Metal Fabrication

Metal fabrication is the process of building machines and structures from raw
metal materials. The process includes cutting, burning, welding, machining,
forming, and assembly to create the final product.
Metal fabrication projects include everything from hand railings to heavy
equipment and machinery. Specific subsectors include cutlery and hand tools;
architectural and structural metals; hardware manufacturing; spring and wire
manufacturing; screw, nut, and bolt manufacturing; and forging and stamping.
The main benefit of metal fabrication shops is the centralization of these many
processes that are often required to be performed in parallel via a collection of
vendors. A one-stop metal fabrication shop helps contractors limit their need to
work with multiple vendors to complete complicated projects.
How Is Metal Fabrication Performed?
Metal fabrication industry has broad applications across a great many industries
and consumer products. Standard raw materials used include plate metal, fittings,
castings, formed and expanded metal, sectional metal, flat metal, and welding
wire.
Shops employ many different experts, including welders, ironworkers,
blacksmiths, boilermakers, and similar professionals that work with these raw
materials and convert them into their final products.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, approximately 1.425 million workers
are employed in metal fabrication. Among them are cutting, punching, and press
machine setters and operators; first-line supervisors; managers; machinists; team
assemblers; welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers.
Sector Characteristics
Because demand is driven by the economy, the profitability of the metal
fabrication industry relies on economic growth to thrive. Since the economic
rebound after the last recession, metal fabrication has become a strong and
intense business that continues to recalibrate itself and flourish. Current
adjustments include a shift from leaning on a few large projects to maintain a
yearly profit to attempting to maintain steady sales volumes by diversifying and
continuing to follow the successful template of previous years.
Most companies in the metal fabrication business work primarily to fortify their
organization’s strategy in a manner that can best help them make it through
changes in the global economy. When the local economy thrives, these boosts
tend to cause consumers to loosen their purse strings and purchase bigger-ticket
items such as cars, boats, and houses. And as the population continues to grow,
new construction picks up, requiring additional agricultural and commercial
machinery.
The metal fabrication industry is highly cyclical and depends on industries such
as auto, aerospace, construction, and energy. Earnings for each sector vary based
on market and economic factors affecting those markets. Investors must look at
their particular customer base and the economic influences affecting them in any
given year.
To gather the best predictions, metal fabricators can start by looking at
significant statistics for that area of business, be it home construction, energy,
defense, or any other area. By diversifying the customer base and collecting
customers from a variety of sectors, the cyclical nature of the industry can better
manage to keep net profits consistent.
Metal fabricators that can quickly shift product lines can protect profits and focus
on areas where demand is most prevalent. This type of diversification can create a
sustainable revenue base, regardless of revolving economic conditions.
A Look at the Future
The industry is learning to balance capacity with variability and find new ways to
build support for the inherent variability of customer demands that are driven by
an ever-changing economy. As machinery becomes more sophisticated, the ability
to maintain a constant level of capital and profit is improving.
Although forecasting can be difficult in a business dependent on the economic
fortune of its customers, the general consensus remains that those who can keep
up with rapidly changing demands while still maintaining a high output capacity
will elbow into a position of maximized profits.
The Need for Capital
To maintain profitability, metal fabrication shops require capital to quickly adjust
output and meet the demands of a diverse customer base. Covering costs is easy
in a booming economy, but when belts tighten, the industry must begin to cut
corners and reduce variable costs, which in turn naturally limit the customer base
the shop is able to cater to at any given time. The ability of these companies to
make modern investments that allow them to maintain a variable output is the
key to sustaining customer diversification.
By pairing efforts to diversify their customer base with economic vigilance and an
eye on competitor costs, as well as ensuring the entire manufacturing process is
streamlined from top to bottom, fabricators can protect their investments from
the impacts of negative environmental influences.
The metal fabrication industry stands as a solid investment built on highly fluid
customer demand. This lucrative moving target can be difficult to pin down, as
shops struggle to gear their efforts and capital toward those sectors that yield the
highest profits at any given time.
The volatility of the market has required the industry to streamline production
practices and focus on the ability to reliably produce high-capacity output for a
many varied customer requests.
Those metal fabricating shops that can optimize their manufacturing process and
operating machinery, paired with stakeholders who can pay close attention to
competing costs and the economic trends affecting their customer base, will lead
the industry.

UNDERSTANDING FABRICATION AND TYPES OF

FABRICATION
Fabrication is essentially the manipulation of raw materials i.e. metals like steel to make structures, machines,
etc. It is basically the process by which metal structures are made by cutting, welding, machining, bending and
assembling. In fact, fabrication is an integral part of the manufacturing process.
Anything you see around you, from a safety pin to heavy machinery or buildings, are all products of
fabrication. Metal fabrication has applications across several industries and products.

Types of Fabrication Processes

There are several kinds of fabrication processes, of which the most common are: cutting, folding, machining,
punching, shearing, stamping and welding.

Cutting
Today, many different processes of cutting are employed. While the oldest method of cutting is by using the
saw, today, modern methods of cutting include laser, plasma and waterjet cutting. These methods of cutting
vary in terms of the complexity and cost.

Folding
Many times, parts need to be bent and the most commonly employed method for bending is the use of the
brake press. The brake press has dies that form creases in the metal by pinching it. However, this method can
be used only for very specific cases and depends on the shape of the dies and the movement of the part.
Machining
This process involves the removal of metal from a material. The machining process may be done using a lathe
or some other cutting machine like a drill. In the case of a lathe, the material moves against it, while in the case
of a drill the tool rotates in various ways against the fixed piece. The cutting head’s range of motion is
specified by the number of axes.

Punching
The punching process makes use of the punch and the die, where the die cuts out the piece of metal and makes
a hole in it. The punch and the die must be the same size and shape as the desired hole. Sometimes the main
piece is kept and the holes are made for the purpose of fastening, while in other cases, the portion that is
removed is the required product, which is called the blanking.

Shearing
This is a process in which a long cut is made on a metal piece and this process is usually done on sheet metal.

Stamping
The process of stamping is similar to the process of punching, except that in stamping the material is not cut.
The die is made in such a way that causes the material to be raised instead of penetrating the metal.

Welding
This is essentially the process of joining two metal pieces. There are many kinds of welding methods that are
used for different applications and metals used for the manufacturing process.
The process of fabrication has undergone several changes over the years. With advancements in technology,
there are newer processes and methods of fabrication that are developing each day. Each new day sees newer
innovations such as 3D printing and fabrication is an area where the sky’s the limit.