One might often wonder what Metal Fabrication is. Metal Fabrication is the building of metal structures by the processes of Cutting, Assembling, and Bending. The different processes of Metal Fabrication as mentioned above requires various kinds of raw materials and the end products of these various processes are used in different fields for their varying properties. For instance, the age old process of casting requires raw materials such as Aluminum, Iron, Steel, Silver, and some other such metals.
Metal Fabrication Process involves
- Cutting– Brought about by shearing, sawing, and torching using high-temperature Oxy-fuel or Plasma Torches.
- Assembling– Is the other process; it uses welding, adhesives, and rivets to bring about the process of assembling.
- Bending– Is another of the three processes involved in Metal Fabrication. It involves hammering which is either done manually or with the use of machines.
There are other processes as well through which the fabricators construct metal parts and they are Honing, Lathing, and Milling etc. Whether the little food cans or beverage cans or the huge automobile parts all need products of Metal Fabrication.
The basic raw materials that are needed for conducting the process are:
- Flat metal
- Plate metal
- Fittings
- Castings
- Hardware
- Sectional metal
- Welding wire
- Formed and expanded metal
The end product after metal fabrication involves the use of metal casting and expanded metal:
Expanded Metal– The process involves expanding of the metal sheet and shearing, the end product that is created through the process of expanding has an aesthetic beauty. The sheets are of a various thickness and depending on their thickness they are used for various purposes. Their beauty allows these metal sheets to be used for the purpose of making:
- Screen doors.
- Outdoor furniture.
- Fencing.
- And for the purpose of embellishment in various architectural structures.
- It also provides protection and acts as a partition to prevent heat from being transmitted from one part the machinery to the other.
Casting- The process of casting involves the forcing of molten liquid into various molds and its cooling. The process has been in practice since antiquity and is more than six thousand years old. The raw materials used in the process are mainly molten metals, clay, concrete etc. The process is such that it ensures a high degree of flexibility of the end products and this makes the process ideal for the manufacture of items which require immense flexibility.
- Surgical tools
- Steel straps
- Measuring implements.
Any metal implement needing as a great degree of flexibility is manufactured by the method of Casting.
Metal fabrication is not only a way of producing new metal parts and implements but it is also a way of recycling old scrap metal. Metal takes millions of years to decay hence they can be used and reused and fabrication does just that. The processes involved need precision like that of an artist. The industry is an ever growing and flourishing one. Life in today’s world cannot be thought of without the Metal Fabrication industry. Nontraditional new processes are developing and being employed in the industry which is giving an added impetus to the industry and boosting the precision of the finished products as well.
Metal fabrication has been in practice since time immemorial. The primitive fathers molded weapons and now their civilized offspring’s mound automobile parts and telecommunication appliances. The process is one which has never once lost its relevance and is equally relevant since antiquity down to our modern times.
