The Future of Metal Fabrication: How Laser Cutting is Revolutionizing the Industry

August 15th, 2024, Metal Fabrication, Laser Cutting

Metal fabrication is an essential craft that supports various industries, including automotive, construction, and consumer products, producing everything from small precision parts to large structural frameworks. In this article, we will delve into the cutting stage of metal fabrication and explore how laser cutting has brought unprecedented precision, speed, and versatility to the process. Discover the transformative benefits of laser cutting and its wide-ranging applications across several industries, from creating vehicle components to customized fencing and gates.

What is Metal Fabrication?

Metal fabrication is the process of building machines and structures from raw metal materials. It involves various skilled procedures including cutting, bending, and assembling to create metal parts or structures. Key processes in metal fabrication include:

Cutting: The initial step where metal pieces are cut to the required dimensions using tools such as saws, lasers, plasma cutters, or water jets.

Bending: Forming the metal into desired shapes by using press brakes, tube benders, or other tools.

Fitting: Preparing and assembling metal components in a manner that ensures they align correctly before any permanent joining

Welding: The permanent joining of two or more metal parts together by applying heat, pressure, or both, typically causing the metal to melt and fuse.

Assembling: Joining metal pieces together through various methods like welding, riveting, bolting, or using adhesives.

In this article, we’ll specifically cover the cutting stage of metal fabrication and the role laser cutting has played in enhancing metal fabrication. 

Why Laser Cutting For Metal Fabrication? 

Laser cutting machines are advanced tools used in various industries for cutting materials with high precision. It uses a high-powered laser beam to cut or engrave materials. This laser can be generated using different types of lasers, such as CO2 or fiber lasers. The laser beam is focused to a fine point with high intensity, generating enough heat to melt, burn, or vaporize the material at the point of contact. Laser cutting machines have revolutionized various industries by offering high precision, speed, and versatility.

The Benefits Of Laser Cutting For Metal Fabrication:

• Precision: Laser cutting offers extremely high precision, allowing for intricate and complex designs. This precision also prevents cases of distortion, such as warping, which helps maintain long-term functionality of cut parts. 
• Speed: The laser cutting technology is faster than many traditional cutting methods, particularly for thin materials and fine details.
• Versatility: Laser cutting machines are capable of cutting a wide range of materials, including various metals such as stainless steel, carbon, aluminum, and more.
• Minimal Waste: The precision of laser cutting minimizes waste material, making it cost-effective and more sustainable than conventional methods. 
• Quality: Laser cutting produces clean, smooth edges, which often do not require further finishing processes. Additionally, it creates very little heat-affected zones in the production process, which avoids the compromising of durability. 
• Automation: Laser cutting machines using CNC integration allow for automated and consistent production runs. 

Let’s dive into some of the industry-wide laser cutting metal fabrication applications.

Construction Applications

Metal fabrication takes up a large amount of space in the construction industry, ranging from structural and decorative purposes. Metal fabrication is an essential part of construction, as it helps to create durable and efficient structures and/or components. Construction industries benefit from laser cutting services to get high capacity metal fabrication projects executed quickly and accurately.

Our laser cutting services offer the cutting of components for:

• Structural Elements
  • Beams and Columns: Cutting metal beams and columns to precise lengths and shapes that are fundamental to the structural integrity of buildings.
  • Trusses and Frames: Creating complex trusses and frames that are used in roofs, bridges, and building frameworks.
  • Joists and Girders: Precisely cutting steel joists and girders that support floors and roofs.
• Hoppers
  • Structural Components
    • Hopper Body: Creating the supports and main panels of the hopper, ensuring precise dimensions for assembly and alignment.
    • Inlet and Outlet Flanges: Cutting flanges and connections for inlets and outlets, ensuring they fit accurately with partnering components.
  • Custom Features
    • Material Flow Channels: Cutting and building additional channeling used to control the flow of materials through the hopper. 
    • Inspection Windows and Access Doors: Laser cutting specific cutouts for inspection windows and access doors for enhanced monitoring and servicing. 
  • Reinforcements and Supports
    • Ribs and Stiffeners: Cutting and adding internal ribs and stiffeners that reinforce structural integrity and manage the weight of varying material loads. 
• Lifting Beams: Lifting beams are cut with strict dimensional tolerances to ensure they can adequately support loads without failure. Additionally, laser cutting is used for intricate designs, such as cutouts for attachment points or weight-reduction features.
• Feed Bins: Cutting the walls of the feed bin as well as other coupling components used to assemble the bin, cut precisely to ensure accurate fits. 
• Chute Assemblies: Chutes are used to transport materials throughout the assembly process. The material chutes are made out can vary widely, which is why laser cutting is one of the most reliable and versatile methods for creating them. 
• Infrastructure Projects
  • Bridge Components: Cutting metal parts used in bridge construction, such as beams, supports, and connectors.
  • Railings and Guardrails: Producing components for road and bridge railings and guardrails to ensure safety.
  • Signage: Cutting metal for road signs, directional signs, and informational plaques.
• Temporary and Portable Structures
  • Scaffolding: Creating components for scaffolding systems that are essential for construction site safety and efficiency.
  • Temporary Buildings: Producing parts for portable and temporary buildings, including modular components.
• Livestock Equipment
  • Feeding Systems:
    • Feed Bins and Troughs: Cutting and fabricating metal feed bins, troughs, and other feeding equipment to ensure they are sturdy and durable.
    • Automatic Feeders: Producing precise components for automatic feeding systems, ensuring smooth and reliable operation.
  • Shelters and Barns:
    • Structural Components: Cutting metal beams, columns, and panels for constructing livestock shelters, barns, and stables.
    • Gates and Fences: Fabricating gates, fencing panels, and other barriers to secure livestock areas.
  • Handling Equipment:
    • Chutes and Pens: Producing metal parts for cattle chutes, sorting pens, and loading ramps, ensuring they are strong and safe for handling agricultural livestock.

Other laser cutting applications you may see for construction include the cutting of building infrastructure like pipes and ductwork, windows and door frames, gutters and downspouts, and more.

Oil & Gas Applications

The oil and gas industry demands high-quality equipment and infrastructure that can withstand harsh conditions and ensure safety. Reliable functioning is key, with metal fabrication as the main fortifier that allows the stability of oil & gas components.

Our laser cutting services offer the cutting of components for:

• Tank Bases: Often thick in dimension, laser cutting machines cut the individual pieces needed to create the tank base, accurately maintaining the desired parameters of components like mounting holes. 
• Compressors: Compressors require cut components made of thick metal materials to reach the desired durability. Laser cutting machines will precisely process flanges, brackets, and covers used to build the compressors. 
• Supports For Pumps: Creating custom brackets and mounts used to secure the pumps in position, as well as base plates, cross braces, frames, and support rails.

Some laser cutting machines can also cut pipe sections to precise lengths and specifications, in addition to elbows, tees, reducers, and flanges for pipe fittings. This also includes cutting parts for valves that control the flow of oil and gas through pipelines. Storage tanks, processing equipment, subsea components, and safety and control systems for oil and gas pipelines are also manufactured with laser cutting.

Home Renovation Applications

On a smaller scale, home renovation projects will often involve metal fabrication, especially in scenarios where the structure of the home is being changed. Like other industries, home renovation needs metal fabrication to maintain the durability and structural integrity of newly constructed spaces. Metal fabrication with laser cutting offers special customization to homeowners, making it versatile for both structural and decorative purposes. Here’s a list of some of the areas where metal fabrication using laser cutting applies:

• Outdoor Structures and Features
  • Fencing and Gates: Cutting and fabricating components for metal fences and gates, including decorative designs and robust security features.
  • Balconies and Railings: Creating custom metal railings for balconies and decks, combining safety with aesthetic design.
  • Pergolas and Gazebos: Producing precision-cut metal parts for constructing outdoor pergolas and gazebos, offering both beauty and durability.
• Windows and Skylights
  • Window Frames: Cutting metal window frames that can incorporate modern, sleek designs while ensuring durability.
  • Skylight Frames: Fabricating custom frames for skylights, providing both structural support and aesthetic. 

Laser cutting may also be employed for functional renovations to HVAC systems, cutting ductwork components and fabricating custom plumbing fixtures and fittings. 

Enhance Your Metal Fabrication With BSG's Laser Cutting Machine

Ball Service Group houses Ontario’s only Amada 9kW ENSIS 3015 RIe laser, one of the most versatile laser cutting machines available in Ontario. Using the ENSIS fiber laser, the machine has variable beam control to process a expansive range of materials and their thickness. The machine operates with the assist gasses O2 and Nitrogen, maximizing their benefits and expanding the capabilities of the laser cutting machine. Ball Service Group’s Amada laser is capable of producing laser cut materials quickly and efficiently, while also managing projects of large or small capacity. 

With the Amada laser cutting machine’s precision and automation, we can help you conquer metal fabrication projects from customized home fencing and gazebos to more industrial applications such as gas compressors for oil and gas, lifting beams for construction, and robot mounting bases for automotive. Trust BSG to bring your project to life. Submit a sketch idea and request a quote today. No drawings available? Our team can draft a sketch for you: Contact us.