Cold forming tee making machine: field notes from the shop floor

If you’re shopping for a Tee Making Machine, here’s the honest, shop-tested rundown. I’ve seen quite a few lines over the years, and the Beijing-origin model from World Steel Material (Rm 1103, Shangpintaihu Bld 3#, Tongzhou District) is one of those “does what it says on the tin” pieces of kit—especially for CS/SS/alloy tees in small-to-mid diameters.

Core specs you actually care about

Model	GIL114 cold forming
Size range	OD 17–114 mm
Wall/branch thickness	up to 25 mm (forming thickness typically ≤ 8 mm; real-world use may vary)
Throughput	≈455 kg/hour
Energy	≈30 kW per ton
Materials	Carbon steel, stainless, alloy steel
Dimensions (L×W×H)	2700 × 800 × 2700 mm
Color	Green or blue

How the machine earns its keep (process flow)

Materials: cut pipe or mother tube in CS/SS/alloy. Methods: mandrel-supported cold forming with controlled stroke and lubrication. A typical run:

Cut-to-length and deburr; mark branch centerline.
Pierce/pre-form pilot (when required by spec) and position on mandrel.
Cold expand the branch under progressive force profiles; trim and calibrate.
Optional stress-relief heat treatment (especially for higher alloy or where toughness matters).
Final machining, gauging, and NDT.

Testing standards I see most: dimensional per ASME B16.9 with ovality/branch height gauges; material compliance to ASTM A234/EN 10253; NDT (PT/UT) on critical zones; hydro per service code (B31.3/B31.1) if requested. Typical service life? 10–15 years for the machine with sensible lubrication, die care, and alignment checks—longer in clean shops.

Where it fits

Oil & gas spools, chemical lines, HVAC headers, shipbuilding, and municipal water. Many customers say the compact footprint helps in city workshops—actually a bigger deal than it sounds.

Why this Tee Making Machine stands out

Balanced capacity: ≈455 kg/hour is plenty for small-batch, multi-grade work.
Energy profile: ≈30 kW/ton—reasonable, and power quality tolerant (within reason).
Die ecosystem: swappable tooling for OD 17–114 mm; custom branch ratios on request.
Cert stack: typically ISO 9001 QA docs; CE marking for electrical panels available on request; MTCs traceable to heats.

Vendor comparison (quick take)

Vendor	Origin	Size range	Throughput	Support	Certs
World Steel Material	Beijing	OD 17–114 mm	≈455 kg/h	Remote + on-site (by schedule)	ISO 9001; CE (panel) on request
Vendor A (generic import)	East Asia	OD 20–108 mm	≈380 kg/h	Remote only	ISO 9001
Vendor B (local fabricator)	Regional	Custom	Varies	On-call	By project

Customization, cases, and feedback

Options: PLC upgrades, HMI language packs, servo assist, extra die sets for off-ratio branches, and color (green/blue—yes, people care). One Southeast Asia spool shop ran 8,000 tees (ASTM A234 WPB) in a quarter; scrap dropped ≈12% after switching to calibrated mandrel sets. Another HVAC fabricator told me—surprisingly—that noise levels and footprint were the clincher.

Compliance, testing data, and upkeep

Dimensional: ASME B16.9; Material: ASTM A234/EN 10253; Weld repairs (if any) per ASME IX; NDT PT/UT to project ITP. Typical in-house checks: branch height ±1.0 mm for small sizes, ovality Tee Making Machine just keeps paying rent.

References