In sheet metal production, an opener is a worker who manually pries apart metal sheets that have stuck together after being pack-rolled. When multiple sheets are rolled simultaneously to achieve thinner gauges, the extreme heat and pressure can cause them to weld slightly at the edges. The opener uses tongs, shears or a cleaver to break this bond before the metal cools and permanently fuses.
Heard on the job
Grab your tongs and help the opener, that last pack of sheets is starting to stick at the trailing edge.
Insider tip
Pack rolling is mostly historic for steel, but the term survives in specialized foil and non-ferrous rolling where sheets are still doubled and separated.