Methods of Metal Fabrication and Formation Process

20 May 2016

An overview of a metal fabrication and formation process reveals a series of mechanically adept disciplines. Metal sheets are sheared and trimmed by strong cutting blades. Long sections of thin steel are bent by workshop machinery and fastened to secondary sections to create site-ready components. The construction industry benefits immensely from this twofold approach, the offsite machining of refined metals and the onsite fitting of the fabricated parts, but it takes true skill to know when to employ each of these formation practices.

Workshop Machined

The controlled environment established within a modern workshop really makes or breaks the formation process. Sheet metals are pre-cut to size and measured for installation. Specially indented markings are punched, holes are drilled, and the metal is form-fitted according to the raw supply stock. Now, this raw material could be a stack of sheet metal or a crate of square stock, a box of castings, or a pack of tubular fittings. It doesn’t matter. What does matter is the metal fabrication and formation process selected at this juncture. Bending and cutting machinery works in tandem with assembling stations to produce the parts, worked sections that are ready for onsite installation.

Site Installation

The power of the hydraulic presses, the stationary bench drills, and site-anchored cutting tools are reserved for the workshop. After all, the job is done. The discrete metal parts have been mechanically fastened, riveted and welded to form a ready-to-install metal frame. It’s time to leave the bench tools behind and switch over to a construction mindset. The machined and form-fitted metal sections are heavy and unwieldy, but the workshop ethic is still ruling the workflow. The assembled parts, fabricated by machine and man, are now maneuvered into position by cranes and teams of workers, at which point they’re welded securely in place.

Final Assessment

A full-service metal fabrication and formation process delivers an end-to-end solution. Raw metal is worked and processed, extruded and heat treated, if necessary, to create a weatherproof material. The metal is structurally sound and ready for either indoor or outdoor applications. Better yet, the tooling resources used back at the workshop have fabricated a final set of metal parts that implicitly fills a function, all while intricate geometrical features have been assigned to every contour of the metal part.

The key to metal fabrication dominance lays in engineering prowess, the sourced metals, and a pool of tools that can efficiently form any kind of the metal into countless sized and shaped parts.