.

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Understanding Aluminum Profiles Types

Profiles come in multiple sizes and types. At Parco, we provide both fractional and metric profiles.

Fractional: 10 and 15 Series (Smooth and Grooved) in stock lengths of 240 in, 120 in, 92in, or cut to length

Metric: 30, 40, and 45 Series (Smooth) 2300mm, 3048mm, 6000mm, or cut to length

Our structural aluminum extrusions for the 10 and 15 Series include 1”x 1”, 1”x 1” QR, 1”x 2”, 1”x 3”, 2”x 2”, and 2”x 4”. For the 10 Series, the t-slots have .255” slot widths and are modular to each other. They are compatible with slot 6. 

When utilizing our accessories, you will find that you can build a complete structure with the 10 Series and if needed, transition it to our 15 Series. The inside radius of the 10 Series t-slot design is .125”, making it easier to drop-in T-nuts. 

The 15 Series ranges from 1.5”x 1.5” to 3”x 6”. The 15 Series t-slots have .322” slot widths and are modular to each other. They are compatible with slot 8. Just like the 10 Series, the 15 Series accessories can be transitioned to a 10 Series if needed. For the 15 Series, the t-slot design has an inside radius of .187” 

For metric profiles, they are measured in millimeters: 30mm, 40mm, 45mm, and 60mm. The 30mm and 40mm have an 8mm slot, and the 45mm and 60 mm has a 10mm slot. 

Single Profiles

This profile is used often to configure machine guards, enclosures, carts, and workstations. These profiles have channels on all four sides offering multiple design capabilities. Unlike closed profiles, singles are open for various mounting options and components.

Double, Triple, and Quad Profiles 

Doubles are also used for solutions such as machine guards, enclosures, carts, etc. Doubles as well as triple, and quad profiles are used for large structural applications, such as beams and posts in enclosures. These profiles provide six to twelve open t-slots for connecting fittings, components, and accessories. 

Structural Extrusion Makeup

For most all structural or architectural aluminum extrusion, its makeup will be that of the 6000 series aluminum alloy. This alloy has: 

– Moderate strength 

– Extremely versatile 

– Highly formable 

– Corrosion resistant 

Parco’s aluminum alloy is the 6063 T6 aluminum alloy. This alloy’s major elements include the following: 

– Magnesium (Mg) .45-.9% 

– Silicon (Si) .20-.6%

The “T” after a series designation of aluminum refers to the type of thermal treatment or tempering the aluminum extrusion has received. Tempering is the heating of the aluminum to change its characteristics, most commonly to increase strength. The T6 tempering process includes a solution treatment, quenching, and artificial aging.

The solution treatment will require heating to 1000 F for a few hours followed by quenching, or drastically cooling the part. From there, it is reheated to 300 to 400 F. The T6 tempering process will increase an alloys strength up to 30%.

Placing an Order with Parco

Placing an order with us is easily done once you know how to read our part numbers. 

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When reading our part numbers you will see a letter at the beginning. This letter designates what type of part it is. If you look to the two columns to the left above, you will see all the letter designations for our parts.

The last number in the part number is the series to which the part belongs to. For profiles, 1 through 6 will be used. As for fasteners, they use the number 0. For the numbers 8 and 9, those will be for either a transition or universal part. For example, the part number H20302 is a hardware part that belongs to the 15 Series. 

Three Ways to Order

When ordering with Parco, you can submit an order one of three ways: 

– Send in Your Details: Fax 260-451-0843 or email sales@parco-inc.com

– SolidWorks Drawing: We can create a CAD drawing and send you a PDF. 3D drawings are available upon request.

– Finished Product: We will professionally assemble your solution upon design approval and send the product to you in kit for with a tag drawing.

Contact us today to learn more about structural aluminum extrusions and how we can help you design and build your next solution.

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The aluminum extrusion (also known by ‘aluminum frames’) forming process is a bulk plastic deformation process. First, a billet of aluminum is preheated to a specified temperature that is still comfortably below the material melting point in order to facilitate the plastic flow of the material.

The heated billet is then forced through a tooling die that is designed to shape and form the billet into the corresponding profile cross section. This industrial extrusion process is analogous to the culinary technique used to make different types of pasta; and also a technique seen to form shapes in the children’s toy, Play-Doh.

Advantages of Aluminum Extrusion

Aluminum is a very commonly specified material for use in extrusions and shape profiles because it possesses mechanical characteristics that make it ideally suited for the shaping and forming metal from billet sections.  The high malleability of aluminum means that the metal can be readily shaped into a variety of sections without expending significant energy on the tooling or forming process, and the melting point of aluminum is also generally on the order of half that of ordinary steel.

Both of these facts mean that the aluminum extrusion process has a relatively low energy footprint translating into low tooling and manufacturing costs. Finally, aluminum also possesses a high strength to weight ratio, making it an excellent choice for industrial applications.

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Types of Profiles

A wide variety of intricate aluminum extrusion profile types can be created at varying thicknesses. These profiles can feature a wide variety of intricate void spaces, as necessitated by the end use application.  A wide range of internal voids are available in order to facilitate a wide variety of automation applications and also satisfy any performance weight requirements.

The most common type of aluminum profile is the hollow beam profile which is simply a variation of the square profile. There are also other profile types such as the triangular, single radius, and L-shaped profile.

Surface Types:

As a byproduct of the extrusion process, there are sometimes small, barely visible lines present on the surfaces of the profiles. This is a result of the extrusion tooling, and additional surface treatments can be specified to remove these lines. There are a few of secondary surface processing operations that can be performed such as face milling after the main extrusion forming process in order to improve the surface finish of the profile section.

These processing operations can be specified in order to improve the geometry of the surface to improve the part profile by reducing the overall surface roughness of the extruded profile. These treatments are typically specified in applications that require precise positioning of the parts or where mating surfaces must be controlled tightly.  Surface treatments can also add additional corrosion resistance, improve the hardness of the profile, or even add electrical insulation to the extrusions.

Uses of Profiles Sections:

Aluminum profiles are most commonly used across industrial automation applications such as automated motion applications on process lines and industries throughout manufacturing. They are strong and yet light enough that they yet can be easily man-handled and built into various configurations as necessitated by the automation structure.

Outside of the traditional automation applications, structural-grade aluminum extrusions are even being specified as part of weight reduction efforts. In this sense, they are increasingly being employed as frames in other end-use consumer products, such as automobiles and LEED building projects. As more advanced aluminum alloys and surface coating techniques are developed, the uses are expanding into these new areas.

Conclusion

In closing, extrusion aluminum sections are versatile and ideal for use in building automation applications, and aluminum is an excellent structural material, which lends itself perfectly for use in profile extrusions. More likely than not, there is an aluminum profile that’s perfectly tailored to the specific automation application.

Contact us to discuss your requirements of What is an aluminum profile?. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.