Steel Fabrication

James Dunkerley Steels provide bespoke stainless steel fabrication in Manchester and across the UK, using a variety of metal fabrication techniques to transform sheet metal and box steel sections into the fabricated structures our customers need.

 Our made-to-measure service means the finished product will fit within agreed tolerances, with the expertise of our experienced metal fabricators to ensure that every cut, cast or weld is exactly where it needs to be.

What is steel fabrication?

 Steel fabrication is the process of taking sheet metal or box section steel and converting them into a finished product or structure.

 In principle, any product made of metal has been fabricated. That includes everything from cars to cans to cutlery. In practice, a lot of metal fabrication is industrial in nature, including heavy structural steel fabrication, and sheet metal fabrication to create cabinets and enclosures.

 We’ll look at the three main types of steel fabrication below, and then in more detail at some of the methods and processes used by our stainless steel fabricators in Manchester.

The types of steel fabrication

 Metal fabrication falls into three broad categories, including:

 Structural

 Structural steel fabrication involves building structures such as cabinets, access platforms, pump skid assemblies and more. This can include box section steel for strong supports and sheet metal fabrication for structures with platforms and/or enclosed sides.

 Load-bearing structural steel fabrication requires expertise in the various fabrication techniques used, as well as a deep understanding of the various compressive, tensile and shearing forces acting on different parts of the finished structure.

 Industrial

 You can think of industrial steel fabrication as (generally speaking) B2B steel fabrication. Finished products include tools and machinery that will be used by businesses to produce goods that will, in turn, be sold to consumers.

 As a result, industrial metal fabrication is normally not directly involved in the end-manufacture of consumer goods, but is an essential element in the higher-level production and supply chain of those goods.

Commercial

 The direct manufacture of metal goods for sale to consumers is commercial metal fabrication, and can be thought of as B2C steel fabrication. Products are many and varied, from a food or drink can to an entire car.

 Recycled steel is an increasingly important part of commercial metal fabrication. Endlessly recyclable with substantial energy savings and no loss of quality, steel is the perfect material for consumer goods that meet shoppers’ concerns about the environment.

Different steel fabrication processes

 Bespoke stainless steel fabrication uses many different processes to create the exact structures and specifications required by customers. Here are some of the most common techniques used by our steel fabricators in Manchester:

 Cutting

 Cutting is an essential technique in stainless steel fabrication. It is exactly as it sounds: cutting sheet metal or box sections to the specified size and shape for easy assembly.

Metal stamping

Metal fabricators use stamping to create an embossed pattern, rather than punching a hole all the way through. The most recognisable example of this is probably minting currency in the form of coins by stamping a pattern on to a metal blank disc.

 Welding

 Welding is used by stainless steel fabricators to join or fuse two pieces of metal where they meet. There are many types of welding and, when done well, it can create a very strong finished result.

 Extrusion

 Extrusion involves forcing metal through a template or ‘die’ to give it a specific cross-sectional shape. This is how many box sections are produced, including steel pipes and tubes, along with steel rods.

 Forging

Forging is the process of heating up the metal until it softens, and then bending or pressing it into shape, a technique that dates back to at least 4,000 BC.

 Casting

 Casting consists of completely melting the metal and then pouring it into a mould. Once cooled, the mould is removed to leave the shaped metal end product.

 These are just some of the methods we use for steel fabrication in Manchester. We can also paint or galvanise the finished fabrication. To find out more, contact James Dunkerley Steels today.