CNC: Making Your Manufacturing Facility Work For You

What Can You Do With Custom Metal Fabrication? Ideas to Get You Started

by Pamela Hill

Metal fabrication is broad topic and covers a broad range of services and processes. When you add custom work to metal fabrication, there is almost nothing you cannot do. If you cannot picture what custom metal fabrication can do, the following ideas will help open up your mind and expand your own ideas for projects. 

Custom Scroll Work

Scrolled metal without having to forge it in the fires of Mt. Doom? Yes, you can do that with custom metal fabrication. It just takes a good sheet of metal and a laser CNC machine with scroll programming and, boom shakalaka, you have beautiful scroll work. If you have a unique scroll design in mind, the CNC machine can take a scanned image, upload it into the software and cut it out perfectly.

Custom Metal Signs

Positive relief or negative relief--it makes little difference to a custom metal fabricator. You can get punched metal, raised metal, stamped metal, and even acid-washed metal to create your ideal metal signs. If you also want them painted, powder electroplating can effectively paint part or all of your custom signs. If you also need wording on the signs, great care is taken to make sure the wording is exact.

Custom Metal Siding and Roofing

Custom metal fabrication has branched out within the last decade to include siding and roofing. The process folds, bends, and creates interesting patterns in roofing metal sheets, while siding has all kinds of interesting colors from which to choose. Just talk to a roofing or siding contractor to get a few samples and some visuals on what custom metal fabrication does for these two construction materials.

Custom Metal Cutting for Vehicles

Want to add some unique side panels to your hot rod? You can order these from a custom metal fabricator. Just as you would for any other custom metal job, bring in some very detailed sketches for the fabricator to scan into the machines. Request a mock-up of the panels using your dimensions and thicknesses. If the first mock-up panel passes muster, you can have the machinist make the rest of the panels. Then you can add them to your vehicle, either by yourself or with the help of an auto body shop owner and his/her crew. 

For more information about custom metal fabrication or to discuss these creative ideas and more, talk to a professional like those at Elliott Bay Metal Fabricating Inc.

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