Manufacturing Tips, News, & More

When you need to have some welding or fabricating work done, finding the right shop to do the work for you is critical. The material you are working with and the kind of welding you need should be a consideration when you start to consider a shop to help you. 

Steel and Steel Alloys

Welding steel is common, and just about any good welding shop can handle steel and steel alloys. The material is one of the easiest to work with, but steel is strong, so it is an excellent material for structural projects when durability is a crucial factor. One concern with steel is the weight of it, so there are times when even though it would work well, it is not the first material chosen for a project.

If you are using a steel alloy, you can often get similar strength with a reduction in the weight of the material, but be sure to check with an engineer about using the alloy if you are unsure if it is strong enough to do what you need it to do.

Aluminum or Aluminum Alloys

Aluminum is a durable material, and the weight is substantially lower than other materials that offer similar strength, but it is not as rigid as steel, so if you are having something made from aluminum, you have to be sure you choose the right grade and type of material. 

Often aluminum plate is cut and welded into shape by a welding shop, and when gussets, angles, and the proper thickness of the material are chosen, the material can be very strong. Welding aluminum is not difficult for a trained welder, but the shop needs to have the right welder and the right filler material for the weld to be perfect. 

Most welders will use TIG (tungsten inert gas) welding for materials like aluminum or MIG (metal inert gas) welding with aluminum wire to properly join the parts and create strong welds that will hold when they need to.

Cutting and Fabrication

If you need some plate steel cut for the project you are working on, most welding shops can help. Using a process called plasma cutting, the welding shop can cut out almost any shape you need, and depending on the plasma cutter, they can cut plate as much as a half an inch thick with minimal effort.

The plasma cutter heats the steel to a near liquid consistency, then uses a directed flow of air to blow away the hot metal, separating the steel into pieces. Some shops even have plasma cutters that are computer-controlled and can make the same part over and over, keeping the dimensions and shape the same from the first piece to the last.

For more information, contact a welding shop in your area.