Automated Layout Technology
ALT Lightning Rail
4’ & 8’ Handrail & Stair Stringer Layout System
The Lightning Rail is a gantry-style CNC marking machine built specifically for miscellaneous-metals shops that fabricate commercial handrail, guardrail, stair stringers and ladders. The operator loads a DXF file from the detailing software and the machine prints the complete full-scale layout in red ink directly onto a rigid steel-framed table, so pickets, posts, treads and stringers can be placed inside the printed outlines without tape measures, squares or soapstone. Layout-marking is its sole function; it does not cut, drill or weld. A single-dot ink-jet head builds lines, arcs and text from 1/8 inch dots, and the marks wash off with a biodegradable solution between jobs. Tables come in 4 ft or 8 ft widths, just under 30 ft long, driven by a Messer Global Control with remote diagnostics.