In its broadest sense, metal fabrication involves the creation of structures or products by bending, assembling, or cutting some type of metal material. It falls into the category of a value-added process, since it largely consists of putting products together which are made from raw metal materials. There are generally three phases involved with any type of medical metal fabrication.
The first of these is the design phase where shop drawings are prepared according to specifications or measurements supplied by a customer. The next phase is the actual fabrication and this is where the assembling, cutting, or bending takes place. The final phase is the installation, and this is when an end product undergoes final assembly.
Metal fabricators typically work with a number of different raw materials, including expanded metal, cast metal, plate metal, or welding wires and rods. In summary, metal fabrication is one of the most important steps in creating any kind of finished metal part. Professional steel fabricators usually work in machine shops or fabrication shops which focus on either metal preparation or one of the three phases of fabrication. There are several different levels of metal fabrication, and the one which we’ll discuss in this article is commercial metal fabrication.
Distinctive Features of Commercial Metal Fabrication
The distinctive aspect of commercial steel fabrication is that it creates parts which are generally installed for commercial applications like municipal buildings, stores, restaurants, or public buildings. Some of the possible products installed in these structures include conveyors, shelving, awnings, guardrails, sinks, and a number of other appliances. A subcategory of commercial metal fabrication would be decorative metal fabrication, ornamental metal fabrication or iron works.
Metal products made through these processes are generally designed to be installed outside of commercial buildings, for the purpose of providing more curbside appeal and generating increased aesthetic value. It’s almost always necessary for commercial metal parts to be constructed on a smaller scale and with greater precision than structural or industrial metal parts might be. However, even decorative or ornamental metal parts can play a vital role in how a commercial business operates, whether that be with regard to maintaining safety for customers and employees, or for providing greater functionality.
Custom Metal Fabrication
While there are certainly some standard components and assemblies which are created through commercial metal fabrication, it frequently happens that clients require custom products to be assembled for them, according to specifications they provide. In cases like these, it’s generally a low-volume production run which creates the needed parts, and this will cost more because of custom setups and procedures.
However, it’s well worth the cost in order to provide exactly what the customer wants, and to make the customer happy. Those companies which are capable of that kind of precision and high-quality manufacturing processes, are always the firms which do more business than others, and which are called upon most often to produce unique, high-quality metal parts and assemblies.
