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Sheet metal prototyping fabrication

Sheet Metal Prototyping Fabrication

At RapidDone, we mastered the art of sheet metal prototyping fabrication! Our manufacturing method include a wide range of processes, such as cutting, bending, punches, welding and more.

We can rapidly create highly durable, precise, cost-effective sheet metal parts that meet your specifications. The typical types include brackets, enclosures, panels, doors, cabinets and other sheet metal parts.

As a typical rapid prototyping supplier, we love quantity 1, and be competitive for low/mid volumes too. Prototyping part lead time can be as fast as 3 days.

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Our Outstanding Sheet Metal Fabrication Capability

At RapidDone, we can take a wide range of processes to manipulate sheets of metal into the required geometry based on your sheet metal parts and prototypes, covering from high-quality cutting, and bending, to punching services.

laser cutting
bending services
Sheet metal punching

Cutting Service

Bending Service

Punching Service

Why Choose RapidDone’s Services

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√ Strong Sheet Metal Fabrication Capacity

At RapidDone, our shop floor is stocked with high-quality machines that enable us to handle even the most complex sheet metal fabrication projects. All our cutting, joining, shaping machines and CNC machining machines are computer controlled to achieve highly accurate parts.

Thanks to our extensive industry connections, we can source almost any metal for fabricating sheet metal parts. At the same time, we can take care of any special surface treatment, finish.

√ Strong Engineering Support

At RapidDone, we have teams of dedicated and knowledgeable engineers ready to take on your project for you. Using years of industry experience, our engineers will go over your plans and provide optimal, cost-effective sheet metal manufacturing solutions.

√ Short Turnaround Times

Rapidly iterating through versions of a new product or getting a product to market requires tight timelines. To help achieve this, we ensures that the manufacturing and product delivery are done as fast as possible without compromising quality.

√ Flexible Order Quantity

We do not have a Minimum Order Quantity for sheet metal fabrication projects. So, whether you’re creating a one-off prototype or committing to low-volume production, we are your best option.

    Custom Sheet Metal Parts to Promote Your Brand

    Metal Sheet Bracket Part
    Sheet Metal Box Prototype
    Custom Sheet Metal Cabinet

    Metal Sheet Bracket

    Aluminum Sheet Metal Box

    Sheet Metal Cabinet

    Stainless Steel Chair Prototyping

    What is Sheet Metal Fabrication?

    Sheet metal fabrication covers several manufacturing processes involved in turning thin metal sheets into parts. These manufacturing processes are divided into three main categories; Cutting, shaping, and assembly.

    Using these three processes, we can create different sorts of complex shapes and parts out of sheet metal. Additionally, these parts can be either aesthetic models or high-strength functional models.

    In fact, some high-strength parts in airplanes are made from sheet metal fabrication! So, you can be sure that parts made out of sheet metal parts will offer you the required strength in your project.

    What is Sheet Metal Fabrication

    Available Sheet Metal Fabrication Processes

    At RapidDone, there are many fabrication processes we use in creating sheet metal prototyping parts.

    √ Laser Cutting

    Laser Cutting is the go-to method for cutting parts out of sheet metal. It provides quick, accurate cuts, with most lasers able to cut about 70” within a minute.

    However, it’s not ideal for thick parts as it can only cut parts with thicknesses of about 50mm. Even at thicknesses exceeding 10mm, laser cutting begins to lose its speed and appeal.

    √ Water Jet Cutting

    Water Jet Cutters use a thin water stream at extremely high pressure to cut the sheet metal. The water may be mixed with abrasives to increase its cutting efficiency.

    They are a great alternative if the sheet metal is too thick for a laser or plasma cutter. They can cut metals with thicknesses of up to 300mm.

    They also do this without leaving burn marks on the part. This also makes them ideal for precise, highly-detailed cuts.

    √ Plasma Cutting

    Plasma cutters use a stream of superheated plasma to cut through the sheet metal. These cutters are perfect for thick pieces of metal that can’t be cut using a laser cutter.

    Plasma cutting is also cheaper than laser cutting as it has a lower setup cost. However, this comes with a loss in accuracy.

    Additionally, the edges of plasma cut parts usually have a rough, burnt finish.

    √ Blanking and Punching

    Blanking and Punching is a cutting method that uses shear force to remove the desired shape from the sheet metal. They both involve placing the material on a die and applying force to it via punch to drive out a specific shape.

    The difference is that the punch drives out the required shape from the sheet metal in blanking. While in punching, the punch drives out the excess sheet metal, leaving the final part on the die.

    This operation is usually used in creating standard shapes like holes, rectangles, etc.

    √ Bending

    Bending involves applying pressure on the sheet metal placed in a die to achieve a specific curvature. We can use this method to fold the sheet metal to any angle or shape after cutting.

    √ Welding

    Welding is a process we can use for joining pieces of sheet metal together to achieve a permanent joint. We offer different types of welding services, including, TiG welding, Spot Welding, etc.

    Other Metal Fabrications Processes we offer include; stamping, spinning, etc.

    Our Sheet Metal Material Options

    We offer different gauges of several types of metals for creating sheet metal parts. Some of the popular options among our customers include:

    • Steel: Stainless Steel, Cold Rolled Steel, Alloy Steel, Pre-plated steel.
    • Aluminum: Grade 1100, Grade 5052, Grade6061
    • Copper: C110, C100, C102
    • Brass

    We also offer a variety of other metals that are available upon request.

    Our Sheet Metal Fabrication Limits and Tolerances

    The tolerances achievable in sheet metal fabrication vary in different machine shops. Also, some machine shops can offer more exacting tolerances at your request.

    At RapidDone, these are the standard tolerances we offer are in compliance with the ISO 2768-M.

    Applications of Sheet Metal Parts

    There are many applications for parts fabricated from sheet metal. Over the years, we’ve built a lot of parts to help businesses in different industries.

    Some of these include:

    • Transportation: Aircraft frames, automobile chassis, and body panels.
    • Home Appliances: Washing machines, cooking utensils, refrigerators.
    • Electronics: PC housings, Server racks.
    • Construction: Pipes, beams, enclosures, metal staircases.

    Sheet Metal FAQs

    1. How much does sheet metal fabrication cost?

    There is no standard cost for this. It depends on factors like order quantity, material selection, etc. You can check more sheet metal fabrication cost from this page.

    2. Is there a minimum order quantity?

    No, RapidDone doesn’t have a minimum order quantity as a prototyping manufacturer. We can handle anything from one-off prototypes to low-volume production runs in the thousands.

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