A RAM press (or ram press) is a machine, invented in the USA in the mid-1940's, that is used to press clay into moulded shapes, such as into plates and bowls. In operation a slice of de-aired clay body is placed in between two shaped porous moulds, and vertical movement of the moulds presses the body into the required shape.
History
The RAM Process of molding was invented and patented by two ceramic engineering graduates from Ohio State University (OSU) in the mid-1940's, Keith Blackburn and Richard Steele. Harold Dawson, another OSU graduate and co-owner of a small machine shop, developed and built the first RAM Press shortly thereafter in Columbus, Ohio. Blackburn and Steele licensed the RAM process and press for a decade, then they sold their company to the Wallace Murray Corp. Finally, RAM Products Inc. of Columbus, Ohio was organized in 1979 and now manufactures the RAM press.
Other uses
The phrase ram press (in lower case) is also commonly in published sources to mean the same thing, it is simply used for machines that press items by a mechanical ram, such as with a plunger, piston, force pump, or hydraulic ram. See also press.
