Stainless steel is valued in fabrication for its strength, durability, and resistance to corrosion. Stainless steel doesn’t rust or easily degrade under extreme heat or cold, unlike other types of steel. This makes it ideal for custom stainless steel fabrication projects by authentic dealers like Martinstainlesssteel.com where the end product needs to withstand the elements or other wear and tear over a long lifetime.
Whether exposed to water, chemicals, or high traffic, custom fabricated stainless steel can last for decades even in harsh environments. This ability to withstand corrosion makes stainless steel useful for everything from kitchen equipment to chemical tanks to architectural features. Custom fabricated stainless has an unbeatable strength-to-weight ratio too, making it lighter than regular steel for its toughness. Established metal fabricators offer solutions crafted with experience, reliability in quality and safety, clear communication, and advanced technology for rapid and accurate fabrication.
Easy Maintenance & Cleaning
In addition to stainless steel’s innate durability, it is also very easy to maintain and clean after custom fabrication. Its non-porous surface deters rust and residue build up even after years of use. This smooth, shiny surface stays looking new after simple cleaning, unlike other materials that require special treatments to avoid stains or preserve appearances.
Stainless steel’s hygienic properties also make it popular for custom fabrication in hospitals, kitchens, laboratories, and other places where cleanliness is paramount. Bacteria, viruses, and fungi have a difficult time clinging to and building up on stainless steel’s low-friction surface. Keeping stainless steel clean is as easy as washing with soap and water.
Customization Options Galore
Stainless steel is prized for fabrication because it can be formed, bent, welded, and finished in seemingly endless custom configurations. Its malleability allows it to take on unique shapes both for aesthetic reasons and functional reasons. Unlike materials like plastic or aluminum, stainless steel has the structural integrity to hold up sculptural shapes with thin walls or dramatic curves.
Fabrication shops have many techniques to create one-of-a-kind stainless pieces like textured panels, custom tanks, decorative trims, and custom enclosures. Stainless can also be treated with finishes, coatings, and other surface treatments to increase its reflectivity, strength, grip, and other attributes. This metal takes beautifully to grinding, polishing, painting, powder coating, electroplating, and more.
Sustainable & Recyclable
Sustainability is another advantage of stainless steel fabrication. Up to 85% of stainless steel content comes from recycled steel. It can also be continually recycled an infinite number of times without losing its integrity, unlike other materials that degrade in quality after recycling.
Stainless steel’s extreme durability also adds to its green properties. Products made from stainless steel fabrication typically last for decades if not lifetimes before replacement is needed. Choosing custom stainless fabrication minimizes the environmental impact compared to materials that need frequent replacing.
In some applications, stainless steel fabrication even boosts energy efficiency. Reflective stainless steel is used to line mechanical rooms or food equipment to reduce energy consumption. Overall, stainless offers sustainability in fabrication you can’t get from other metals or plastics.
Cost Effectiveness
At first glance, stainless steel might seem like a premium-priced material choice. When you consider lifetime cost, however, stainless steel fabrication emerges as very cost effective compared to other common fabrication materials. Lower-priced materials like mild steel or plastic degrade relatively quickly and need frequent maintenance, repairs, or replacement.
Although higher in initial material cost, stainless steel’s extreme longevity ends up saving money over years of use because it lasts decades without major refurbishing costs. There’s also the avoided costs related to corrosion, wear, or hygiene issues you get with stainless steel compared to carbon steel or iron. This corrosion-resistant and easy-to-clean metal saves hugely on maintenance expenses over other material options for custom fabrication.
Conclusion
Fabricating with stainless steel necessitates specialized welding equipment and worker expertise to get the full benefits of this material. Working with a qualified stainless steel fabrication company is recommended to ensure proper techniques. Although specialty skills are needed for fabrication, in the long run stainless steel fabrication delivers better return on investment than alternatives.