Metal fabrication is a process of constructing machines or structures from raw materials. The term metal fabrication refers to any cutting, molding or shaping process that turns metals into final products. Companies specialized in metal fabrications are known as fabrication shops or fab shops and they are able to produce metal products in all possible sized and shapes. But if you require a non-standard component or some unique piece of final product, you will need a custom metal fabrication service.
Custom metal fabrication services are available at most fab shops and they can provide any sort of assistance for your custom order. As anyone would assume, manufacturing a unique product is much more difficult, as it involves specific design and a thorough planning. Improper dimension or bad planning could easily compromise the quality of the final product.
Custom metal fabrication services apply for many different stages of the process of developing products. This means that these services can help you regardless of whether you need a complete production assistance or only a part of the production.
There are three main types of custom metal fabrication services:
- Design;
- Build;
- Finishing & Assembly;
Custom Metal Fabrication Design Services
If you are manufacturing a custom product, design is the most important part you need to consider. The design services can be further divided to three types of services: conceptualizing, computer-aided design (CAD) and tooling design. Once you have a general idea of how should the product look like and which features matter the most, conceptualizing is used to help in choosing the right parts and materials’ characteristics you need.
CAD is a program that provides you with a computer-generated 3D representation of your final product. This program is able to identify the potential structural weaknesses before you start the product and all you need to do is enter the design. The third design service is tooling design, which is used to help with designing specific production tools.
Custom Build Services
When you are done with the planning and designing, the manufacturing process can begin. There are many different custom build services and which one you will use depends on the requirements, the material and the intended purpose of the your final product. The most common custom metal fabrication services are casting, drawing, punching, welding, drilling, milling, turning and forging.
Custom Finishing & Assembly Services
Many completed products still require a finishing process in order to get their intended specifications and look. For combining two or more metal pieces into one functional unit, assembly services are required. Bonding, bolting, screwing, painting, sawing and grinding are some of the most common finishing and assembly services.
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