Data Driven Contracting Meets Data Driven Manufacturing: Mestek Machinery Lockformer Spiral Status Technology

Mestek Machinery is the industry-leading designer and manufacturer of the most complete, productive, and innovative metal forming solutions for the fabrication of HVAC sheet metal ductwork and fittings. Our family of brands, Lockformer, Iowa Precision, Engel, and Roto-Die, develop cutting edge, precision technologies and automated manufacturing equipment that saves sheet metal contractors and fabricators time and labor while ensuring the highest quality finished ducts and fittings.

Mike Bailey, Sr. Vice President of Mestek Machinery, and Jake Olsen, CEO of Stratus, are proud to announce a strategic partnership between the two companies. This collaboration enables seamless data flow from Stratus directly to the Lockformer Spiral Tubeformer, eliminating manual processes and accelerating fabrication workflows.

Mestek Machinery's new Lockformer Spiral Status Technology platform delivers real-time machine intelligence to shop leaders while Stratus provides a fully digital fabrication management system. Together, this integration empowers HVAC contractors with a connected intelligent workflow from office to shop floor, driving productivity, accuracy, and labor efficiency in sheet metal manufacturing.

The partnership reflects a shared vision: to simplify and elevate how contractors build through the power of data driven manufacturing and data driven contracting.

Benefits of the Lockformer Spiral Status Technology Integration

With the latest technology introduced by the partnership between Mestek Machinery and Stratus, contractors now have the ability to download directly from the Stratus Workstation Application to the Lockformer Spiral Tubeformer HMI to enhance the following applications:

Cutting and Nesting

• Automatically download parts from the Stratus Workstation Application Platform to the Lockformer Spiral Tubeformer controls
• Streamlines tasks and enables meticulous organizational control from BIM to reality workflows, the Lockformer Spiral Tubeformer HMI

Packaging

• Enables operator to easily request work orders through the cloud, allowing you to create fabrication packages outside of Revit
• Streamlines the process by narrowing down your selection to project areas, specific systems, material types, and other criteria
• Automates this process by auto-packaging projects direct to the Lockformer Spiral Tubeformer HMI
• Cuts down on administrative time by sorting, saving and printing packages for construction to the factory via direct download to the Lockformer Spiral Tubeformer HMI

Fabrication Management

• Generates files that directly feed the Lockformer Spiral Tubeformer HMI, ensuring a seamless transition from design to production
• Integrates effortlessly with industry-standard tools like CAMduct and Revit, enhancing the flow from digital drafting to physical creation with robust publishing capabilities
• Streamlines fabrication using Stratus’ manufacturing planning tools to group like-diameter spiral orders across multiple projects into unified cut lists, minimizing waste and reducing setup time

Status Tracking

• Label printing via the Stratus Workstation Application Platform in conjunction with the Lockformer Spiral Tubeformer HMI
• Labels are printed per part with QR Code and can be sorted in a production manner
• Track production but locate parts on the job site as either installed, inventoried, or in production via part label

Technology Demo: Hermanson Company

Pushing the Industry Forward with Machine Intelligence and Automation

At the heart of this collaboration is Lockformer Spiral Status Technology, Mestek Machinery’s powerful new machine intelligence platform. Designed to give shop leaders actionable insights and live machine data, Lockformer Spiral Status Technology ensures every Lockformer Spiral Tubeformer is operating at peak efficiency. Combined with Stratus’ digital contracting tools, this unified workflow empowers users to make faster, more informed decisions, from project design to fabrication, while reducing labor requirements and minimizing errors.

For users of the Lockformer Spiral Tubeformer, this integration marks a significant leap forward. Fabricators can now manage jobs digitally from the office and push optimized cut lists and fabrication data directly to the machine, eliminating the need for paper printouts, manual inputs, and redundant steps. The result: faster production, improved consistency, and a smarter, more connected operation. This partnership is a bold step toward a fully automated, data-driven fabrication future, where contracting meets manufacturing, and innovation drives results.