Oakley Industrial Machinery manufactures terminal pins designed for use in tubular heating elements. Our terminal pins are produced in high volumes while maintaining exceptionally close tolerances. Unlike conventional methods, our proprietary cold-forming process preserves the nickel coating on the formed ends of each pin.
Preserving the nickel layer is critical—especially in the weld zone where the heating coil is attached to the terminal pin. The intact nickel surface improves weld quality and helps prevent oxidation, a common cause of heating element failure. By combining nickel preservation with tight dimensional control, Oakley Industrial Machinery delivers terminal pins that outperform those produced by other manufacturers.
The concrete advantages that make the difference
Our specially designed cold-forming machines hold much closer tolerances than screw machines that are commonly used to make terminal pins.
The nickel coating on our pins is impervious to peeling or flaking off and withstands temperatures to 2200°F without melting away or discoloring. The nickel remaining embedded in the pin prevents the oxidation of the pin and reduces the risk of element failure.
The welding of the pins to the coils is greatly improved when the nickel remains embedded in the core wire.
The cold-forming process allows us to use a softer wire with a lower tensile strength that makes welding the pin to coil assemblies much easier.
We use statistical process control together with continuous inspection to ensure that our products meet or surpass our customer’s specifications. Each individual terminal pin order is manufactured using our specially designed Instant Heat process control chart. Graphs on these charts allow us to control and document critical dimensions for our customers during the actual manufacturing process.
All of the pins manufactured by Oakley are provided in a consistent orientation. This allows the pins to be easily fed to the machines to install the plastic plugs or weld the pins to the coils.
Unlike cutting or turning processes commonly used in terminal pin production, Oakley’s cold roll forming process does not remove material from the pin. As a result, the nickel coating on the wire is preserved and further embedded into the steel core during forming. This is especially important because nickel-plated wire is supplied with the nickel applied as the final stage of wire production, making it vulnerable to removal when machined using traditional methods.
The pre-plated nickel wire used in Oakley terminal pins is manufactured by applying the nickel coating while the material is still in rod form. The wire is then drawn down to its final diameter, which embeds the nickel coating into the steel substrate. When this material is cold-formed on Oakley Industrial Machinery terminal pin machines, the nickel layer remains intact on the formed ends of the pin and is further compressed into the core material.
By preserving the nickel coating and maintaining precise pin geometry, Oakley Industrial Machinery delivers terminal pins with superior surface integrity, improved performance, and consistent quality that exceeds industry standards.
Discover all the machine configurations
Washer groove: location to be evaluated. We need to have a drawing of the lower pin to evaluate the geometry to ensure we can produce the pin.
This special upper pin with a tapered head allows for easier insertion of the upper or sealing plug on the pins
The combination pin can be used for either an upper or a lower terminal pin.
The universal pin can be used for either an upper or a lower terminal pin and also has a tapered head to allow for the easier insertion for the sealing plug.
Straightened and cut wire blanks:
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