Archive: Oct 2021

How the Sheet Metal Industry Is Helping the U.S. Economy

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The American iron and steel industry is estimated to support around 716,000 in supplier jobs and pay an average of $53 billion in compensation and wages. The iron and steel industry contributes to the overall public finances of the nation, and the suppliers generate an estimated $173 billion in revenue. This also follows into the sheet metal industry, which currently accounts for around $30 billion in U.S. revenue.

But before we get too far into it, what exactly are we talking about here?

What Is Sheet Metal?

Sheet metal is a versatile form of metal wherein steel, aluminum, copper, brass, nickel, tin, titanium, or even precious metals are made into a thin sheet which can then be cut, bent, or otherwise molded to the desired shape and size. The term sheet metal refers to any metal which can be formed into a sheet of varying thickness, though very thick sheets are called plate.

How Is Sheet Metal Helping the U.S. Economy?

Being so versatile, sheet metal is a great choice for architects and innovative designers to work with. In addition to being malleable, it is also strong and finished in such a way that it is resistant to corrosion, sun, and moisture.

The sheet metal industry currently accounts for an estimated 30 billion dollars in U.S. revenue. While small compared to the 173 billion dollars believed to be generated by the steel and iron industry in the United States, that amount is still appreciable. Even simple aluminum sheeting brings in a hefty part of that figure.

The sheet metal industry helps form the backbone of the iron and steel industry in the U.S., providing workable, durable material from which all manner of things can be fabricated. While sheet metal does tend to suffer a bit when the economy is less than booming, it more than makes up for that in fruitful times.

Overall, sheet metal is clearly an important arm of the iron and steel industry, providing billions of dollars worth of strong, malleable, and corrosion-resistant material which can be used to fabricate all manner of parts and pieces, as well as be used for larger projects, such as those seen in architectural contexts.

Three Benefits of Recycling Metal That You Never Knew

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Given the looming effects of global warming on the world, recycling metals has become a significant undertaking. North America recycles 69% of all steel every year, which is equivalent to more than 80 million tons of metal that are reused when consumers are seeking out metal sales near me. Recycling protects the environment, reduces cost, and promotes the proper management of limited resources. Here are three benefits of recycling metals that you did not know.

1. Prevent Environmental Pollution

The first benefit of recycling metals is less environmental pollution. The actual extraction and refining of raw materials to manufacture metals results in releasing large quantities of greenhouse emissions to the environment. The process is also associated with other types of pollution, including toxic runoff, the release of environmental hazards, groundwater pollution, and physical scars caused by excavation. These effects pollute the environment and can take many years to heal.

On the other hand, recycling metals is environmentally friendly. The process is efficient as it uses less energy. Moreover, recycling does not result in groundwater pollution or physical land scars. Recycling does not cause the release of poisonous emissions. The recycling process releases less greenhouse gas emissions than original manufacturing, making it safe for the environment. Overall, recycling metals prevents environmental pollution by reducing emissions to the environment.

2. Economic Development

Recycling metals contribute to economic development in a number of ways. One way is that recycling allows business owners, companies, and the government to save money that would have otherwise been spent on manufacturing new metals. The money is invested in other areas to foster economic development.

Recycling metals also contributes to economic development by creating employment. The metal recycling industry is labor-intensive. It creates jobs for thousands of people and contributes millions of dollars to the nation’s economy.

The recycled metals create jobs for other people. They can be used as tools to facilitate tasks or as raw materials for metal sales near me.

3. Less Landfill Growth

Waste metals are often put on dumpsites, leading to the creation of large landfills. This puts a toll on the environment because metals take many years to biodegrade. Also, landfills have limited space. Recycling metals reduces dumping and keeps metals out of landfills. This prevents landfills from growing and keeps the environment clean.

Even though metals can be hard to recycle, there are many benefits of recycling. The recycling process involves four stages, namely segregation, preparation, burning, and manufacturing. Remember to adhere to all health, safety, and environmental regulations while recycling metals.

Three Things You Didn’t Know About Combined Metals

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Alloys or combined metals have existed since the dawn of time and alloys have been used in a variety of fashions and industries. The fascination with alloys goes all the way back to the study of Alchemy. Turning Lead into Gold was one of the aims of Alchemy with many trying to achieve this through experiments and other ways. Here are some interesting facts about combined metals that you may not know of.

I. Stainless Steel

Stainless Steel is one of the most popular alloys around and the one that you may be most familiar with. Stainless Steel is used in sinks, piping, and other uses in homes, businesses, and elsewhere. The main attraction to stainless steel lies within its rust-proof capabilities which make it ideal for rainy climates or other environments which may introduce water and condensation to the mix.

What makes up stainless steel? A mix of mostly iron and low levels of chromium and carbon. The surface of the steel has a thin layer of chromium oxide which forms its shield against rust. Rust can form when oxygen is introduced into the steel surface through water and air. Interestingly, stainless steel is not completely rust-proof as seawater (which is corrosive due to the levels of salt within) can eat away at the chromium oxide and penetrate the steel’s surface causing it to rust.

II. Gold

Gold is another combined metal that is quite familiar to most of us as gold is used most in jewelry. Gold has fantastic reactive qualities with other metals and alloys which is why it’s sometimes used in audio connections and high-fidelity compact discs. You may see the gold listed under a karat number, this number defines how much gold makes up the alloy.

Karat is listed in 24 parts, so for 24-karat gold, this means that the item is 100% gold with no other metals included. 18-karat gold would be 18/24’ths gold or put into percentage terms, 75% gold and 25% other metals.

III. Solder

Solder is a special alloy comprised of tin and lead and has excellent bonding qualities with other metals. This quality of metal bonding is precisely why computer manufacturers use solder to mate chips, resistors, and capacitors to logic boards inside your computer. The solder provides a solid pathway for the data from these chips to traverse through trace lines within the logic board to other chips.

There are no experiments and dream chasing these days with alloys as the combined metal forging industry has grown steadily over the years. This growth of the sheet metal market looks to continue with an average growth rate slightly above four percent between 2018 and 2022. The continued growth of this market means that combined metals will be important to the industry for years to come, and knowing more about the common alloys mentioned about will be helpful for growing with the industry.

Why the Metal Fabrication Industry Is Growing

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Recent research within the metal fabrication industry has shown a growing trend towards increased demand and great profits through various niche markets. Continued research has highlighted a range of meaningful and actionable insights into the current situation within the metal fabricating market and the general landscape of the global market. Key areas of focus include the need for thin steel sheet metal production as well as other high-demand metals including aluminum, copper, and tin.

According to PR Newswire the global metal fabrication market is largely on the rise, and the industry will grow by billions of dollars by 2027. Data such as this highlights the growing demand and value of the metal production and fabrication industry as a whole. High-demand industries such as aeronautics, medical, industrial, and construction are fueling the need for reliable quality sheet metals and related products.

Key points to remember when it comes to monitoring the metal fabrication industry include the following:

  • The global market for metal fabrication continues to be very segmented when it comes to things like documentation, terms of service, niche industry specifications, customer demands, and regional shipments.
  • In terms of service, the metal fabrication industry generally gets broken down into the following: metal stamping, metal rolling, metal cutting, metal punching, metal forming, metal folding, metal shearing, metal welding, and metal machining.
  • Metals in demand range from thin steel sheets to pre-constructed aluminum paneling, to durable components needed for use with other metal pieces and mechanisms.
  • Many of these segments, particularly metal welding, cutting, and stamping are seeing an increase in demand throughout many industries and niche markets.
  • When looking at industries driving the metal fabrication explosion they include: aerospace, electronics, energy and power, construction, manufacturing, automotive, and others.
  • Of these, aerospace and manufacturing are poised to see the greatest level of growth. They are being watched closely as an opportunity for lucrative development within the global metal fabrication market.

As highlighted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the metal fabrication industry can be expected to add more than 12,000 jobs to the sector in the next few years, which shows why there has been such a renewed interest in this industry today.