Different Types of Metal Cutting
Metal fabrication is an essential step in creating all sorts of metal parts, components and
machines. During almost any fabrication process, the metal materials required will need to be
cut — however; there are several different types of metal cutting approaches you can choose
from.
Which type of metal cutting is right for your application? To help you decide, here’s a look at
some of the most commonly used metal cutting technologies and approaches.
Grinding
Grinding is a metal cutting process used in fabrication. The actual metal grinding is used to
rid metal components of rough edges by deburring, smoothing out welds and, in some cases,
creating sharp edges.
Grinding is almost always done by hand using a grinding machine, though some larger
operations have finishing machines they use for the process. There are many different types
of machines used for grinding, including bench grinders, cylinder grinders, surface grinders,
bit grinders and more. Because grinding is a manual process, it's often one of the more
intensive and expensive steps in fabrication.
Drilling
Drilling is another important action for metal fabrication. Metal drilling is used to create
holes of precise specifications in a metal component or surface. The hole itself is created by
applying pressure and rotation on top of the metal component or surface.
When creating parts and components that will be fastened to other metal components or to
components made from other materials, it’s often necessary to create holes for fasteners to
pass through. Different types of metal will require different levels of pressure and various
types of tools, depending on the specific drilling needs.
Turning
Also known as metal spinning, metal turning is a metalworking process wherein a tube or
disc rotates at a high speed to help form metal in the desired configuration. The turning
process is typically conducted by hand or through use of a lathe, and the technicians who
perform turning are highly skilled at forming parts and components during the fabrication
process.
Burning
Also known as welding, metal burning is the process of heating metal components to such a
temperature that they can be broken and formed along a pattern. Burning and welding are
often used to join two different metal components, and specialty tools are required for
successful burning and welding. Metal burning’s roots lie in blacksmithing, a forge welding
specialty that involved heating and hammering in an effort to join together iron and steel.
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Water Jet
The water jet process includes mixing water with metal abrasive and then applying it at high
force to the metal component that needs forming. The water jet approach allows for precise
metal surfacing during the fabrication process. Many professional fabricators lean heavily on
water jet forming and cutting because it is comparatively fast and inexpensive. The water jet
process also produces the clean surfaces and smooth edges quality fabricated materials are
known for.
Plasma
Plasma is one of the newer approaches to metal cutting. In the plasma cutting process,
fabricators use plasma torches that pass an electrical arc through oxygen or a different inert
gas. This electrical arc simultaneously blows away unwanted molten metal and melts away
the metal surface for forming and shaping. The plasma approach can be used to cut or form
different types of metal, including aluminum, brass, copper and stainless steel.
Laser
For the utmost in precision and control, choose laser metal cutting technology for your
application. During the laser cutting process, a highly concentrated light beam at a high
temperature is used to cut a component to specific shapes and sizes. Given how precise laser
cutting is, a computer system is typically used in tandem to manage the process.
Laser metal cutting processes are typically used for fabrication when adherence to plans and
precision when compared to design drawings are of the highest importance. Laser cutting is
also one of the most intensive and expensive approaches to metal cutting.
