Sheet metal fabrication delivers diverse metal products and parts, yet many people don’t fully understand it. Fabricators turn flat steel or metal sheets of varying types into metal structures and products. Here’s exactly what a metal parts supplier does during fabrication.
Metal Fabrication Process
Fabrication is a seven-step process:
Design and Design
A crucial first step is to submit your design blueprint to the metal parts supplier before fabrication starts. The blueprint contains product specifications, requirements, and notes for the desired final product.
Sheet Metal Cutting
Next, the sheet metal supplier cuts out metal blanks from large coils in readiness for the subsequent steps. The blank’s size will vary depending on the product specification.
Metal Punching
The fabricator uses punching, a cutting technique, to create holes of different shapes and patterns on the metal blanks. A punching machine does this work. However, some fabricators use laser cutting.
Bending
The fabricator uses a press break machine to bend sheet metals in different places and angles. Bending happens sequentially to ensure the bends work together as intended.
Assembly and Finishing
After fabricating metal parts, the fabricators assemble the components and join them using a welding machine to create the final product.
Finishing
The final product undergoes finishing to achieve the desired look, feel, and luster. Standard techniques include painting, coating, cleaning, and galvanizing. If the product has to withstand harsh conditions, it undergoes heat treatment.
Quality Control
Verification ensures the final product meets the guaranteed optimum quality. The sheet metal parts supplier will assess for functional errors. Metal parts or components with defects undergo welding or straightening to fix blemishes and defects.
For custom metal sheet fabrications, contact Staub Manufacturing Solutions, a reliable metal parts supplier with a proven track record.
