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Choosing a U.S.-based sheet metal fabricator instead of outsourcing has many benefits, including quality control, efficiency and safety. US sheet metal fabricators can execute custom projects using a wide variety of materials and strategies.

Sheet metal fabricators can obtain additional licenses and certifications to qualify them to work in certain industries. One such certification is the AS9100 Certification, which qualifies fabricators to work in the Aerospace industry. AS9100 is an international quality system that outlines the criteria for aerospace industry quality management systems. The standard is based on principles including a strong customer focus, robust supplier management, the motivation and implication of top management, the process approach and continual improvement.

AS9100 certification helps ensure that customers consistently receive high-quality products and services. Certified manufacturers must conduct ongoing internal audits to ensure they are following guidelines.

The International Traffic in Arms Regulations, or ITAR, are export control regulations administered by the US Department of State (DOS). These regulations are used by the Department of State to regulate products on the United States Munitions List and the Missile Technology Control Regime. This includes anything designed for military or defense-related applications. For manufacturers, this means they must prove they are ITAR compliant before taking on any projects that fall into those categories. Employees outside of the United States cannot have access to any ITAR classified projects, meaning the manufacturer must have a US base.

There are many financial and practical reasons to choose a US-based sheet metal fabricator rather than outsourcing to other countries. Manufacturing in the United States helps you to impose stricter safety measures in your workplace to protect your employees. Countries where production is often outsourced, may lack the same degree of safety standards as the United States, putting your workers at risk of injury while on the job.

Manufacturing in the US can also save money on delivery costs and time in the production process. Deliveries can be made faster, and back-and-forth communication isn’t slowed by time zone differences or language barriers. As a result of these benefits, the sales process is accelerated, and customer satisfaction is most likely higher.

U.S. sheet metal fabricators can handle a wide variety of manufacturing needs and complete any project you might have in mind.

US sheet metal manufacturing companies are often happy to help with design assistance. They can also provide access to free software to bring your design to life.

Punching is a machining technique for removing scrap metal from a sheet of raw metal. It entails compressing a tool through a sheet of raw metal with a punch press. Punching is generally faster and less expensive than laser cutting.

Laser cutters cut sheet metal by focusing light energy into a laser beam and supplementing it with cutting gas. The sheet stays fixed as the laser head moves in the ‘X’, ‘Y’, and ‘Z’ axes, unlike punches. Part numbers and labels can also be etched with lasers. Laser cutters are more precise and give a more finished edge.

Graining is the method of giving sheet metal pieces a consistent surface finish. This is accomplished by grinding the metal with a belt grinder.

Drilling produces higher-quality holes that can be used in materials of greater thickness. After that, thread-tapping and countersinking are often done. Thread tapping produces a tapping inside the drilled hole so that a bolted link can be made later. Countersinking a drilled hole eliminates the sharp edge, provides a bevel, and a recess (deep bevel) for a blind bolt head.

Metal bending and shaping are cold working operations that require workpiece plastic deformation. The metal must be extended past its elastic limit without cracking or fracturing. Just a few metals and alloys have enough ductility for this use.

Hardware insertion gives sheet metal parts more depth for load bearing threads. Hardware insertion makes use of existing holes created by high-precision machines like a laser cutter or a waterjet cutter, which improves the accuracy of the fastener’s placement.

Describes the process or final product of putting together sheet metal project components on an assembly line.

Welding is used in creating more than half of all of the products manufactured in the United States. MIG welding is the fastest option, but the results do not appear as smooth as TIG welding.

Spot welding process is used primarily for welding two or more metal sheets together by applying pressure and heat from an electric current to the weld area.

Weld grinding is an important step in many metal fabrication processes, and it involves extracting excess weld metal in a clean and efficient manner.

Sheet metal can be used to create complete welded assemblies and frames for large projects.

In-house engineering and design teams will assist you in coming up with innovative approaches while staying on schedule and enhancing product manufacturability and quality.

A CMM (coordinate measuring machine) inspects and measures parts for quality. A CMM is used to measure the dimensions and characteristics of a part. It can measure a single point in a 3D shape or the whole shape. CMM is made up of three axes X, Y and Z, and each axis helps to measure the part and position it accurately in other precision machines.

Mass-produced parts are tested during FAI to ensure that all properties and dimensions are in accordance with the buyer’s product requirements, which should be included with the purchase order. Production will restart and the remainder of the order can be completed once this has been validated.

US manufacturers generally follow strict guidelines for compliance and document control. They typically use Document Control Software to ensure proper compliance posture.

SOLIDWORKS Inspection takes the time-consuming and frequently repetitive method of design inspection and automates it. The program allows you to automatically capture inspection measurements that are already present in the models and drawings and are vital to the design’s development.

Are you asking yourself, “How can I find and trust local sheet metal fabrication near me?” Then you’ve come to the right place. Check out the various PROTOTEK testimonials below from satisfied customers.

“Thanks for the incredible and thorough work your team does for our company.”
– Senior Opto-Mechanical Systems Engineer, a Global Medical Company

“So many times we only hear negative feedback from customers.  I wanted to break that chain and say how pleased I was with the way Prototek responded to our challenging set of requirements and timelines.  Thanks for a job well done, and we hope this is a start of a good working relationship in the future.  You guys came up big for us, and we appreciate it. Please tell everyone that worked on our project that they knocked it out of the park! Thanks again.”
– Engineering, Gainesville, VA

“The corner welds and finishing is stunning and there’s no twisting or distortion from the welding process. Seriously I put the chassis on a slab of granite and tested, its dead flat. Quite an impressive display of metalworking.”
– Owner, Custom Amp Manufacturer

“The guitar amp chassis just arrived, they look phenomenal! VERY nicely done Prototek you are my new BFF shop!”
– Owner, Custom Amp Manufacturer

“You guys have always been our go to for complex parts.”
– Engineer, Golden, CO

“Prototek has always been a trusted go-to vendor for me.”
– Senior Mechanical Engineer, Woburn, MA

“I regularly recommend Prototek for my team.”
– Mechanical Engineering Team Lead, Torrance, CA

“We would love to take advantage of your open capacity! You have done quality work for us before.”
– Associate Designer, Royal Oak, MI

“Thank you for accommodating our rush job so handily and for hosting me on the inspection of the finished parts. We appreciate your pulling out all the stops to get these parts completed, packaged, and shipped to Palo Alto in time for our installation.”
– Studio Director, Brooklyn, NY

“Wanted to thank you again for Prototek’s support during our ventilator push this past couple of weeks. We couldn’t have done what we did without all the hard work from your team… you guys came through for us in a big way.”
– Co-Founder/CEO, Sommerville, MA

“The seal I had you do came out pretty nice, we’ll surely keep you in mind for future applications … the quick turn around and reasonable pricing is a real plus.”
– Mechanical Engineer, Victor, NY

“Thank you for your quick turnaround on our parts this week. I got the first set of parts in yesterday and they were perfectly to drawing. Prototek won our business for this job thanks to all of your quick responses, expedite capabilities, and competitive prices. I think I received a quote within 3 hours of my request on Friday? That was very impressive. I’ll be sure to send you other parts as they come up. I’ve told our other mechanical engineer here to send parts your way as well.”
– R&D Project Manager, Woburn, MA

“Last year, we had quick-turn rework done on some heatsinks at your Sunnyvale, CA facility. Were happy with that. We’ll continue to use you for similar work in the future.”
– Senior Design Engineer, San Jose, CA

“We currently use Prototek for all our quick turn prototyping needs… Prototek is usually our first option and we have come to rely on you guys for quick turn parts that are done well.”
– Mechanical Engineer, Boston, MA

Finding custom U.S. metal fabrication near you is easy and will result in a more streamlined process and higher-quality final result. Outsourcing may seem like a less expensive option, but the additional time spent on delivery and communication, as well as the possibility that they may take shortcuts in metal fabrication, can result in unexpected costs that lower margins.