PG45 180 x 45 mm Ten Slot Aluminium Strut Profile Wide Gantry Beam

OEM / ODM Available Free Sample Available ISO 9001:2015, EN 755-9, RoHS and REACH declarations

A 180 x 45 mm ten slot PG45 aluminium strut profile at about 6.20 kg/m, with 10.2 mm grooves on a 45 mm pitch and the outermost pair 135 mm apart. Twist governs the usable span, not bending strength.

Wholesale Price Quoted per metre against section, finish and quantity per per metre

Material	Aluminium
Alloy Grade	6063-T5
Temper	T5
Section Size	180 x 45 mm
Slot	10 x 10.2 mm groove, 10 mm mouth, 45 mm pitch, outermost pair 135 mm apart
Length	6 m stock, cut to drawing to +/-0.5 mm
Tolerance	EN 755-9 / GB/T 6892, wall +/-0.15 mm
Surface	Mill finish / clear anodised / black anodised
MOQ	150 m
Lead Time	Typically 22 to 32 days after deposit for mill finish
Loading Port	Shanghai, Ningbo, Qingdao
Supply Ability	Extrusion, cutting, machining and anodising in house
Payment Terms	T/T 30 per cent deposit, balance against copy of bill of lading; L/C at sight for larger orders
Trade Terms	FOB, CIF, CFR, EXW
Certifications	ISO 9001:2015, EN 755-9, RoHS and REACH declarations

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The 180 x 45 mm ten slot section. The grooves sit at 45 mm centres across the wide face with the outermost pair 135 mm apart.

01What is the 180 x 45 mm ten slot profile?

Where does this section sit?

It is the wide member of the 45 series. Ten 10.2 mm grooves with a 10 mm mouth on a 45 mm pitch, with the outermost pair 135 mm apart. At about 6.20 kg/m a 6 m bar weighs roughly 37 kg, so it is a member you plan the handling for rather than pick up casually.

What is it used for?

Gantry and portal cross beams, long span machine bases, wide conveyor side frames, test rig beds and any structure that needs a 180 mm wide mounting face. The width is the point: it gives you ten fixing lines and a broad face for a carriage, a rail or a platen.

What limits how far it can span?

Twist, not strength. This is the part buyers get wrong. A 180 x 45 section has plenty of bending strength for a long span, but it is a wide, shallow, open-sided section and it has relatively little torsional stiffness. Long before the beam is anywhere near its bending limit, it will twist under an off-centre load and the wide face will go out of flat.

As a gantry beam the wide face carries the carriage. Keeping that face flat is usually the governing requirement, and it is a twist problem rather than a bending one.

02Section data

Item	Value	Note
Envelope	180 x 45 mm	wide, shallow section
Slots	10	10.2 mm groove, 10 mm mouth
Slot pitch	45 mm	the 45 series module
Outermost pair	135 mm apart	across the wide face
Fastener	M8 and M10	45 series slot nuts
Weight	approx. 6.20 kg/m	a 6 m bar is about 37 kg
Alloy	6063-T5	EN AW-6063
Standard	EN 755-9 / GB/T 6892	wall tolerance +/-0.15 mm
Length	6 m stock	cut to drawing to +/-0.5 mm
Finish	mill, clear or black anodised	10 to 20 micron

Two numbers govern every decision about this member: 6.20 kg/m, which sets how you handle and support it, and 135 mm, the width of the outermost fixing pair, which sets how far off-centre a load can sit before twist becomes the problem.

03Why twist governs and not strength

A beam fails in bending when the material yields, and it fails in twist when the section rotates about its own axis. On a compact section like a square tube the two are comparable. On a wide, shallow section they are not, because torsional stiffness depends on how much of the material is enclosed, and a slotted extrusion is full of openings.

Every slot is a break in the wall. Ten slots along two wide faces remove a lot of the material that would otherwise resist twisting, and the 10 mm mouth is wider than the 6 mm mouth of the 30 series, so more is removed. The result is a section that is strong in bending and comparatively soft in torsion.

That matters because real loads are rarely on the centreline. A carriage that runs along the wide face, a bracket mounted on one of the outer grooves, a cable chain pulling to one side: all of them apply a load at some distance from the shear centre, and every one of them is a twisting moment as well as a bending one.

The symptom is not a broken beam. It is a wide face that is no longer flat, a carriage that binds at one end of its travel, and a machine that loses accuracy long before anything looks overloaded.

Load position on the wide face	Effect	What to do
On the centreline	bending only, the section is strong here	nothing special needed
On one of the inner grooves	small twist, usually acceptable	check flatness under full load
On the outermost groove, 67.5 mm off centre	significant twist	reduce the span or add a stay
Overhanging the edge of the face	large twist, flatness is lost	redesign: put the load inboard or support the edge
Moving, as on a carriage	twist varies along the span	add a centre stay and check at the worst position

The practical test is simple: measure how far the load sits from the centreline. Under about 20 mm and you can treat it as a bending problem. Out past 60 mm, which is most of the way to the outermost groove, and you are designing against twist.

04When you have to add a centre stay

A centre stay is anything that stops the wide face rotating: a second member across the span, a diagonal back to a post, a gusseted bracket, or a torque tube running parallel. It is cheap and it changes the span limit out of all proportion, because twist falls much faster than bending as the span shortens.

The working guidance we give for this section, for a load that is not on the centreline:

Span	Without a stay	With a centre stay
Up to 1.5 m	fine, bending governs	not needed
1.5 to 2 m	usable, check flatness under load	not needed but cheap insurance
2 to 2.5 m	twist becomes visible	add a stay
2.5 to 3.5 m	not recommended without a stay	stay required
Above 3.5 m	not recommended	consider a deeper section or a fabricated beam

These are approximate working figures for a load carried on the wide face, not a design calculation. They assume the section is properly supported at both ends and the load is within the outermost grooves. Send the span, the load and its offset from the centreline and we will run it against the die drawing.

05Handling a 6.20 kg/m member

Plan the handling

A 6 m bar weighs about 37 kg: two people, or a lift
Support it along its length in storage or it will take a set
Lift at two points, not the middle, to avoid bending it under its own weight
Check the wide face for flatness before machining
Protect the anodised face during handling: a 180 mm face marks easily
Fit the end connections before it goes up, at bench height

Treat it like a light section

It gets bent by its own weight when carried at one end
It twists when set down on one edge
Slot lips get damaged by dragging it across a bench
The wide face gets marked by straps and clamps
Ends go out of square if it is dropped
Flatness is lost and the carriage binds afterwards

This is the part of the job that goes wrong on site rather than on the drawing. A member that arrives flat and is stored on two supports an inch apart will not be flat when it is fitted, and no amount of design margin recovers that.

06Failure modes to design out

What goes wrong	Why it happens	Design it out by
Wide face goes out of flat	twist, not bending, was the governing case	keep the load inboard, shorten the span, or add a centre stay
Carriage binds at one end	the face is no longer flat under load	check flatness under full load, not empty
Beam takes a set in storage	it was supported at two points far apart, or stacked badly	store flat on continuous bearers, interleaved
Anodised face marked during handling	a 180 mm face is a big target for straps and clamps	use soft slings and protect the face until installation
End connection works loose	the load path at the ends is where twist is resisted	use the full depth of the end connection and check torque after a week

07What to check before you order

Procurement checklist for the 180 x 45 mm ten slot section

Confirm the series: 45 series is a 10.2 mm groove with a 10 mm mouth on a 45 mm pitch.
Confirm the span and where the load sits relative to the centreline. This decides whether twist or bending governs.
Confirm whether a centre stay is needed, from the span table above.
Confirm the handling plan: a 6 m bar is about 37 kg.
Confirm the end connections and how twist is resisted at the ends.
Confirm the accessory list as a 45 series kit: M8 and M10 slot nuts, brackets, cover strips, end caps.
Confirm the finish and the quantity in metres, with the offcut allowance.

08Terms used on this page

Torsional stiffness: Resistance to twisting about the length of the member. Slots reduce it, so a wide slotted section twists more than a closed tube of the same size.
Shear centre: The point through which a load can be applied without causing twist. Loads off the centreline twist the section.
Centre stay: A second member, diagonal or bracket that stops the wide face rotating. It raises the usable span substantially.
Flatness: How much the wide face deviates from a plane. It is the property that governs whether a carriage runs smoothly.
Outermost pair: The two grooves furthest apart on the wide face, here 135 mm apart.
Series: A family of sections sharing a slot mouth, a pitch and an accessory range. 45 series uses a 10 mm mouth on a 45 mm pitch.

09Questions buyers ask

What is the maximum span?

For a load on the wide face and off the centreline, about 2 m without a centre stay and about 3.5 m with one. On the centreline, bending governs and the span is longer. Send the load and its offset and we will calculate it.

Why does twist matter more than strength here?

Because the section is wide, shallow and full of slots. It has plenty of bending strength and comparatively little torsional stiffness, so the wide face goes out of flat before the material is anywhere near its limit.

What is the weight per metre?

Approximately 6.20 kg/m, so a 6 m stock length is about 37 kg.

What is the outermost fixing width?

135 mm between the outermost pair of grooves, so a bracket can sit up to about 67 mm off the centreline.

Is 45 series compatible with 40 series?

No. The mouth is 10 mm against 8 mm and the pitch is 45 mm against 40 mm, so the slot nuts and brackets do not interchange.

Can it be supplied cut and machined?

Yes. Send the cut list with the end machining and any hole pattern on the wide face, dimensioned from the centreline.

What we need to quote this section

The section reference and the series, stated explicitly.
The span between supports.
Where the load sits relative to the centreline of the wide face.
Whether a centre stay is part of the design.
The cut list with end machining and any hole pattern.
The finish and the quantity in metres.

Quotations are broken out into extrusion, cutting, machining, finish and hardware, so you can see which step is driving the cost on a long span. Browse the full aluminium profile catalogue and the 45 series aluminium profiles range for related sections.

Designing a gantry or long span with a 45 series beam?

Send the span, the load and its offset from the centreline. We will confirm whether twist or bending governs and whether you need a stay.

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