Elite Custom Metal chose FORMA 30 from CIDAN

Elite Custom Metal produces and sells flashings and panels, mainly for the building construction industry. The Elite Custom Metal workshop is located in the Seattle area, Washington state.
The company was founded in 2015 by Alex Szymula and today employs a staff of eight. Customers are mainly roofers and siders.

Higher standards and need for greater versatility
The company is also a distributor for fibre cement board, and supplies the metal flashings for these building projects as well as making fan covers and similar products in stainless steel.
Water proofing is a big issue in this part of the US due to the high rainfall. Alex says that in one month this autumn they got more than 250 mm (10”) of rain and local government is continuously raising the standards to be met by the building construction industry.

What were your thoughts when you made your latest investment in a folder?
“We already had two power folders (of another brand) and needed to increase our production capacity. We seriously considered buying a press brake as we thought it would give us greater versatility.”
Alex started his search at Metalcon in Pittsburgh to see what the market had to offer. There he met with CIDAN for the first time and talked at length with Doug from CIDAN. Doug recommended visiting another exhibition, Fabtech, four months later where Alex would see much more technology that would fit his company.
After this second visit Alex knew what he wanted: A FORMA 30 with a U-shaped back gauge and segmented tools in all beams (Multifold). Elite Custom Metal realized that they would benefit greatly from 200 mm (8”) high segmented tools.

What were the reasons that you chose a FORMA from CIDAN?
“Well, the large number of small details that together give us superior quality. I mean when you invest an amount like that you want to go for the best. For instance, the panels of the back gauge that do not give any scratches to the flashings, the ease with which you move and remove the segmented tooling, easy to change tools, the easy access to all maintenance points. We are used to working with power folders, but with the segmented tooling we got all the advantages you could get from a press brake in the FORMA, and much more.”

How did the installation go?
“We loaded off the machine and transported it to the place for operation. Then the CIDAN guy did it all, including training so we were up and running directly. He helped us with the settings so all profiles went perfect from day one. We’ve had the machine for a year and a half by now, it’s running nicely and both CIDAN and FORMA meet well with our expectations.”