 A typical steel fabrication shop Fabrication, when used as an industrial term, applies to the building of machines , structures, process equipment for chemical, fertilizer sector by cutting, shaping and assembling components made from raw materials. Small businesses that specialize in metal are called fab shops. Steel fabrication source: http://www4. ...
Steel fabrication source: http://www4. ...
A machine is any mechanical or electrical device that transmits or modifies energy to perform or assist in the performance of tasks. ...
This article does not cite any references or sources. ...
Look up material in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...
Steel fabrication shops and machine shops have overlapping capabilities, but fabrication shops generally concentrate on the metal preparation, welding and assembly aspect while the machine shop is more concerned with the machining of parts. A lathe is a common tool used in machining. ...
Metal fabrication Metal fabrication is a value added process that involves the construction of machines and structures from various raw materials. A fab shop will bid on a job, usually based on the engineering drawings, and if awarded the contract will build the product. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Technical drawing. ...
Fabrication shops are employed by contractors, OEM's and VAR's. Typical projects include; loose parts, structural frames for buildings and heavy equipment, and hand railings and stairs for buildings. A general contractor is an organization or individual that contracts with another organization or individual (the owner) for the construction of a building, road or other facility. ...
Original equipment manufacturer, or OEM, is a term that refers to a situation in which one company purchases a manufactured product from another company and resells the product as its own, usually as a part of a larger product it sells. ...
A value-added reseller (VAR) is a company that adds some feature to an existing product, then sells it (usually to end-users) as a new package. ...
An excavator Engineering vehicles are heavy-duty vehicles, specially designed for executing engineering tasks. ...
Planning Once awarded the bid, the shop will begin planning the job. Purchasing agents will order materials and sub-contract out work to other shops if specialized fabrication equipment is needed.
Engineering The fabricator may employ or contract out steel detailers to prepare shop drawings, if not provided by the customer, which the fabricating shop will use for manufacturing. Manufacturing engineers will program CNC machines as needed. A steel detailer is a person who makes shop drawings for steel fabricators. ...
A CNC Turning Center A CNC Milling Machine The abbreviation CNC stands for computer numerical control, and refers specifically to a computer controller that reads G-code instructions and drives the machine tool, a powered mechanical device typically used to fabricate metal components by the selective removal of metal. ...
Raw materials Standard raw materials used by metal fabricators are; Structural steel is steel construction material, a profile, formed with a specific shape or cross section and certain standards of chemical composition and strength. ...
For other uses, see Hardware (disambiguation). ...
Casting may be used to create artistic sculptures Casting is a manufacturing process by which a molten material such as metal or plastic is introduced into a mold, allowed to solidify within the mold, and then ejected or broken out to make a fabricated part. ...
Cutting and burning The raw material has to be cut to size. This is done with a variety of tools;
Special band saws designed for cutting metal have hardened blades and a feed mechanism for even cutting. Abrasive cut-off saws, also known as chop saws, are similar to miter saws but with a steel cutting abrasive disk. Cutting torches can cut very large sections of steel with little effort. Large resaw blades used in a sawmill. ...
a cutting torch is a device that focuses an intense flame causing high heat and used to cut metal. ...
Burn tables are CNC cutting torches, usually natural gas powered. Plasma and Laser burn tables are also common. Plate steel is loaded on a table and the parts are cut out as programmed. The support table is made of a grid of bars that can be replaced. Some very expensive burn tables also include CNC punch capability, with a carousel of different punches and taps.
Forming Hydraulic brakes with v-dies are the most common method of forming metal. The cut plate is placed in the press and a v-shaped die is pressed a predetermined distance to bend the plate to the desired angle. Wing brakes and hand powered brakes are sometimes used.
Tube bending machines have specially shaped dies and mandrels to bend tubular sections without kinking them.
Rolling machines are used to form plate steel into a round section.
Machining -
Fab shops will generally have a limited machining capability including; metal lathes, mills, magnetic based drills along with other portable metal working tools. A lathe is a common tool used in machining. ...
Center lathe with DRO and chuck guard. ...
Endmills for a milling machine. ...
A child using an electric drill with a screwdriver bit mounted in the chuck. ...
Welding -
Welding is the main focus of steel fabrication. The formed and machined parts will be assembled and tack welded into place then re-checked for accuracy. A fixture may be used to locate parts for welding if multiple weldments have been ordered. Welding is a fabrication process that joins materials, usually metals or thermoplastics, by causing coalescence. ...
The welder then completes welding per the engineering drawings, if welding is detailed, or per his own judgment if no welding details are provided.
Special precautions may be needed to prevent warping of the weldment due to heat. These may include; welding in a staggered fashion, using a stout fixture, covering the weldment in sand during cooling, and straightening operations.
Straightening of warped steel weldments is done with an Oxy-acetylene torch and is somewhat of an art. Heat is selectively applied to the steel in a slow, linear sweep. The steel will have a net contraction, upon cooling, in the direction of the sweep. A highly skilled welder can remove significant warpage using this technique.
Steel weldments are occasionally annealed in a low temperature oven to relieve residual stresses. Annealing, in metallurgy and materials science, is a heat treatment wherein a material is altered, causing changes in its properties such as strength and hardness. ...
Stress is a measure of force per unit area within a body. ...
Final assembly After the weldment has cooled it is generally sand blasted, primed and painted. Any additional manufacturing specified by the customer is then completed. The finished product is then inspected and shipped. Sandblasting is a generic term for the process of smoothing, shaping and cleaning a hard surface by forcing solid particles across that surface at high speeds. ...
For the Talib Kweli album Quality (album) Quality can refer to a. ...
Specialties Many fab shops have specialty processes which they develop or invest in, based on their customers needs and their expertise; And higher-level specializations such as: This article is about the metal joining process. ...
Casting may be used to create artistic sculptures Casting is a manufacturing process by which a molten material such as metal or plastic is introduced into a mold, allowed to solidify within the mold, and then ejected or broken out to make a fabricated part. ...
Drawing is a manufacturing process for producing a wire, bar or tube by pulling on a material until it increases in length. ...
Extruded aluminium; slots allow bars to be joined with special connectors. ...
For finery forges (making iron), see finery forge. ...
Heat treatment is a method used to alter the physical, and sometimes chemical, properties of a material. ...
Hydroforming (or hydramolding) is a cost-effective way of shaping malleable metals such as aluminum into lightweight, structurally stiff and strong pieces. ...
(De)soldering a contact from a wire. ...
Powder coating is a type of dry coating, which is applied as a free-flowing, dry powder. ...
Powder metallurgy is a forming and fabrication technique consisting of three major processing stages. ...
Metals Punching in metal fabrication is the process of using a machine to press a shape through a sheet of metal and into a die to create that shape in the metal. ...
A guillotine is a machine used to accurately cut sheet metal. ...
Metal Spinning is a process by which circles of metal are shaped over mandrels (also called forms) while mounted on a spinning lathe by the application of levered force with various tools. ...
Welding is a fabrication process that joins materials, usually metals or thermoplastics, by causing coalescence. ...
The article on electrical energy is located elsewhere. ...
Many hydraulic machines lined up Excavator. ...
Technical drawing, also known as drafting, is the practice of creating accurate representations of objects for technical, architectural and engineering needs. ...
See also | 
Feeds |
Contact