Updated: Sunday the 27^th of May, 2012 Smiths Metal Centres Ltd

Stainless Steel

At Smiths Metal Centres Ltd our engineers work with a wide range of materials. One of which is stainless steel. This tough, durable metal is a relatively new material but is used in many applications for its strength and ability to resist corrosive attack. The latter of these two properties is down to the addition of chromium in its formation. Chromium creates a protective oxide film on the surface of the metal which 'self heals' immediately after removal of the metal surface. Of course, like any metal, if it is not adequately maintained, stainless steel will eventually begin to corrode.

Stainless steels are grouped into four main alloy groups;
austenitic, ferritic, martensitic and duplex/super duplex.

Steel

Steel is an alloy of iron that contains a small amount of carbon. Varying alloying elements such as nickel or chromium can be added to steel to create steel with specific characteristics. They are generally categorised into three main groups: mild steels, carbon steels and alloy steels.

Steel is widely used in all sorts of engineering industries such as shipbuilding, architecture and automotive as well as being used in every day life in a small scale for items such as nuts and bolts.

Rod Blanking

We process full bars of raw materials into specific lengths and sizes for our customers. This makes the materials more manageable for our customers to work with. Our capabilities and facilities mean we are able to cut more than two million billets per year! With these large scale volumes we use state of the art equipment to keep our cutting costs to a minimum. This, in turn, reduces costs for our customers. 

Our service centres are all fully equipped with rod blanking facilities and are also backed up by our ultra-high volume CNC machines. Our operations are ISO 9001:2000 approved.

Plate Sawing

At Smiths Metal Centres Ltd, we are continually expanding and developing our services to ensure that we maintain our position within the industry and continue to offer a first rate service to our customers. As part of our developments we have invested in extensive plate sawing facilities to enable us to provide a complete plate sawing package to our customers.

Alongside our wide range of commercial plate materials, we also supply plates for advanced applications such as aluminium plate for aerospace specifications. We also use specialist tooling plates for such projects. Our vertical, horizontal and CNC saws create tight tolerances to meet customer requirements.

Engineering

Smiths Metal Centres Ltd has also seen developments in its engineering departments to maintain the highest standard of services to its customers. Our highly qualified and skilled engineers undertake many bespoke projects tailored to individual customer requirements. We have fully equipped workshops with machinery such as lathes, presses and vertical band-saws, to make sure we are able to fulfil all engineering requests. We particularly specialise in turned circles, sawn circles, sawn rings and profiled plate.

For further details of our engineering services please contact one of our advisors who will be happy to answer any questions you may have.

Guillotining

Coil Slitting

Our coil slitting services has been implemented by Smiths Metal Centres Ltd for many years leading us to be complete experts in this division. We are one of just a few stockholders remaining in the country who are still able to offer this service to its customers. We are able to produce strip in coil in a variety of materials including aluminium, copper, brass, bronze, nickel silver and beryllium copper.

We are able to facilitate small batch requests as well as large production runs. The products and materials we handle are often very delicate and need to be handled with the utmost care. Ensuring our products reach our customers in perfect condition is a top priority and our experienced team of staff pride themselves in providing a first class service to their customers.

Vinyl Coating

We have invested in a CNC vinyl coating line to enable us to meet all vinyl coating demands. We add a protective vinyl coating to a range of sheet and plate materials for different purposes. Mainly for visual surface finish of the materials but also if there is a risk of surface damage during fabrication processes. Vinyl coating is also sometimes used for lubrication for bending or shallow forming operations. We can accommodate a wide range of coatings on various sized materials.

Please contact us for further information or a quote.