PURPOSE: To prevent damage of elevating/lowering means of a punching punch and also to enable high-speed press by elevating/lowering the punching punch with a rodless cylinder which is arranged in the back plate which is joining to the upper surface of a punch plate.

CONSTITUTION: The rodless cylinder is constituted of a cylinder 72 and a ram 73 in the back plate 6 of the punch plate 2. When an upper die A is lowered in state where the vertical movement of the punching punch 1 is controlled by situating the head face 74 of the ram 73 on the top face 13 of the punching punch 1 by supplying pressure oil into the cylinder 72, a plate M to be worked is punched with the tip 11 of the punching punch and a punched hole H is formed. When the upper die A is lowered by situating the stepped part 75 of the ram 73 on the the top face 13 of the punching punch 1 with a repulsive spring 76 without supplying pressure oil into the cylinder 72, punching is not executed. Since this device is constituted so that the vertical movement of each punching punch l is non-contactingly and individually controlled using the rodless cylinder, there is no fear for breaking the controlling means by vibration at the time of punching.