Aluminium work for lightweight design, small batches and bespoke builds.
Aluminium combines low weight with good technical properties and a great deal of design freedom. At the same time the material calls for a different approach from stainless steel in forming, welding and surface treatment.
stainlesstec works aluminium to drawing and CAD data into single parts, small batches, enclosures, welded assemblies and bespoke builds, combining modern laser and CNC manufacturing with processing suited to the material, qualified welding and controlled surface handling.
Aluminium is often chosen where weight has to come down. For manufacturing, though, what counts is which alloy and which delivery condition are used. Aluminium alloys can differ markedly in:
strength
formability
weldability
thermal conductivity
corrosion resistance
surface quality
suitability for anodising or coating
“Aluminium” is therefore not yet a complete material designation for a technical enquiry.
Good aluminium work begins with the right alloy.
stainlesstec works to the grade the customer specifies and allows for its properties at the production planning stage.
Working aluminium means thinking about heat.
One of aluminium’s most important properties is its high thermal conductivity. In many applications that is an advantage – in welding it becomes a major process factor. Heat spreads through the workpiece considerably faster than in stainless steel, which changes:
Aluminium also expands comparatively strongly with heat. A part can therefore react to temperature differences during welding more than its apparently simple geometry suggests.
Material, design and welding process therefore have to be considered together.
Laser cutting and punching aluminium.
Complex contours, hole patterns and bespoke geometries can all be produced from aluminium sheet. stainlesstec currently works aluminium sheet in sizes up to 2,000 × 4,000 mm and thicknesses from 1 to 12 mm. Depending on geometry and thickness, laser or combined laser-punch processes can be used.
Laser-punch technology can also put features straight into the blank, for instance:
On small batches in particular, that can cut the number of later operations. Which technology makes sense we decide from the geometry, the quantity and the operations that follow.
Easy to form does not mean form it however you like.
Many aluminium alloys bend and form well. How well depends on, among other things:
the alloy
delivery condition
thickness
bend radius
rolling direction
bend angle
Higher-strength aluminium alloys in particular can be considerably less tolerant of tight bend radii than softer grades. We therefore check at the planning stage whether geometry and material suit one another. With several bends, the order of work comes into it as well:
It is not only the individual angle that has to work – after the last bend the part still has to be accessible and within tolerance.
In air, aluminium forms a thin, stable oxide layer at once. That protects the material in service but makes particular demands in welding: aluminium oxide melts at a far higher temperature than the aluminium beneath it. Careful joint preparation and controlled process conditions are therefore especially important. Added to that are:
high thermal conductivity
high thermal expansion
the possibility of porosity
a tendency to crack, depending on the material
selection of the right filler metal
stainlesstec makes welded aluminium assemblies using suitable MIG and TIG processes, among others. On thin-walled structures especially, welding sequence, clamping and heat input are decisive in keeping distortion down.
This is an important point for designers: some aluminium alloys weld excellently. Others were developed primarily for high strength or particular mechanical properties and make considerably greater demands when welded. On a welded aluminium structure, then, the following should be settled early:
Which alloy is intended?
What is the delivery condition?
How heavily is the area loaded thermally?
What strength has to be reached after welding?
Which filler metal is intended?
Switching material within the aluminium family can change the whole process.
Aluminium surfaces are delicate.
Aluminium is comparatively soft. Scratches, pressure marks and grinding traces can therefore show up quickly – above all on:
Protecting the surface therefore does not begin at the finishing stage: storage, transport, cutting and forming all have to be taken into account. stainlesstec works aluminium within its segregated production and can keep filmed or otherwise protected surfaces in view across several operations.
A good visible surface is not created at the end. It has to be preserved throughout the process.
Anodising begins on the shop floor.
Where an aluminium part is to be anodised later, the quality of the part beneath becomes especially visible. Anodising does not cover marks the way an opaque paint does: scratches, grinding traces, varying surface conditions or locally altered areas can remain visible afterwards, or even stand out more. On visible parts, then, the following should be settled before production starts:
Will the part be anodised?
Which surfaces will stay visible?
What visual standard applies?
Are welds visible?
Which grinding pattern is required?
That shapes material selection and manufacturing strategy from the outset.
Lightweight design does not start with thinner material.
Aluminium is often used to cut weight. Good lightweight design, though, is not simply a matter of replacing stainless or carbon steel with thinner aluminium sheet. Different material properties can call for design changes – and these have to be considered together:
Done well, aluminium parts can be made very stiff and highly functional despite their low mass. stainlesstec manufactures to the customer’s design and can flag critical geometries or needlessly complex operations during the manufacturability review.
Common aluminium alloys.
Material group
Typical properties
Al-Mg alloys
Good corrosion resistance and usually good weldability
Al-Mg-Si alloys
Widely used for sections and engineering structures
High-strength aluminium alloys
High strength, but in part more demanding to form and weld
Pure aluminium / softer grades
Very good formability, lower strength
On demanding projects, then, we do not simply work from “aluminium” but from the alloy and delivery condition actually specified.
Typical aluminium parts.
Enclosures and cladding
Light machine enclosures, covers and housings with high-grade visible surfaces.
Welded assemblies
Bespoke structures where low mass and complex geometry come together.
Machine and system components
Brackets, frames, beams and functional parts for machines and plant.
High-technology components
Precision parts for technical equipment, measuring systems and demanding special applications.
Prototypes and small batches
CAD-based manufacturing for development, pre-production, variants and recurring small batches.
Bespoke builds
Parts to drawing where standard products will not do, for reasons of geometry or function.
Aluminium in segregated production.
stainlesstec works aluminium and stainless steel in a shop with no conventional structural steelwork. Tools, material flow and workstations are set up for these groups of materials. That reduces needless foreign material and supports controlled surface handling – above all on:
visible parts · hygienic applications · high-technology components · high-grade machine parts
On high-grade aluminium surfaces in particular, that is an important part of build quality.
Both individual aluminium parts and complete assemblies thus come from one source. On small batches especially, that cuts interfaces and makes it easier to look at the production route as a whole before the first part is made.
Aluminium for a range of applications.
Machinery and plant engineering
Light enclosures, cladding, frames and bespoke assemblies.
High technology and special applications
Parts where low weight, precision or unusual surfaces are called for.
Aerospace-related applications
Its low weight makes aluminium one of the important aerospace materials. Which alloy, which records and which process approvals are required always depends on the particular part and the customer’s specification.
Food and process technology
In suitable applications wherever weight, corrosion behaviour and cleanability fit the task.
Aluminium machined to drawing.
For a quick manufacturability review the following help most:
STEP or DXF data
technical drawing
the exact aluminium alloy
delivery condition
thickness
quantity
critical tolerances
welding requirements
visible surfaces
the surface treatment wanted
anodising or coating requirements
On parts that will be welded or later anodised, these details matter early on.
Light in the part. Demanding in the making.
We turn your design into a process that can be relied on.
Do you need an aluminium part, a small batch or a complex welded assembly? Send us the CAD data, the drawing, the alloy and the quantity – our production planning team will assess, together with the shop floor, which route makes sense technically and commercially.
Let’s talk about your project.
Send us your drawing or CAD data by email – together with material, batch size and your requirements. We will come back to you with a sound assessment.
