Metal Fabrication Tools

Cutting and burning

The raw material has to be cut to size. This is done with a variety of tools. The most common way to cut material is by shearing. Special band saws designed for cutting metal have hardened blades and a feed mechanism for even cutting. Abrasive cut-off saws, also known as chop saws, are similar to miter saws but with a steel cutting abrasive disk. Cutting torches can cut very large sections of steel with little effort.

Burn tables are CNC cutting torches, usually natural gas powered. Plasma and laser cutting tables, and water jet cutters, are also common. Plate steel is loaded on a table and the parts are cut out as programmed. The support table is made of a grid of bars that can be replaced. Some very expensive burn tables also include CNC punch capability, with a carousel of different punches and taps. Fabrication of structural steel by plasma and laser cutting introduces robots to move the cutting head in three dimensions around the material to be cut.

Forming

Hydraulic brake presses with v-dies are the most common method of forming metal. The cut plate is placed in the press and a v-shaped die is pressed a predetermined distance to bend the plate to the desired angle. Wing brakes and hand powered brakes are sometimes used.

Fabrication shops will generally have a limited machining capability including; metal lathes, mills, magnetic based drills along with other portable metal working tools.

Welding

Welding is the main focus of steel fabrication. The formed and machined parts will be assembled and tack welded into place then re-checked for accuracy. A fixture may be used to locate parts for welding if multiple weldments have been ordered. Special precautions may be needed to prevent warping of the weldment due to heat. These may include re-designing the weldment to use less weld, welding in a staggered fashion, using a stout fixture, covering the weldment in sand during cooling, and straightening operations after welding. After the weldment has cooled it is generally sand blasted, primed and painted. Any additional manufacturing specified by the customer is then completed. The finished product is then inspected and shipped.

Call us : 847-830-7013