CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
Sheet metals are used everywhere is our day to day lives. Whenever it is to required to manufacture any sort of an enclosure, sheet metals are the most preferred. They are useful because we can perform various operations with them to get the perfect required configuration of the sheet metals. Thus, it becomes very important to know and understand the various sheet metal operations that are performed in the industry.
A. LAYING OUT
Before beginning any Sheet metal operation, the exact drawing of the sheet metal required has to be cut out from the sheet metal blank. This process is called Laying out. it is the operation of scribing the Development of the surface of the component to be made on the sheet blank. It should include all the allowances required.
B. CUTTING AND SHEARING
Cutting is the process when the sheet metal is cut by means of a chisel and hammer manually. The term Shearing is used for cutting of sheet metal by two parallel cutting edges moving in opposite direction. This can be done manually by using Hand Shears or Snips.
C. NIBBLING
Nibbling is the process of continuous cutting along a contour, which may be a straight line, a curvature or an irregular profile. The machines used in this operations are are known as Nibblers, which are either Electrically operated or Pneumatically Operated.
D. CIRCLE CUTTING
It is the operation of cutting circular blanks or curved contours with the help of a Circle Cutting Machine. It is also a continuous cutting operation.
E. PIERCING
Piercing is basically a hole punching operation. The hole produced of the desired size is the objective and the blank produced may be treated as waste or scrap.
F. BLANKING
Blanking is the operation of cutting out a blank. The production of blank of the desired desired size is the objective, while the punched sheet containing holes might be treated as waste or scrap.
G. BENDING
Sheet metal is required to be bent at different angles and curvatures to shape it into the required form. The Bending Operation involves stretching of metal on the outer surface and compressing it on the inner surface along a neutral line, which remains unchanged in length.
H. DRAWING
Thin walled hollow shapes are produced in sheet metal through the Drawing Operation. It is carried out with the help of a Die and Punch on a suitable Press. A specific type of drawing by the name Deep Drawing is quite commonly performed in which the drawn length is more than the width.
