One plate roll at a time, the sky is the limit!

In 1947, as the post-war economy is flourishing, the USA is undergoing unprecedented expansion in all areas, including pipeline construction.

It was under these circumstances that Allan Edwards, Inc. was founded. When Mr. Edwards, Sr., noticed that demand for safe transportation of oil and gas was growing, he, in true visionary fashion, invented and patented the first concrete river weight.

Headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma, since its founding, Allan Edwards, Inc. established its superior reputation in the industry by keeping a close eye on changing market needs. Throughout 76 years of continuous growth and improvement, Allan Edwards, Inc. has carved an impressive legacy, setting its values on innovation and a determination to “put our customers first, wherever that takes us’.

In the company’s fourth generation, the Edwards family still owns and runs the business that now proudly supplies products to the majority of pipeline companies in North America, and more abroad. They have expanded their product portfolio, which now includes multiple solutions for pipeline construction and repair, along with an impressive armada of patented technology.

In 2018, Allan Edwards internalized production of sleeve manufacturing, and the need for the machines necessary to run these new operations arose. They turned to Capital Machinery to make the best choice, sparking a high-value partnership with Davi. At the time, they were looking for a plate rolling machine that could guarantee efficiency and help them increase their production capacity without disregarding cost effectiveness. Longevity of use and durability would complete the list.

What most impressed Allan Edwards about Davi plate rolls was the superiority of their programming features, which convinced them to purchase their first machine: an MCB 4-roll plate roll (10 ft. x 1"3/8 rolling capacity). As Ms. Melanie Medley, Sales & Marketing Director at Allan Edwards stated, the machine proved to be ‘Sturdy, with a functional design, intuitive operator controls and good repeatability’, thus meeting the requirements they had set in relation to the purchase.

In 2022, Allan Edwards’ commitment to continue growing and expanding their business led to the necessity for another plate rolling machine. They immediately turned to Davi and purchased an MCB I30 (10 ft. x 1" 5/8 rolling capacity). The two plate roll machines play instrumental roles in Allan Edwards’ daily production of 3/8” and ½” plate materials, rolling IDs of 18” to 36”, related to all of their large sleeve products (18” ID and larger) for pipeline repair.

Today, everything is on track to experience an even larger production increase beyond the two initial plate rollers: the Davi machines ‘have been efficient, and we haven’t encountered any major problems’ – said Ms. Medley. As Allan Edwards continues to use plate rolls for large products, they foresee the need to satisfy an even higher demand for larger-diameter sleeves. Thus, they are already ‘discussing additional plate rolls and accessories for existing plate rolls with Davi representatives’, continued the Sales & Marketing Director.

The relationship between the two companies continues to strengthen as they grow and innovate their products, aligned in both customer centricity and trends anticipation. When these values anchor a partnership, interactions can be nothing but positive, and the number of shared projects is expected to increase over time… the sky is the limit!