Sheet Metal Fabrication is the process of forming parts from a metal sheet by punching, cutting, stamping, and bending.

3D CAD files are converted into machine code, which controls a machine to precisely cut and form the sheets into the final part.

Sheet metal parts are known for their durability, which makes them great for end-use applications (e.g. chassis). Parts used for low volume prototypes, and high volume production runs are most cost-effective due to large initial setup and material costs.

Because parts are formed from a single sheet of metal, designs must maintain a uniform thickness. Be sure to follow the design requirements and tolerances to ensure parts fall closer to design intent and cutting sheets of metal. Sheetmetal design is a crucial skill to master for any mechanical designer who is working in the industry. It is fairly simple to master once the basics have been understood, this course provides a basic overview and introduction to sheet metal design techniques explaining some of the theory behind sheet metal design processes. Sheet metal design is used primarily in laser cutting where sheet metal parts are cut out of sheet steel and bent on a bending press into the desired shape.