Stainless steel is one of the most commonly used metals. It is an alloy that is usually preferred for its shiny appearance, strength and durability. A wide variety of components applied in numerous industries are made of stainless steel. Due to the appeal of stainless steel, a huge number of fabricators have set up shop over the years offering their services to custom designers and other clients looking for steel products. Anyone with a custom design can approach metal fabricators and seek their services for custom jobs.
To give you a better picture of stainless steel fabricators we will look at how they operate to avail their services to clients.
Designs
Steel fabricators, as stated above create steel components based on designs created by their clients. Fabricators usually accept CAD drawings made by their clients and use their machinery to fabricate the designs. It is also possible for metal fabricators to use their in house design specialists to create custom designs as per the clients’ specifications. These CAD drawings are a three dimensional representation of the component in their systems; two dimensional drawings can also be rendered to create a realistic image of the designs. This is then fed into their fabrication computers, which fabricate the design using stainless steel.
Fabrication Technique
It is important to note that after the design is finalised, a suitable fabrication technique has to be chosen for the components to be created. There are different fabrication techniques commonly applied by steel fabricators. Each one is suited to specific steel grades, designs, and applications for the best outcome. These fabrication techniques include:
Work Hardening
Work hardening refers to the process of effectively strengthening a material through deformation. Steel fabricators use this method on stainless steel as it has a faster rate of work hardening. To apply this process, fabricators need to consider the grade of the alloy in consideration. To create a desired design or component, steel can be work hardened into the shape of the design.
Welding
Stainless steel fabricators also rely on welding stainless steel into finished designs. When using this technique to fabricate stainless steel parts, it is important to note that different grades of steel usually respond differently to welding. This means that this technique might not be suited to all designs.
Machining
Metal fabricators also use machining as one of the techniques to fabricate steel designs. Machining is only used on grades of steel that are resistant to chipping. To reduce the risk of chipping some steel grades have manganese added to their alloy composition. Other manufacturers apply exclusive processes to additionally process steel while free machining grades can also be easily found.
With the above knowledge, clients can have a better understanding of how stainless steel fabricators work.
To give you a better picture of stainless steel fabricators we will look at how they operate to avail their services to clients.
Designs
Steel fabricators, as stated above create steel components based on designs created by their clients. Fabricators usually accept CAD drawings made by their clients and use their machinery to fabricate the designs. It is also possible for metal fabricators to use their in house design specialists to create custom designs as per the clients’ specifications. These CAD drawings are a three dimensional representation of the component in their systems; two dimensional drawings can also be rendered to create a realistic image of the designs. This is then fed into their fabrication computers, which fabricate the design using stainless steel.
Fabrication Technique
It is important to note that after the design is finalised, a suitable fabrication technique has to be chosen for the components to be created. There are different fabrication techniques commonly applied by steel fabricators. Each one is suited to specific steel grades, designs, and applications for the best outcome. These fabrication techniques include:
Work Hardening
Work hardening refers to the process of effectively strengthening a material through deformation. Steel fabricators use this method on stainless steel as it has a faster rate of work hardening. To apply this process, fabricators need to consider the grade of the alloy in consideration. To create a desired design or component, steel can be work hardened into the shape of the design.
Welding
Stainless steel fabricators also rely on welding stainless steel into finished designs. When using this technique to fabricate stainless steel parts, it is important to note that different grades of steel usually respond differently to welding. This means that this technique might not be suited to all designs.
Machining
Metal fabricators also use machining as one of the techniques to fabricate steel designs. Machining is only used on grades of steel that are resistant to chipping. To reduce the risk of chipping some steel grades have manganese added to their alloy composition. Other manufacturers apply exclusive processes to additionally process steel while free machining grades can also be easily found.
With the above knowledge, clients can have a better understanding of how stainless steel fabricators work.