The production of copper is not that much different from the production of carbon steel. There are fewer ingredients required for copper but the process is practically the same. Companies who produce rolled copper buy cathodes of copper, which are basically big slabs of copper. They melt (cast) them by heating at high temperatures, add as much scrap of feasible, and then remove the impurities. After that they reduce the thickness by hot rolling it, cold rolling it and then annealing it to make it workable.
Interestingly, this process came about in the 18th century when it was determined that sheathing ships with thin layers of copper would increase the speed and lifespan of naval ships. Even today, copper is an amazing metal with a wide variety of applications including electrical, plumbing, HVAC, and architectural.
Electrical copper (wire, bar) accounts for approximately 65% of the US consumption. The use of copper for architectural applications comprises the smallest sector of the US copper market, which is approximately 38 million pounds. The primary copper product used in architectural today is sheet copper.
Copper sheet thickness is designated by ounces instead of a gauge. The most common thickness of sheet copper is 16 oz. which is approximately .0216” thick. The “16 oz.” designation refers to the weight in ounces per square foot. Standard roofing copper is Alloy C110, ASTM B370, which is as pure copper as there is in the market. Other alloys include brass (zinc added) and bronze (tin added).
Copper is a commodity so the price changes daily based on the COMEX-traded market price. The lead times also change daily, but these are primarily based our suppliers production capacity, not their ability to source raw material.
C110 Alloy Sheets
Standard Sheet Copper, stocked in 1/8″ Hard Temper which is also referred to as “Cold Roll”. Conklin stocks it predominately in 16oz (.0216 thickness) with the main size being 3 x 10 Sheets, sold in 65-sheets per crates. 20oz (.027 thickness) is also available. ¼” Hard Temper is the standard for the Pan Forming Coils which requires a stiffer material than 1/8″ hard. Stock sizes are 20” and 24” in 1,000-lb Coils. (391-ft are in a 16oz 20” wide 1,000-lb Coil). ½” Hard is also available and sold typically as bus bar in electrical applications in its main size of 4” wide by 144” long. 100-lb rolls of 16oz Soft Copper are a stock product in 20” wide, but also available in 16” and 24”. Soft Copper is the Cold Roll Copper that goes thru an annealing process to make it very soft and bendable, used by roofers in valley and flashing applications.
C122 Alloy Sheets
Deoxidized Copper which makes it easily welded. Used only in special applications in which Copper is being welded instead of soldered. In stock at Conklin in 20oz 3 x 10 Sheets, but also available in 16oz 3 x 10 Sheets. It is typically the preference by Copper Lamp Manufacturing Companies. We stock in a ¼” Hard Temper (same as Pan Forming Copper).
