Metal fabrication refers to the processes and operations that are used to make something out of metal. It plays a huge role in the design and manufacture of products, since most products have parts that are made of metal. To get the best results, one has to find the best expert in metal fabrication Perth has. This is much easier if one already understands the art of metal fabrication.
Types of Metal Fabrication
The three basic categories of metal fabrication are:
- Structural
- Industrial
- Commercial
Structural fabrication is the process of manufacturing building and bridging components, such as rebar, rafters, window frames and columns among many others. Industrial fabrication involves the manufacturing of equipment for industrial use, such as industrial machinery. On the other hand, commercial fabrication is the process of manufacturing items that are sold to consumers.
Equipment
There are many types of tools and machines that are used in metal fabrication. Some of them include:
- Metal shears
- Water-jets
- Machining centers
- Rollers
- Welding machines
- Laser cutting machines
- Turret punches
An expert in metal fabrication will know which tool to use depending on fabrication processes required to turn the metal sheet to the desired product.
Materials
The type of metals that are mostly used by metal fabricators are stainless steel, carbon steel and aluminum. The metals come as sheets, bars and tubing. The choice of shape is mostly determined by the end-product requirements.
General Fabrication Process
Metal sheets are usually used as the starting base for the manufacture of most metal products. The sheets come in different thickness gauges. If the sheet is 3/16 inches or more, it is referred to as a plate. Sheets can be made into a wide variety of products, such as electronic enclosures, appliances, conveyors, brackets and industrial machinery among many other things.
The first step of sheet metal fabrication Perth experts do is usually punching, laser cutting or shearing shapes into the metal sheet. In some cases all the operations are carried out while the metal is still flat in shape. Once all the shapes have been cut out, the metal is taken to the press brake machine so that the required bends can be made. This process is known as forming. Dies of different shapes and sizes are used in the press brake to make the desired bends. After this is done, some products are usually complete and can be used. However, there are some others which require welding before they can be declared complete. In the welding process, the fabrication expert is required to read the prints and weld the metal pieces together so as to get the final product.
