At AP Precision in San Diego, not only do we specialize in welding and powder coating, but we also have years of expertise in custom plate cutting. Plate cutting is the process by which metal, in the form of a plate or sheet, is fabricated it into practically any shape you might need. Before the development of CNC technology, this was a tedious and time consuming process. The fabricator would lay out the product design and then cut the pieces from the plate manually. If the product needed bends, they would use a manual break. This is a time honored method but often results in inaccuracies in the finished product.

Plate Cutting Techniques

AP Precision uses some of the most advanced technology in the fabrication industry. With our use of several CNC based machines, we are able to quickly and efficiently produce high-capacity production lines for customers local to the San Diego area as well as nationwide. The machines that we use most in plate cutting are the fiber-laser cutter, turret punch, and CNC press brake.

Fiber-Laser: This is a CNC laser cutting table that can cut plate metal ranging from .015” to 1” thick. When compared to other optical lasers, fiber-laser cutters are preferable in this application. The structure of the fiber and its surrounding mirror cladding causes an intense and precise focus of the laser on the material that is being cut. This reduces energy waste and cuts down on atmospheric noise, while boasting an amazing cutting tolerance of plus or minus .003″-.007″, depending on the stock material. The laser cutter can cut just about any design you feed into the computer program. It is a relatively fun and easy process.

Turret Punch: The turret punch is an amazing, high speed machine, that can take whole plates of metal and using a variety of standard punch tools, mass produce almost anything from mailboxes, to the housing for your home built retro video game console. And similar to the laser cutter, the turret punch runs on CAD/CNC technology. This makes it relatively easy to design the product and have it punched out in no time.

CNC Press Brake: The turret punch and the CNC press brake are the one-two punch of plate cutting at AP Precision. If you need a vented box for an electrical component, you would have the two-dimensional design punched out in the turret punch. Then, in order to take this flat object and turn it into a box, we would bring it to the CNC press brake. This machine is a high-tech version of the manual brake we mentioned before. All the necessary bends needed to make that box are preprogrammed into the CNC press brake. The amazing thing about this high tech machine is that can calculate exactly how much force to use in order to get the correct bends every time. This technology has greatly improved accuracy and productivity in plate cutting and sheet metal manufacturing.

Our Plate Cutting Service

At AP Precision, we love working with these advanced technologies. Here are some of the industries we have partnered with, and the products we have specialized in.

Architectural: Gutters, louvers, fascia panels, downspouts, and brackets - complete with industrial powder coat finishes, certified for rugged outdoor applications.

Computing: Electronic cabinets, enclosures, and server towers with water-shear and water-tight assembly methods.

Robotics: Internal components and electronic enclosures for cutting edge robotic welding equipment.

Bio-Medical: Laser cutting, ultra-clean finishes, and ROHS Certified materials for products used in the medical field.

Military: Wide range of fabrication for military safety equipment and prototypes.

Civil: Critical components for industrial water filtration systems used in counties across the United States.

Power Generation: Products used in equipment critical to the Oil, Nuclear, and Wind Energy industries.

Consumer Goods: Keychains, bottle openers, and stamped accessories.

Lighting: Affordable production of light shrouds, hydroponics, and mirrored finishes.

Luxury Goods: Internal and cosmetic components of high-end luxury products.