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Clip-in tiles, hook-on panels, baffles and facade cassettes — perforated at density, folded with clean dead edges, and handled without touching the coating.
Architectural panels are the one part of sheet metal where aluminium is the primary material, and that changes the equipment logic. STON panel benders and folding machines handle aluminium up to 2.5 mm — the highest of the three material limits — which covers ceiling tiles at 0.5 to 0.8 mm and facade cassettes at 2.0 to 2.5 mm in the same cell.
Two operations dominate. Acoustic perforation puts thousands of holes into a tile face, which is turret punch work rather than laser work: a punch multi-hits and nibbles a repeating pattern in a fraction of the time a laser needs to pierce each hole. Edge forming gives the panel its clip, hook or cassette return, which usually means a hemmed dead edge, an offset, or an arc — the three special processes a flexible edge folding machine performs and a press brake does not do cleanly.
STON CNC (Qingdao Ston Mechanical Technology Co., Ltd.) is a Chinese original manufacturer of CNC panel benders and turret punch presses, founded in 2006 in Qingdao, China. All equipment described here is built inside STON CNC's own 20,000㎡ factory, from casting and heat treatment through machining, assembly and inspection. Machines carry ISO 9001 quality certification and CE marking under Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC, and are exported to more than 80 countries. View certifications and patents →
Ceiling and cladding products share a manufacturing profile: coated aluminium or steel, dense repeating perforation, and a folded perimeter whose accuracy decides whether the panel clips into the grid.
An acoustic tile can carry several thousand holes. A fiber laser pierces each one individually, so cycle time scales with hole count and the tile becomes the constraint for the whole shop. A turret punch multi-hits and nibbles the pattern with standard tooling, largely decoupling cycle time from hole count.
A ceiling tile that will not clip into the grid is scrap, and the tolerance that decides it is the folded return — often only 4 to 10 mm high. Minimum bending height of 4 mm on a folding machine and angle accuracy of roughly ±0.5°/m are what keep an entire batch installable.
Architectural coatings are specified by the architect and matched across a whole building. A scratched panel is not repainted, it is remade. Patented 360° rotating suction feeding moves the blank in the air, and protective film can stay on through forming.
Size the punching capacity against your acoustic products, not your plain ones. Perforated tiles are where the hours go.
Aluminium is where this cell has the most headroom. The constraint to check is panel size at the long end and folded height at the short end.
| Parameter | Panel bender | Flexible edge folding machine | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aluminium | ≤2.5 mm | ≤2.5 mm | Highest of the three materials, alloy dependent |
| Cold-rolled / coated steel | ≤2.0 mm cast / ≤1.5 mm welded | 0.5–2.0 mm | Steel ceiling ranges |
| Stainless steel | ≤1.2 mm cast / ≤1.0 mm welded | — | Decorative stainless cladding |
| Max forming size | up to 2800 × 1500 mm | 1200 × 1200 to 2000 × 1500 mm | By model |
| Minimum bending height | 5 mm | 4 mm | Clip and hook returns live here |
| Maximum bending height | 170 / 300 / 400 mm | 100 mm | Cassette depth check |
| Special processes | Positive and negative, 0–180° | Arc, dead edge, offset | Clip returns usually need dead edge |
| Min four-sided inner size | approx. 140 × 190 mm | 200 × 200 mm | Small trims may fall below this |
| Angle accuracy | approx. ±0.5°/m, straightness approx. 0.2 mm/m | Decides grid fit | |
| Utilities | Three-phase 380 V, 0.6 MPa air | Configured to destination voltage | |
Perforated and plain ceiling tiles, hook-on panels, baffles and facade cassettes in coated aluminium or steel, with folded clip, hook or return edges. Aluminium to 2.5 mm gives this sector more headroom than any other.
Extruded carrier profiles, roll-formed grid tees and runners, and stretched or curved-formed panels. Suspension grid components in particular are a separate industry and STON does not supply them.
Deep cassette returns beyond the folding machine range, heavy structural brackets and one-off architectural specials. A press brake alongside the cell covers these without disrupting the volume work.
Risk assessment follows EN ISO 12100; safety-related control functions such as light-curtain interruption and emergency stop are specified to EN ISO 13849-1. Hydraulic press brakes supplied into the EU are built against EN 12622. Machines placed on the EU market carry CE marking under Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC with the accompanying technical file. Quality management is certified to ISO 9001, and machined structural tolerances follow ISO 2768. For the finished product, EN 13964 covers suspended ceilings and EN 14782 covers self-supporting metal sheet for cladding and lining. These are product standards for your panel, not machine standards — what the equipment contributes is the dimensional consistency that lets a whole ceiling batch install without selection.
On the machines this means fully enclosed rear fencing, protective covers on all protruding moving parts, laser guarding that halts motion when the protected zone is broken, over-tonnage protection on turret punch presses, and grating-ruler offset-load detection on panel benders.
Architectural panel production splits neatly across three machines, and the split is decided by hole density and edge geometry.
| CNC turret punch | Fiber laser | Flexible edge folding machine | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dense acoustic perforation | Fastest — multi-tool and nibbling | Slow — pierces every hole | Not applicable |
| One-off contours and specials | Limited to tooling | Fastest — no tooling | Not applicable |
| Clip, hook and dead-edge returns | Not applicable | Not applicable | Arc, dead edge, offset |
| Minimum folded height | — | — | 4 mm |
| Coating protection | Brush and ball composite table | Non-contact cutting | Suction feeding, film retained |
| Aluminium capability | Tool and tonnage dependent | Excellent | ≤2.5 mm |
| Does STON supply it? | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Suspension grid tees, runners and extruded carriers are roll-formed or extruded products from separate industries. The cell above equips the panel side, which is where the perforation load and the coating scrap actually sit.
Figures below describe the direction and mechanism of the change. Actual results depend on your part mix, batch size and shift pattern — we model them against your own drawings before quoting.
| Item | Laser plus press brakes | Turret punch plus folding machine |
|---|---|---|
| Acoustic tile cycle | Scales with hole count | Largely independent of hole count |
| Clip return accuracy | Operator and tooling dependent | Program-driven, 4 mm minimum height |
| Dead edge and arc returns | Multiple setups or not possible | Standard process on the folding machine |
| Coating damage | Handling between machines | Suction feeding, film retained |
| Changeover between tile sizes | Tool change and gauge reset | Program recall |
| Aluminium 2.5 mm cassettes | Tonnage dependent | Within the forming window |
| Consumables | Laser gas, optics, nozzles | Punch and die wear |
Payback logic we use with customers: (annual labour released + reduction in rework and scrap + additional saleable output) ÷ installed equipment cost. We build this with your real numbers rather than publishing a headline figure that would not match your plant.
Arc, dead edge and offset bending with a 4 mm minimum folded height — the process that produces clip and hook returns. Up to 25 concurrent servo axes, 42CrMo forged blank holder, patented 360° rotating suction feeding.
View folding machine →
Dense acoustic patterns by multi-tool and nibbling, plus corner notching and service cut-outs in one clamping. Turret speed to 40 rpm, ±0.1 mm accuracy, brush and steel-ball composite table for coated sheet.
View SF series →
Exchange-table fiber laser for cassette blanks, architectural specials and short runs. Smooth, burr-free edges matter where the cut edge remains visible on an exposed trim.
View laser unit →
Where cassette returns exceed the folding machine's 100 mm height. Vacuum-gripped feeding for coated aluminium, cabinet air conditioning for constant-temperature electrics, cast or welded frames.
View suction cup type →
Acoustic perforation and contour cutting on the same panel in one clamping, in roughly 40% less floor space than two separate machines. No secondary alignment between the pattern and the outline.
View SFL series →
For standardised ceiling ranges in continuous production. Levelling accuracy ±1 mm/m² keeps large flat tile faces flat, coil width 200–1500 mm, coil weight ≤10 T.
View production line →Founded in 2006 and headquartered in Qingdao, one hour from major export ports and the airport. Casting, heat treatment, machining, welding, assembly and inspection all happen inside our own 20,000㎡ factory. That is why a configuration change for a perforated ceiling line does not become a six-month subcontracting problem.
Architectural projects run to fit-out programmes with no float. A batch of tiles that will not clip into the grid stops a ceiling crew, so consistency and support response matter more than headline speed.
Specifications on this page verified against STON engineering documentation on 4 August 2026. Forming limits are confirmed against your own drawings before quotation. Published on 4 August 2026 · Last updated 4 August 2026 · Reviewed by Vicky Xu, Head of Overseas Sales.
With the real perforation pattern we can program the part and return an actual cycle time. With the cassette section we can tell you whether a folding machine alone is enough or a panel bender is needed alongside.
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