Expanded Metal

What is Expanded Metal? How is Expanded Metal Made?

Do you know what expanded metal is? There are many different steel products you can buy and expanded metal is one of them. This metal has many different uses and applications.

You make expanded metal from coils or sheets of solid metal which are stretch and slit with each stroke of the upper die. This process creates a pattern that’s in a diamond shape. The pattern is either called standard or regular. The pattern that’s made varies by the type of material and gauge of the material as well as its size. Some of the metal sheets are flattened by rollers.

Expanded metal is lightweight and open so it can easily be formed into many energy savings applications such as screens, diffusers, filters, grilles, and other steel products. The metal is also quite strong so you can make fixtures, guards, and panels out of expanded metal.  Wasatch Steel is one company that makes expanded metal products.

Some Uses for Expanded Metal

·         Security fencing

·         Architectural fencing

·         Air intake screens

·         Windows, door & skylight guards

·         Cab/truck dividers

·         Interior partitions & barriers

·         Security mesh

·         Concrete reinforcement

·         Light diffusers

·         Drive & sidewalk gates

·         Machine guards

These are just a few of the steel products that use expanded metal there are many more products that are made with this type of metal. One product made with expanded metal is grating. This type of grating is perfect when you need something that’s strong, lightweight, and durable. It’s used by engineers to make catwalks, platforms, stairs, truck can safety screens, and heavy duty shelving among other things. This expanded metal product allows for water, snow and oils to drain off easily so expanded metal is used for these surfaces for security and stability when you stand on them.

In Building construction expanded metal is used because it:

·         Reduces energy use

·         Minimizes internal pollution and damage to health.

·         Reduces external pollution and environmental damage

·         Reduces embodied energy and resource depletion.

 

 

It’s clear to see that expanded metal has many applications in building and its common steel that is used. This steel adds rigidity and strength and distributes the load to the frames supporting it. There are no welds or joints so it helps distribute the weight and load over a wider area so the structure is more stable. Expandable metal is quite strong so it’s used in many industrial applications. Because there are no welds or strands there’s less deterioration from movement or exposure. Wasatch Steel is one company that has many expanded steel products. The steel also has a good anti-slip surface and the air can pass through it while still ensuring good protection and stability in the steel.

If you are looking for expanded steel products consider visiting Wasatch Steel. Not only do they have expanded metal but they have many other steel products as well.

Industrial Use of Steel

Steel – Virtually Important To Society

If you would try to do a quick read of our civilization’s history, you will learn that metals particularly iron and steel played major roles and contributed to what we are and what we have today. Steel in particular has its multitude of uses from building and construction, to transportation, communication, manufacture, and almost everything imaginable. You might look at steel as a common commodity today, but if you are to ask Wasatch Steel, this plain commodity is a life changing discovery of yesterday.

Steel’s Role in the Industrial Revolution

Before going into the specifics about the importance and functions of steel today, it is a must to look back at its history particularly on a period where it considered a valuable resource. And we’re talking about the Industrial Revolution. To simply describe, the Industrial Revolution is perhaps one of the most important turning point of history and civilization because this period revolutionized the global economy, technology, and overall human lifestyle.

There were three major breakthroughs during these time that lead to how progressive we are today; the textile or clothing industry, the invention of the first engine, and the improvement in processing iron particularly on steel-making. Because metal can now be produced in bulk, cheaper, tougher, and more efficient scale, engines and machineries were built, rail tracks were laid, bridges and multi-storey buildings are constructed, automobiles were designed, etc.

Steel revolutionized engineering and architecture

Majority of the Wasatch Steel customers use this material primarily for building and construction. During its early years, steel were used to construct metal bridges that are tougher and stronger compared to the wood and cable ones which posed risks to the early communities who used them. Steel also provided that thrust or potential to make buildings or structures taller than two stories. Although you can create relatively high structures using concrete, that structural support which only steel can give is always needed. Without steel, humans will never get to see, learn, and experience what buildings, towers, or skyscrapers are.

Steel revolutionized transportation and communication

Aside from infrastructure, one great contribution of steel is in the field of transportation and communication. Steel made it possible for man to develop an engine that can withstand the heat of burning coal or fuel. This eventually led to the creation of trains, the earliest forms of modern transportation. Steel is also needed in laying those train tracks.

Instead of wood, metal or steel sheets are used in creating large and powerful boats that would ship goods including people from one point of the globe to another. By the turn of the millennium, automobiles, and airplanes made out of steel were invented.

Steel revolutionized medicine

Aside from the construction materials that Wasatch Steel is offering, steel has also revolutionized the field of medicine or medical treatment. Aside from the mechanical equipment and furniture you can see on hospitals, several stainless steel tools are now primarily used in ensuring health and on saving the lives of people. Stainless steel is safer and is more effective than any other operating or medical tools.

Steel revolutionized technology and invention

Perhaps, the importance of steel in our society will eventually boil down to its primary role of revolutionizing technology and invention. Because steel is now available, people with creative minds have learned and are constantly trying to develop new technologies or items out of it.

Wasatch Steel will always have that specific kind of steel that would contribute to the success of your projects. Browse among their huge line of inventory at http://wasatchsteel.com.

What Is Steel and Why Is It Important?

Understanding What Is Steel and Why It Is Important

With all the several metals available on the world, steel is perhaps the most popular and widely used type for centuries now. Steel is an essential material used for construction, vehicle and machinery production, for creating tools, appliances, etc. It is available and can be purchased almost anywhere in the world. For example; if you’re in Salt Lake Utah, Wasatch Steel is one of the largest steel supermarkets in the area.

What is steel?

Steel is the hardest type of metal that is produced out of iron. It is often confused with iron itself, but they are slightly different. Iron is the main material or mineral while steel is the by-product of it. Steel is an alloy or a mixture of metal derived by combining pure iron, carbon, and at times, certain types of minerals like manganese, tungsten, chromium, and vanadium. The kind of mineral that shall be added depends on the type of steel the manufacturer wants to produce. The most common type of steel you see in the market for construction and building several crafts is made out of iron and carbon.

The process in making steel starts from the purification of the iron ore that is mined from the earth. If you had the chance to take a look at the earliest metal or iron tools made by humans, they are rough or coarse, heavy, not that hard as the ones today, and are more susceptible to rusting. This is because the iron mined itself is not that pure. There are impurities like extra minerals plus dirt that is combined with them. To remove such impurities and finally create steel, iron is heated and melted. Pure oxygen is blown through this molten iron to remove and oxidize such impurities. The molten iron is combined with minimal amount or percentage of carbon to eventually solidify and harden the steel.

While it is in its molten state, the manufacturer can transform it into several types and kinds of steel products, usually dependent on the demands of customers and retailers like Wasatch Steel.

Why steel is important?

The importance of steel can be a bit obvious to everyone. Perhaps, the best way to describe this importance is to cite some of the uses or functions of this metal.

-          It is used for building and construction. The most evident use of steel would be in the field of architecture and construction. All buildings including our homes have steel frameworks that make them sturdy and strong. Without steel, we are only limited to the rock, clay, or wood-type architecture.

-          It is used to make vehicles. All vehicles used today have a certain percentage of steel used in them. Without steel, vehicles can be very fragile and will eventually risk the safety of passengers if they are to be solely crafted from plastic or any other light materials. Not to mention the fact that the engines themselves are made out of tough steel.

-          Used in making everyday items. If you would ask Wasatch Steel, steel has its contribution to majority of the items we regularly use at home, at work, or anywhere else. From the smallest to the largest household appliances, kitchen tools, accessories and aids, etc.

You can learn more about the uses including the different types of steels available from Wasatch Steel by visiting their shop at this link http://wasatchsteel.com.