In the world of manufacturing, especially in today’s competitive markets, managing costs is a constant battle. When it comes to your projects, sheet metal fabrication costs can be one of the most important items that often determine the financial success of a product.
But these costs are not set in stone. Finding a smart way to reduce sheet metal fabrication costs isn’t just about savings. It’s about smart design and efficient fabrication. This guide goes beyond general advice.
We offer you an in-depth look at the practical, actionable strategies that can lead to significant cost savings. By following along, you’ll learn not only what to do but why it works. This will provide you with a powerful framework to reduce costs without compromising on quality.
What is Sheet Metal Fabrication?
Before we get into the numbers, let’s establish a solid foundation. Sheet metal fabrication is a comprehensive process that transforms flat metal sheets into structured parts and products.
It is a cornerstone of modern manufacturing. Sheet metal working itself is a sequence of highly skilled operations. It usually starts with a design, which is then used to program modern machines.
The process includes:
Cutting: This is the first step, where the parts are cut from a flat sheet. This is often done with high-precision laser cutting machines, plasma cutters or water jets.
Bending and forming: After cutting, the flat part is bent into a 3D shape using a press brake. Other forming processes, such as punching or roll forming, can also be used.
Assembly: If the end product consists of several parts, these are joined together by welding, riveting or using connecting elements.
Everything from a simple bracket to a complex server housing is the result of this process. In the case of a sheet metal product, it involves the transformation from a flat sheet — such as stainless steel or aluminum — into a finished, functional component.
Sheet Metal Fabrication Cost Factors
To effectively manage the cost of sheet metal fabrication, you must first analyze the final price. The total cost of your project comprises several key components.
Understanding how each phase contributes to the overall production cost will help you make strategic, cost-saving decisions. Let’s break down the key cost drivers.
Material
By far, the most important factor is the material itself. Raw material costs can account for 50-70% of the final price of a part. The market prices of metals such as steel and aluminum fluctuate according to global supply and demand, meaning your material costs can change from one month to the next. It is a crucial point that raw materials make up the majority of product costs.
Type
The type of metal you choose will have a big impact on the cost. Standard-grade aluminum, for example, can be three times as expensive as mild steel (by weight).
The thickness of the material is also a direct cost driver. If you switch from a thinner 1.5 mm sheet to a thicker 3 mm sheet, not only does the material’s weight double, but more powerful machinery may also be required to process it, which increases production costs.
Labor
Labor costs include the wages of the skilled workers involved in the project. This includes the machine operators, the programmers who convert your designs into machine code, and the welders and fitters who put it all together.
The complexity of your sheet metal parts has a direct impact on the amount of labor required. For a part that requires multiple complex bends and extensive welding, the labor portion of the total cost is much higher than for a simple bent part. The cost per hour for this skilled labor is an important factor.
Toolmaking
The term “tooling” refers to the specialized dies, punches, and fixtures required to produce a part. If your design can be made with a manufacturer’s standard tooling, your tooling costs are virtually zero.
However, if your sheet metal design requires custom shapes, non-standard bend radii or unique forming operations, you will need to pay for custom tooling. These costs can range from hundreds to tens of thousands of pounds, significantly adding to the overall cost to the industry.
Design
The design of your part is a fundamental cost driver that influences all other factors. A complex design with tight tolerances and numerous features will increase programming time, setup time and machine running time. When machining complexity is a major part of the work, machining costs skyrocket. A simple, elegant design is always cheaper to produce.
Finishing
Finishing refers to all processes that occur after production, such as deburring, powder coating, painting, or anodizing. These processes incur additional costs due to the use of extra materials, labor, and machine time.
For example, a single-color powder coating can add 15% to the part’s cost, while a multi-stage chemical treatment and painting can add 30% or more. This is an important part of the right pricing strategy for the final product.
11 Ways to Reduce Sheet Metal Fabrication Costs
Now, let’s move on to the practical, actionable strategies. The following advice is a simple method, illustrated with real-world examples, to help you significantly reduce your expenses. Each tip is designed to give you key insights into the manufacturing process.
1. Optimise your choice of materials
The selection of raw materials is the best starting point for savings. Don’t go for the most robust material if a cheaper option can do the job. For example, is corrosion-resistant 304 stainless steel absolutely necessary, or would a less expensive 430 grade suffice for your application?
Talk to your manufacturer about the operating environment of your part. They may suggesta new raw material or a different grade that offers the performance you need at a lower price. In this way, you can significantly reduce the cost of sheet metal fabrication.
2. Simplify the design
In manufacturing, complexity is directly synonymous with cost. Every extra hole, every extra bend and every extra feature means extra programming effort, extra machine time and potential sources of error. Embrace the principles of Design for Manufacturability (DFM).
Can a corner be formed with a bend and a small relief cut instead of welding it? Can a single larger cut-out replace several small holes? Simplifying the design is a proven way to reduce costs and improve the efficiency of the entire production cycle.
3. Standardisation of gauges and tools
Fabricators buy common sheet thicknesses in bulk, often directly as large coils of metal, which lowers their costs. By designing your parts around these standard thicknesses, you can capitalize on these savings.
The same principle applies to tooling. Most manufacturers have a standard set of punches and dies for making bends. If you design with standardized bend radii (e.g., with a bend radius that matches the material thickness), you can utilize these existing tools, eliminating the costs of special tooling and reducing setup time.
Can a corner be formed with a bend and a small relief cut instead of welding it? Can a single larger cut-out replace several small holes? Simplifying the design is a proven way to reduce costs and improve the efficiency of the entire production cycle.
4. Limit tight tolerances
Tolerances define the allowable dimensional deviation of a feature. Although some critical features require very tight tolerances, applying these tolerances to an entire part is a recipe for high costs. The price of precision is exponential.
A standard tolerance of +/- 0.5 mm can be included in the base price. Tightening it to +/- 0.1 mm could require slower machine speeds, special handling and secondary quality checks, easily doubling the cost of this feature. Be a tolerance miser: use them only where absolutely necessary for function. This helps to effectively reduce costs.
5. Reduce the number of parts
Always look for ways to combine multiple components into a single sheet metal product. For example, could you design a box that consists of five separate plates that need to be welded together as a single part with four bends?
This eliminates multiple welding operations and the associated labor costs, fixtures and inspection time. Also, make liberal use of standard components, such as latches, hinges, and brackets, to avoid reinventing the wheel.
6. Consider alternative fastening methods
Welding is a strong process, but it is also expensive and labor-intensive. One very effective way to reduce sheet metal fabrication costs is to develop alternative assembly methods. Consider using tabs and slots that allow parts to be self-positioned and fastened quickly.
Other efficient technologies include self-clinching fasteners (such as PEMs) that can be press-fit, as well as the construction of interlocking seams using processes like roll forming. These more efficient technologies can drastically reduce assembly time.
7. Minimise bends and keep them consistent
Each bend in the part requires a separate operation on a press brake, which increases the machine’s hourly cost. The first step is to design parts with as few bends as possible. The second step is to maintain consistent bend radii.
If a part has three different bend radii, it may require three different machine setups or tool changes. If you design all bends with the same radius, the operator can finish the part in a single, efficient setup.
8. Optimise finishing and coatings
Surface treatment is another area where cost savings can be achieved. Firstly, ask yourself whether surface treatment is necessary at all. For an internal component that will never be seen, a raw metal surface may be perfectly acceptable.
If a coating is required for corrosion protection or aesthetics, specify what should be coated. Covering areas that do not need to be coated will incur significant labor and material costs. A smart design also takes into account how the part will be hung on the paint line, making the process smoother and more cost-effective.
9. Nest parts efficiently
Nesting is the art of arranging the cutting paths for multiple sheet metal parts on a single sheet to maximize material utilization and minimize waste.
This is a cornerstone of scrap reduction. Modern laser-cutting machines utilize sophisticated software to achieve this, but your design can also play a significant role in the process.
If you design rectangular parts or parts with straight edges, you can pack them close together. This minimizes waste, meaning you pay for more usable material and less waste.
This is a key way to reduce sheet metal fabrication costs that every production manager should prioritize. Unlike materials with fixed units, such as wooden tiles, the flexibility of sheet metal is a major advantage when it comes to nesting.
10. Order in larger quantities
The principle of economies of scale is very powerful in sheet metal fabrication. The initial setup time for an order — which includes programming the machines and preparing the tools — is a fixed cost. If you order 10 parts, this cost is divided by 10.
If you order 1,000 parts for your mass-production product line, it is divided by 1,000. As a result, the price per part decreases significantly for larger orders. The average gain in savings can be substantial when transitioning from prototyping to mass production.
11. Work with your manufacturer early on
As you know from many previous articles and articles on DfM, this is the most important tip of all. Treat your fabricator as a partner, not a vendor.
Collaborate with them from the design stage onwards. They can give you invaluable insights. Ask them: “What are your standard mold capacities? What material thicknesses do you have in stock? Can you review our design for cost-saving opportunities?”
This collaboration is a key part of highly efficient production and is perhaps the most beneficial action you can take. They are the experts in the manufacturing process and want to help you develop a part that is both functional and economical.
Conclusion
As you can see, controlling your sheet metal fabrication costs isn’t about magic; it’s about methodical, intelligent decisions. These strategies form a complete system for cost management.
When you focus on smart design, material optimization and early collaboration, you can build a highly beneficial partnership with your fabricator.
This approach provides a clear and effective way to reduce sheet metal fabrication costs.
By following even a few of these tips, you will realize tangible savings, make your products more competitive and increase your profits in a demanding market.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1: What is the biggest factor in sheet metal costing?
The sheet metal material itself is almost always the most important factor, and it can account for more than half the cost of a part. The type and thickness of material you choose have a direct and large impact on the final production cost.
Q2: How do modern production systems help keep costs down?
Automated laser cutters and press brakes with robots are examples of modern production systems that reduce labour costs and speed up and improve accuracy. They make the process of manufacturing sheet metal parts more efficient, which means less waste and lower costs per part.
Q3: Why does ordering larger quantities reduce the price per part?
When you place a larger order, the fixed overheads such as machine setup and programming are less significant. When these initial costs are spread over more parts, the cost of producing each item drops significantly.
Q4: Is it possible to produce a complicated design at a low price?
This is really difficult. Complexity is one of the main factors that affect the cost of sheet metal parts. A complicated design requires more programming, longer machine times and more manual handling during sheet metal fabrication, all of which contribute to the total production cost.