Meta Description:
Not certain which metals you need for your business? Here is a list of the five most common metals that businesses need for their operations, and which metals are best for custom metal fabrications.
It helps a lot to understand the things that are useful to you and your business, and that includes understanding the types of materials that are useful for your business. Whether you’re planning to run a construction business, a manufacturing business, or otherwise – it would be wise to know what’s best for what occasion. You might be able to use this information to help you make a big investment in some new equipment or to help you choose a different type of material for your project.
You just can’t open a machine shop without knowing what’s what. It is wasteful and inefficient to use what you’re buying if you are not knowledgeable about the product. Here is a look at the five most common metals you can use in manufacturing products:
Iron
Everyone knows about the many uses that iron has in order to make things that are strong and durable. It’s known for its sturdiness and easy availability, but it’s not applied everywhere – why is that? Well, just like most metals, there are limitations that keep it only being used in certain applications. Since iron has a very high melting point, you’re able to use it for things like furnaces, cooking instruments, and more. It doesn’t bend when it warms up unless it manages to get incredibly hot. It’s very heavy and rough, so it’s not ideal for fine metalwork.
Steel
Steel, which is also very common in the world, is used in a lot of construction projects. Unlike iron, steel can be much finer and lighter – making it perfect for everyday products that you would see around the house. For example, scissors, food utensils, and more. With that said, it’s still a very tough material and is used in a lot of construction projects. It’s very durable and corrosion resistant, which is why steel is such a useful and reliable material to use in construction projects.
Aluminum
Aluminum is a great metal with countless applications. It can be seen in many lightweight metal constructions. It’s not strong like steel, but it’s lighter and more reliable. Aluminum is great for making custom metal parts and it can also be easily machined into intricate shapes and designs. It’s great for custom metal fabrication and perfect for machining. You can make complicated aluminum things from aluminum, like signs, car parts, computer components, and cans. It’s fairly simple to work with, and it’s easily recyclable. Creating aluminum products is fairly easy and cheap. Just as easily rusty as steel, aluminum is very resistant to corrosion.
Copper alloys
While not typically used for utensils and heavy-duty constructions, copper has more unique properties than other everyday metals. Because copper conducts electricity well, it’s ideal for creating cables and other related items. It’s also very easy to turn into intricate products from it, as aluminum is very machine-friendly. Copper is also useful in making a lot of electrical components like wires and cables. It’s very resistant to corrosion. There’s no rust or wear from water compared to other metals.
Zinc
Zinc is easily available from any local distributor, and is great for many reasons. Due to its low melting point, it’s very easily recycled and reused whenever necessary. It is used to galvanize iron and steel, which will allow them to resist rust. On top of that, you’ll often find it in medicines and such.
Want to learn more about what types of metals can benefit your business? Visit us at Metals4U.com today!