Delta Engineering
Mechanical and Ocean Solutions

Sheet Metal Design

Sheet metal is a convenient way to work metal because it can be mended and cut into various shapes and dimensions. A wide range of metal products are manufactured with sheet metal which makes it an essential part of the modern world. he form which sheet metal comes in is usually coiled strips or flat pieces. The coils are made with continuous running of sheet metal into a roll slitter. The coils used range from 19 gage (0.042" thick) to 1/0 gage (0.396" thick).

In the bending of sheet metal, small lengths of metal are bent with the help of dies or press brakes. Repeated bending is used for complex shapes. Bending can also be done through a set of rollers.

SHEET METAL FOLDOUT DRAWING

Sheet Metal Drawing Explanation

The drawing above shows the sheet metal details needed to produce a 36" x 36" to 12" x 12" duct reducer made from 3/16" thick, 6061 aluminum.The center image on the drawing is a flat section drawing of one of the duct sides. Shown on this flat section drawing are ordinate dimensions giving the location of flat section features, thru holes, and fold lines. The table on the left gives coordinates of holes at the edges of the folded out section, with the origin (0X and 0Y) shown on the right of the folded out section. This drawing enables a fabrication shop to cut out the flat section, per the dimensions shown, bend the sections along the fold lines at the indicated angles, and then bolt the two sections together for the finished product.

SolidWorks Sheet Metal Design

With SolidWorks sheet metal design, you can convert SolidWorks or, imported CAD models, to sheet metal parts. Capabilities include:

•Generate bends, lofted bends, and sketched bends.

•Use Bend Tables for bend allowance and bend deduction.

•Use Forming Tools to create features like ribs, louvers, embosses, and extruded flanges.

•Automatically flatten parts to generate flat patterns for manufacturing with bend compensation.

•Automatically estimate sheet metal part manufacturing cost as you design.

Sheet Metal Uses

Some common uses for sheet metal are:

•Auto/Truck Panels.

•Cargo Truck Panels.

•Hoppers.