As a manufacturer of magnetic sheet metal lifter, or a supplier of steel plate lifting magnet, we know that sheet metal and steel plate are different steel products, and there are differences between them. Let’s check out the most commonly asked questions about them.
What Does Sheet Metal Mean?
According to Wikipedia, sheet metal is metal formed by an industrial process into thin, flat pieces. It is a comprehensive cold working process for metal sheets (usually below 6mm), including shearing, punching/cutting/, folding, riveting, splicing,forming (such as car body) etc.
It is one of the fundamental forms used in metalworking, and it can be cut and bent into a variety of shapes.
What Is Sheet Metal Made Of?
Sheet metal can be made from a variety of different metals including aluminum, steel, copper, brass, nickel, tin, sterling silver and titanium. No matter what type of metal is used, the first step is to melt the metal in a container called a crucible.
What Are The Types of Sheet Metal?
Most common materials found in precision metal fabrication include:
Stainless Steel
Cold rolled steel (CRS)
Pre-plated steel
Aluminum
Copper/Brass
What Is Steel Plate?
Sometimes referred to as flat steel, steel plate is a material often used to create metal products. Manufactured to different thicknesses and widths, it is cut and welded together to create a final product. There are different types of plate, such as stainless and high-carbon plate. Some types are used in the construction of buildings while others are used in the creation of everyday items, such as wood furnaces, and not so everyday items, such as ship hulls.
What Is the Difference Between Plate and Sheet Metal?
The main difference between them is the gauge (thickness) of the metal. Generally speaking, a sheet is a thinner item of metal that has been cut from a continuously rolled coil. As such, it can be less than 1mm, or up to 25mm, in thickness. A plate is a thicker item of metal that has been produced (rolled) as a single item. Thickness can be up to 150mm or more, but also as low as 2mm from certain producers.
Therefore, it’s quite possible that certain thickness items could be produced via either process and described differently, although both are in the hot rolled condition.
Steel plate is typically used in machines, structural sections and larger fabrications, whereas sheet is used in producing appliances and enclosures. They both have very different uses, depending on the varying durability and weight requirements for different projects.
Interested in how to lift a sheet or steel plate? Please see HVR MAG’s next blog about sheet metal lifting equipment.
