As a flexible and efficient processing method, sheet metal fabrication not only meets the needs of modern industrial production for diverse and high-precision parts, but also provides a solid foundation for various products. Therefore, an in-depth understanding of its basic knowledge is particularly important for practitioners in related industries. This guide is intended to help the reader understand more fully the various aspects of the sheet metal fabrication process.
What is Sheet Metal Fabrication?
Sheet metal fabrication is the technology of transforming sheet metal into parts of various shapes and structures through a series of processing processes.
Type of Sheet Metal Fabrication
Cutting
Cutting refers to the cutting of large sheets of metal in accordance with design requirements in the sheet metal manufacturing process to obtain the required size and shape.
The cutting machine cuts the metal plate directly by applying pressure between the upper and lower blades. This method is simple and effective, and is often used for straight line cutting.
By focusing the highly concentrated laser beam generated by the laser to the surface of the material to be processed, the material is heated to a molten or gasification state in a short time. In this process, auxiliary gases, such as oxygen or nitrogen, are often used to help remove molten metal and improve the quality of the cut.
Water jet cutting is a processing technology that uses high pressure water flow to cut materials. This technology enables precise cutting of various materials by pressurizing water flow to extremely high pressures and mixing it with abrasives to form a high-speed jet of water.
Some processes in stamping can be used to achieve metal cutting, such as blanking and trimming.
Forming
In sheet metal fabrication, forming is an important process to transform flat metal materials into three-dimensional structures. According to different needs and design requirements, sheet metal forming can be divided into a variety of types, each method has its own unique characteristics and application scenarios.
Bending is the application of force to the metal sheet through special equipment (such as a bending machine) to make it plastic deformation at the specified position, so as to form the required Angle or curve. This process is often used to make parts such as brackets and frames.
Metal is formed using some of the processes in stamping, such as deep drawing and twisting.
Welding
Welding is a process in which two or more pieces of metal material are joined together by heating, pressing, or other methods.
Argon arc welding is a welding process using argon as a shielding gas, which belongs to a kind of arc welding. The basic principle is to generate a high-temperature arc through a non-expendable electrode to heat the metal material to a melting state, so as to realize the connection between two or more pieces of metal.
Carbon dioxide gas shielded welding is a common arc welding process, which mainly uses carbon dioxide gas as a shielding gas to prevent the metal molten pool from being polluted by oxygen and nitrogen in the air during the welding process.
Laser welding is an advanced welding technology that uses a laser beam with high energy density to melt and join metal materials. The basic principle is that by focusing the laser beam, the surface of the material to be welded rapidly heats up and reaches a melting state, so as to achieve a firm bond between two or more pieces of metal.
Plasma arc welding is an efficient welding technology that is widely used in the connection and processing of metal materials. The basic principle is to heat a gas (usually argon or nitrogen) to a very high temperature through an arc, so that it changes into a plasma state, thus forming a stable and concentrated energy welding arc.
Resistance welding is a welding process that uses the heat generated by the current through the metal contact point to achieve the connection of metal materials. The basic principle is to place the two metal parts to be welded together, and by applying a certain pressure and passing a high strength current, the contact surface is heated by the resistance and reaches a melting state, thus forming a firm weld.
Finishing
Metal finishing refers to the modification of the surface of metal materials by physical, chemical or mechanical methods to improve their properties and appearance.
Powder coating is a surface treatment technology mainly used to improve the wear resistance, corrosion resistance and appearance of materials. The process works by spraying metal powder with high-pressure gas onto the surface of the substrate, causing it to melt at high temperatures and form a strong coating.
Used to improve the appearance of the material, corrosion resistance, wear resistance. A thin metal film is deposited on the surface of a metal or non-metal substrate through an electrolysis process.
Used for protection of steel and its alloys. By immersing the cleaned steel in molten zinc, the zinc reacts with the substrate to form a uniform and dense zinc coating on its surface. This coating can effectively prevent oxygen and moisture erosion of the substrate, significantly improving the corrosion resistance of the material.
Used for surface modification of aluminum and its alloys. By applying direct current to the aluminum in an acidic or alkaline electrolyte, an oxide film of controllable thickness is formed on the aluminum surface. This layer of oxide film not only has good corrosion resistance, but also can improve the hardness and wear resistance of the material.
Used to improve the corrosion resistance and adhesion of metal materials. It usually involves immersing a metal such as iron, steel, or aluminum in a solution containing phosphate and forming a dense phosphate film on its surface through a chemical reaction.
Used to improve the hardness, wear resistance and corrosion resistance of steel and its alloys. By introducing nitrogen to the metal surface at high temperatures, nitrogen atoms react with iron or other elements in the substrate to form a nitrogen-rich hardened layer.
The aim is to improve the gloss and aesthetics of the material by reducing its surface roughness. It is used in the processing of metal, plastic, glass and other materials to improve the appearance and performance of products.
The use of high energy laser beam to remove dirt, rust, coating, etc., on the surface of the material. This process has been widely used in the field of industrial cleaning for its high efficiency, environmental protection and accuracy.
Benefits of Sheet Metal Fabricaiton
Sheet metal processing production efficiency is high, can mass produce the same sheet metal products, suitable for large-scale mass production.
Sheet metal processing usually requires relatively little equipment, so the cost is low .
The selection of sheet metal materials is flexible, and different materials can be customized according to customer needs .
Sheet metal processing precision is high, can make high-precision, high-quality parts and products .
Sheet metal processing has a strong adaptability, can be applied to many fields, such as machinery, electronics, communications, automobiles, home appliances and other fields .
Sheet metal processing speed is fast, not limited by the number of processing, no need to replace tools in the production process, can effectively improve the processing speed, especially for special-shaped workpiece processing .
Sheet metal processing effect is remarkable, laser cutting is non-contact cutting, the edge is less affected by heat, can avoid the adverse effects of thermal expansion of the workpiece, to prevent the formation of material cutting edge, usually no secondary processing, greatly improve work efficiency .
Sheet metal processing technology is not limited by material characteristics, whether it is high hardness aluminum alloy plate, carbide, or strange shape pipe, etc., can be directly cut and no deformation, processing flexibility is good, can process all kinds of graphics .
Sheet metal processing technology is combined with precision machinery, measurement technology and computer to achieve a high degree of automation and high-precision processing.