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  • About
    • History – How did we get here?
    • FAQ – Sheet Metal Work
    • How to contact us
    • What is sheet metal work
    • Lighting Industry
    • Terms & Conditions
    • COVID-19 Coronavirus Risk Assessment
  • Plant List
    • Corner Notcher and Notching
    • Cleaning Equipment
    • Edwards Pearson PR3
    • Fly Presses and press work
    • Guifil PE 6-16 CNC Bending
    • Haeger Bush / Stud Inserter
    • High speed sawing aluminium
    • Laser Cutting Sheet Metal Work
    • Power Press and press work
    • Rolling Sheet Metal Work
    • Safan e-brake CNC bending
    • Safan Guillotine and Cutting
    • Sawing angle, tube and bar
    • Spot Welding sheet metal
    • Stud Welding Sheet Metal
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    • Trumpf 7036 – CNC bending
    • Welding Fabrication Processes
    • Radan CAD/CAM Software
    • P4W Production Software
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    • Trumpf standard 2D tooling
    • Trumpf non standard 2D tooling
    • What is CNC Bending?
    • What is CNC Punching?
    • CNC Bend Table – U Bend
    • CNC Bend Table – Z Bend
    • CNC Bend Table – Single
    • Bend Table – Small Joggles
  • Design Data
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    • Stainless Steel and it’s Finishes
    • Aluminium and it’s Treatments
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    • Bend Sizes and Hole Positions
    • Sheet Metal Punching Rules
    • Sheet Metal Thickness
    • Gauge Conversion Table
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CNC bending and foldingcnc punchengineeringEngineering and Sheet Metal Newslaser cuttingsheet metalSheet metal dataSheet metal fabricationsSheet metal facilitiesTrumpf manufacturing equipmentUncategorizedWelding

Sheet metal manufacturing near me

Tuesday, December 8th, 2020

If you are looking for sheet metal manufacturing near you perhaps you should be talking to V and F Sheet Metal. Based in the south of England and with well over 30 years experience in manufacturing sheet metal work for people right across the UK. We ship product locally and far afield. Please take a look at our website pages to see the wide range of parts we manufacture and all to our customers own designs.

CNC punched galvanised brackets

CNC punched galvanised brackets

The images shown here illustrate the stages of CNC punching and CNC bending a sheet metal bracket. You can see that once a single component has been tooled it can easily be copied over a whole sheet. This enables us to achieve a high yield from any given sheet size.

Sheet metal component manufacturing

Sheet metal component manufacturing

This is a good example of CNC punching a part with a range of simple off the shelf tooling. A small range of circles, rectangles and a single D were used to create the component profile and holes. If you want to view the wide range of CNC punch press tooling that we have for you to use for free, take a look at our tooling library. For more examples of CNC punching it’s well worth a look at our Pinterest Boards. There is also a collection of past manufacturing projects illustrated in our gallery pages with hundreds of ideas for your nest sheet metal design. Feel free to take a look and call us if there is something that catches your eye. We can often adapt tooling and ideas to suit different products.

Sheet metal manufacturing near me

Sheet metal CNC punched nests

The scrap sheets known as “skeletons” are collected up and recycled along with all the metal that comes from the holes. Metal is grouped together by grade e.g. stainless steel, aluminium, mild steel and kept separate. This metal is then sent for melting down to remake fresh metal sheet. This process is very green with very little waste. Even components that are used to help set up manufacturing processes and then scrapped can be included and recycled.

Sheet metal manufacturing brackets

CNC bent sheet metal brackets

And finally the folded bracket is ready to be shipped to the customer. This small galvanised steel bracket is typical of the sheet metal work that we produce every day of the week. If you have a sheet metal project that needs manufacturing please give us a call or e-mail us your drawings and we will be happy to take a look for you.

So for sheet metal manufacturing near you please ask for details.

Sheet metal production companies in the UK 2020

Tuesday, November 17th, 2020

Sheet metal production - small brackets

Sheet metal production – small brackets

Sheet metal production of small brackets and plates.

I thought it would be good to take a random selection of sheet metal production components as they perfectly illustrate the wide range of production techniques used today in the UK. These parts are typical, but be no means exhaustive of the different materials, thicknesses and finishes that we are requested to produce on a daily basis by our customers. Often using simple standard CNC punching and CNC bending tooling no additional costs are applied to these production projects. If the parts needs to be laser cut that production can also be catered for in house on our Trumpf 3KW fibre laser.

I have given a little more detail for each of the components in the photo, their material type, part finish and production stages to produce the complete part.

If you click on the photo you can clearly see each component identified with a number which corresponds with the details listed below.

Component 1

Material is 2mm thick mild steel. The part has been laser cut. It will be finished by zinc plating and clear passivating.

Component 2

Material is 3mm thick CZ108 brass. The part has been laser cut using pure nitrogen. No other finishing or treatment was required on this small brass washer.

Component 3

Material is 1.0mm thick 5251 aluminium alloy. The part has been CNC punched using standard tools of the shelf. All outer edges have been de-burred to remove the CNC punch nibble marks. It was finally anodised and dyed black.

Component 4
Material is 3mm aluminium. The parts has been CNC punched and then barrel de-burred to remove all sharp edges.

Component 5
Material for this small welded assembly is 0.7mm 316 stainless steel. The parts were laser cut together from the same sheet, CNC folded and then TiG welded together.

Component 6
Material for this copper bracket is C101. The bracket was laser cut on our Trumpf 3030 fibre laser cutter. A simple edge de-burring was used to remove any sharp edges and then folded up on our Trumpf 7036 CNC press brakes.

Component 7
Material is galvanised weld mesh material used as a filter plate. This part was simply cut to size on our Safan guillotine.

Component 8
Material is 1.2mm aluminium. An interesting shape which has been CNC laser cut, CNC folded up and then powder coated matt black.

Component 9
Material is 2.5mm 304 stainless steel. These parts were laser cut, barrel de-burred, CNC folded and then had threads tapped in the holes.

Component 10
Material is 0.9mm thick galvanised mild steel. Simply CNC punched and edge de-burred.

For additional examples of sheet metal production pleas take a look at our Pinterest boards.

If you have some sheet metal production that needs looking at please don’t hesitate to send us your drawings. We will be happy to produce price options and review designs where needed.

Sheet metal engineering facilities in Great Britain

Tuesday, May 26th, 2020

Sheet metal engineering of ventilation grilles

Sheet metal manufacturing of ventilation grilles

We are happy to offer our sheet metal engineering facilities for manufacturing in Great Britain. We have a wide range of skills and manufacturing plant with over 30 years of experience in this sector.

From helping newly formed companies with their designs, explaining the best manufacturing process to achieve the quality they want with an affordable price. Working with companies who need to reduce costs on existing products with perhaps a fresh set of eyes. Right up to larger volumes and KANBAN ideas to help plan projects over longer periods of time.

With an eye to new ideas and machines V and F Sheet Metal have constantly invested over the years. We have CNC punching, laser cutting and a wide range of CNC bending machines all supported with the latest CAD/CAM software. Feel free to follow the links to plant pages and also take a look at our gallery pages to see some of our recent sheet metal engineering projects.

Laser cut zintec rings for ceiling light fittings

Laser cut zintec rings for ceiling light fittings

We have a lot of free advice on our website with regards to tooling to help you save money when designing. Design data and guidance for material selections can also be useful when you first start out working on a new design. If you cannot find what you want on our website simply call us on 01489 577786 and we will be happy to help you.

Brackets manufactured in the UK

Brackets manufactured in the UK

Another good place to see hundreds of examples of sheet metal engineering projects is on our Pinterest pages.

If you have a sheet metal engineering project that needs pricing and free advice please send us your drawings. You can either use our enquiry form or e-mail us at sales@vandf.co.uk. We will do the rest.

Back to work ….

Thursday, April 23rd, 2020

Sheet metal work

Sheet metal working in Hampshire UK

Just a quick update on our work situation here at V and F Sheet Metal.

We now have a small team back in the factory producing metal work again.

We plan to increase the number of staff we have in over the next few weeks to meet customer demands.

If you have sheet metal work that you still want quoting we are able to accommodate that, please send your drawings to sales@vandf.co.uk and we will be happy to sort that for you.

Extraordinary times with CoronaVirus Covid-19

Saturday, March 28th, 2020

CoronaVirus

Here at V and F Sheet Metal we have taken the welfare and safety of our staff very seriously. We have decided to close our factory from the 27th March and will open as soon as we can safely do so. We are monitoring the situation and following UK government advice as it changes. We hope to be open after Easter.

We would like to thank our staff for their tremendous support as well as our suppliers in this difficult time in enabling us to support our customers. We are still able to work on new quotations, so if you have designs you wish to progress before for our return please don’t hesitate to e-mail us at sales@vandf.co.uk

We hope you all stay safe.

Thanks again from the management of V and F Sheet Metal

V and F Sheet Metal Christmas shut down 2019

Monday, December 16th, 2019

V and F Sheet Metal Christmas Shut down

Sheet metal work at  Christmas 2019

Sheet metal work at
Christmas 2019

We will be closed for the Christmas break from Friday 20th December 2019 and we will be back on Thursday 2nd January 2020.

We just want to say all our customers a big thank you for all the your prototype and production sheet metal projects we have manufactured throughout this year. It’s been an unusual year to say the least with the on off Brexit saga. Lets hope that 2020 will be more predictable for all of us.

Also, thanks to all our suppliers for your continued support throughout the year.

Let’s hope we are all as busy in 2020.

Sheet metal manufacturers near Southampton – Give us a call

Thursday, November 28th, 2019

Sheet metal manufacturers producing aluminium housings

Sheet metal manufacturers producing aluminium housings

V and F Sheet Metal are sheet metal manufacturers of a wide range of components. Being sub-contract sheet metal workers based near Southampton we get involved in all sorts of projects. These aluminium housings, stainless grille and mild steel trays are typical of the projects we manufacture everyday of the week. We are always working hard to help out our customers. Whether it’s free advice on their designs. Perhaps alternative ideas to save money or call off volumes to help with production planning. We are here to help where and when we can. With over 30 years experience in sheet metal in the UK we are here to help you.

Sheet metal manufacturers producing laser cut stainless steel grilles

Sheet metal manufacturers producing
laser cut stainless steel grilles

Being able to work with your drawings direct into our CAD/CAM system speeds up programming and reduces confusion on the shop floor. Our engineering team are always keeping an eye on designs to make sure they are practical in production. Even at the quote stage we will suggest alternatives for you to think about to save money. We are here to work in conjunction with you.

Sheet metal manufacturers producing mild steel trays

Sheet metal manufacturers producing mild steel trays

With laser cutting, CNC punching, CNC bending, welding and press work in house, there isn’t much we can’t tackle for you. With 3D CAD/CAM and an experienced engineering team that is here ready to help, go on, give us a go.

Send us you drawings when you are ready and we will be happy to take a look and prepare a quotation for you.

File formats DXF, DWG, SAT, STEP, IGES and of course PDF are fine.

Cloak room storage systems with sheet metal bracket assemblies

Monday, October 21st, 2019

Cloak room storage systems

Modular coat hanger systems

Here’s a great example of a project we were recently involved with. Combining both woodwork and metalwork to produce cloak room storage systems. The simple line and function being key to this projects success. Metal components laser cut from sheet steel and thicker steel plate. Once the metal parts were powder coated and assembled they easily became part of the whole design.

A frame system for coat and bag storage

A frame system for coat and bag storage

It’s always a pleasure to work with customers on bespoke projects and see the final product fulfilling its potential. These cloak room storage systems are used for a London University to provide flexible storage and space dividers.

There were a few hundred components that were needed in total for this project. That volume perfectly suits our manufacturing processes. Using laser cutting, CNC punching and CNC bending processes to manufacture bespoke sheet metal components and assemblies. If you can drawing it we can probably make it.

Using the latest Radan CAD/CAM software with 3D modelling enables us to get the best from our machines and to interact directly when needed with our customer’s designers. Swapping ideas and quote options is easy and helps to refine the design quickly when time is of the essence.

If you have a project coming up that needs some bespoke sheet metal work, give us a call. We are happy to chat through your ideas and fine tune designs where needed to save time and money.

If you are already at the final design stage then simple e-mail us at sales@vandf.co.uk and our engineering team will be pleased to put together some cost options for you.

Welded fabricated trolley brackets

Welded fabricated trolley brackets

For more examples of recent sheet metal project and ideas for your next design why not take a look at our Pinterest Boards.

Another good place to start looking at sheet metal designs is our website gallery pages.

Stainless steel sheet metal brackets manufactured in Great Britain

Tuesday, July 2nd, 2019

Stainless steel sheet metal brackets

Stainless steel brackets

If you are looking for a supplier of brackets manufactured in Great Britain then you really should be talking to V and F sheet Metal. With over 30 years’ experience in manufacturing sheet metal brackets there’s nothing we haven’t seen before. From thick gauge aluminium angle brackets to support electronics rack mounted chassis to stainless steel top hat brackets. Mild steel, Zintec, galvanised steel you name it and we have worked with it.

Brackets manufactured in Great Britain

Stainless steel brackets

For brackets manufactured in Great Britain by a family owned British company we are the people to come and talk to. The stainless steel brackets shown here were from an order for one of our customers in Oxfordshire. All 3 types of brackets were laser cut, barrel de-burred to take away any sharp edges and then folded up on our CNC press brakes.

The design and order volume was all to suit our customer’s needs.

Stainless steel brackets

Stainless steel brackets

The advantage in using laser cutting machines, CNC punch presses and CNC press brakes is the flexibility they bring to manufacturing. We can change details to suit your needs from batch to batch. Be it hole sizes, bend lengths, bend angles or material thicknesses.

Perhaps you have a standard bracket but need a modified special batch for a new installation, give us a call and we can easily produce options for you.

With a wealth of manufacturing experience along with a large range of standard tooling we are your perfect partner when it comes to sourcing brackets manufactured in Great Britain.

Contact our estimate and programming team on 01489 57776, use the onsite contact form or send your drawings direct to us at sales@vandf.co.uk

We will be happy to produce some price options for you and help where we can to get your prices down.

Sheet metal electronic chassis control panels manufactured in the UK

Friday, June 28th, 2019

sheet metal chassis control panels

chassis control panels

Chassis control panels come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Varying material types and thicknesses some including pressed inserts. Finishes and treatments can also be wide ranging. Whatever you need from a chassis control panel we will help you. Help you with the design, the right choice of material and any manufacturing decisions that are needed to save you money.

Using CNC punching and fibre laser cutting to produce the chassis panel blanks enable us to ensure the final component accuracy. With dimensional tolerances down to as little +/- 0.2mm which is more than acceptable for most applications. Along with CNC press brakes folding to within +/- 0.2mm and +/- 0.5 degree per bend the sheet metal features are maintained to a fine limit.

All our manufacturing is supported and driven by Radan CAD/CAM sheet metal software. We keep this at the latest version (currently 2019) to enable us to communicate with our customers no matter what software they might use. P4W production management software is used to create route cards to instruct the manufacturing team of all the stages of production. Any comments from the customer can be included along with observations from past batches to enable a library of knowledge to grow with each part.

Have an idea for a chassis control panel, please send us your drawings and we will be happy to take a look at produce some price options for you. Call us if you like and chat through your options before finalising your designs.

Sub-contract sheet metal workers based in the UK

Thursday, May 2nd, 2019

Sub-contract sheet metal work produced to your designs right here in the UK

sub-contract sheet metal work

sub-contract sheet metal work

No matter what sub-contract sheet metal work you are looking for we have probably come up against it before. With over 30 years experience manufacturing sheet metal products in the UK we have the people and the equipment to tackle most projects you are likely to want.

sub-contract sheet metal work

sub-contract sheet metal work

With CNC punching, CNC laser cutting and CNC bending all in house we can manage a project from the start to the finish. Using Radan sheet metal work CAD/CAM software to create 3D models, accurate developed blanks and efficient laser cutting and CNC punching nests.

From the smallest batches and new design prototypes right up to repeating batches of many hundreds or thousands. We can provide you with 3D images before committing to full production if that helps with a new design you may have.

CNC bending sheet metal workers

CNC bending sheet metal workers

In addition to a wide range of manufacturing processes that we have in house we also have a tight knit group of finishing companies we can call upon to offer the complete service. Whether it’s anodsing or Iridite NCP treatment of aluminium electronics components. Powder coating or wet spraying components. Silk screening or brush finishing. Zinc plating with colour or clear passivate. You name it and we can get it sorted for you.

For more example of recent sheet metal projects please take a look at our Pinterest Boards.

So if you are looking for sub-contract sheet metal work, give us a call and we will be happy to help you.

Sheet metal workers in Hampshire Great Britain

Thursday, November 29th, 2018

Sheet metal workers in Hampshire Great Britain using the latest CNC controlled equipment.

Folded sheet metal angles

Folded sheet metal angles

Based in Hampshire on the M27 we are ideally placed to support companies along the south coast and with next day deliveries throughout Great Britain.

So many of our sheet metal projects start out by being either CNC punched or laser cut and this example is no different. Due to the accuracy and the speed that they offer sheet metal workers these processes are perfect for this type of component. Being relatively small, thin gauge and a batch of nearly 2000 parts it was perfect for our capacity.

Folding sheet metal work

Folding sheet metal work

Using a Trumpf 7036 CNC press brake to fold a component under 1M long is the best choice. It’s very quick and easy to set up. It’s very quick to run and has the accuracy demanded by our customers parts.

There are lots of opportunities to see the Trumpf 7036 in action on our YouTube channel.

All our manufacturing processes are supported by using Radan CAD/CAM sheet metal work and P4W production management software systems.

Sheet metal workers in Hampshire Great Britain

Sheet metal workers in Hampshire Great Britain

So in conclusion, if you have a sheet metal job that needs laser cutting / CNC punching or folding you need to give us a call. We will be more than happy to support you in the correct dimensions for your design to suit standard tooling and save you money. Call us on 01489 577786 or alternatively e-mail us on sales@vandf.co.uk for a quick quote.

Furniture brackets manufactured from sheet metal in Great Britain

Thursday, November 15th, 2018

Furniture brackets – a recent sheet metal project

Here’s a great example of a recent sheet metal project we have manufactured for a furniture company based in Great Britain. Producing a range of brackets from different gauges of mild steel, different sizes and with different angles to suit the chairs and tables shown below. We used our standard CNC punch and CNC bend tooling to create all the parts without the need for new tooling. All the component details were worked out using Radan sheet metal CAD/CAM software.

If you would like to see the furniture brackets being folded up on one of our Trumpf 7036 CNC press brakes follow this link to our YouTube channel.

All parts were CNC punched and CNC bent in house. We organised the CNC programming, sample manufacture, production and powder coating for our customer.

If you have a sheet metal project that requires a design input please let us know. We are here to help you and our engineering team has decades of experience in the development and manufacturing of sheet metal work for the most competitive parts.

Furniture brackets

Furniture brackets

Mild steel brackets

Chairs with mild steel brackets

Chair brackets

Getting production ready

Table brackets

Chair leg assembly

Manufactured brackets

Brackets all screwed in place

Furniture brackets

The complete range of furniture

Curved stainless steel sections created by CNC bending

Monday, November 12th, 2018

Curved stainless steel sections created by CNC bending on our Trumpf 7036 CNC press brakes

Curved stainless steel sections created by CNC bending

CNC multi-bending curved sections

When we want to create a curved section in sheet metal we have 3 possible options.

1. Manufacture a form tool that can press the curved shape in one go. This is the quickest way to produce each part but does require what could be an expensive form tool. This is idea for high volume work.

2. If the curved section radius is larger we can always look at rolling the curve. This process is slower than a single form tool but has not set up cost. It’s idea for smaller batches of components.

3. If the volumes are not too high and the customer doesn’t mind some evidence of the production process then multi-bending is an option. This process is illustrated in this photograph. Curved stainless steel sections have been created with a series of programmed bending.

Although you can see the bend lines, and I can count approximately 30 individual bends the process is surprisingly quick, as the gap between each bend and the angle folded up is small the machine can travel quickly. Curved stainless steel sections like these can be formed up in around 1 minute.

If you would like to see our Trumpf 7036 CNC press brakes in action please take a look at our YouTube channel.

If you have a sheet metal design that needs a curved section please call our engineering team. They will be more than happy to investigate the manufacturing options open to you and the best method for your design.

Sub-contract CNC sheet metal manufacturing in Great Britain

Monday, November 5th, 2018

Sub-contract CNC sheet metal manufacturing

CNC folding sheet metal work

CNC folding sheet metal work

There are several advantages to CNC manufacturing.

Firstly, the speed with which new projects can be trialed. Often no special tooling is needed whether components are being CNC punched or CNC bent. And certainly no tooling is required if sheet metal manufacturing is taking place with laser cutting.

There is the ability to change details of a component’s blank size, hole positions or bends without tooling changes. This can lead to many design options and no extra costs for our customers. This is ideal when you have special projects or are looking for customisation within your product range.

The ability to produce components accurately and quickly across a range of batch sizes is another strength when looking to manufacture using CNC equipment. Here you can see 2 good examples of manufacturing repeatability within the CNC bending manufacturing process.

CNC sheet metal manufacturing

CNC sheet metal manufacturing

Everything we do at V and F Sheet Metal and the investments we make are to make your job easier. Quicker delivery of accurate parts at a price that will help you to compete and win new orders. We want to be an essential part of your business and offering the right service is very important to us.

All our CNC programs, whether they are generated by our engineering team or at the machine on the workshop are backed up offsite every night. We need to be able to access the right CNC program just when it’s needed to produce your work.

For more examples of CNC sheet metal manufacturing please take take a look at our Pinterest Boards.

If you are looking for a new supplier for your CNC manufactured sheet metal work then give our team a call (01489 57776). If you would prefer to e-mail (sales@vandf.co.uk) that’s no problem with us. Make the move today and start to reap the benefits of working with a flexible and reliable supplier.

Stainless steel blanks laser cut with Trumpf 3030 fibre laser

Monday, October 29th, 2018

stainless steel blanks

stainless steel laser cut blanks

Stainless steel used to be a difficult material to work with. It’s very hard and wears press tooling and CNC punch press tooling, stainless steel also needs high tonnages to process. Once laser cutting machines become available to the sub-contractor stainless steel blanks became much easier to produce.

stainless steel folded chassis

stainless steel folded chassis

Folding stainless components with the range of CNC press brakes that we have is easy for us. Whether we are using our small Guilfil or Trumpf machines for stainless steel brackets and chassis assemblies or our Safan e-Brake for longer sections, it makes no difference to us.

Stainless steel blanks are just the start of the process. If you want to know more about sheet metal production please take a look at “What is sheet metal work” for more details.

We have a YouTube channel with dozens of videos showing laser cutting, CNC punching and CNC bending stainless steel components.

Once you have a design you want manufacturing we will be happy to help you. Whether you want part designer in 430, 304 or 316 stainless steel we can help you and get the best from the material for you. Call us on 01489 577786 we are waiting to take your call.

Quality sheet metal workers in Hampshire

Monday, October 22nd, 2018

If you are looking for quality sheet metal workers in Hampshire then you need to talk with V and F Sheet Metal.

Whether it’s laser cutting, CNC punching or CNC bending we are here to help you. Offering a quality service to manufacture your sheet metal products. Working to your designs and guiding you through the purchasing / manufacturing process.

For further explanation of what makes a quality sheet metal worker do take a look at our report, “What is sheet metal”

If you would like to view further examples of our past sheet metal projects we have well over 1000 images on our Pinterest Boards.

Give us a call on 01489 577786 if you want to talk with a quality sheet metal working team of engineers. We are waiting to help you with your latest design projects. We also pride ourselves of helping our customers to reduce costs through designing for manufacture. Using standard CNC punch and bending tooling is so import to reduce manufacturing costs. In conclusion, send us your drawing (sales@vandf.co.uk) and we will help you.

Radan nest of parts

Radan nest of parts

Laser cutting sheet metal work

Laser cutting sheet metal work

Spot welding Zintec sheet metal assembly

Spot welding Zintec sheet metal assembly

Brackets in production

Brackets in production

Quality sheet metal workers in Hampshire Folding up the blanks

Folding up the blanks

3 D Radan model

3 D Radan model

Laser cutting mild steel brackets using a Trumpf 3030

Friday, October 19th, 2018

Laser cutting mild steel brackets at speed

Laser cutting mild steel brackets

Laser cutting mild steel brackets

We love manufacturing sheet metal brackets here at V and F Sheet Metal. Our manufacturing machinery is perfectly designed to produce small components like brackets, you just have to take a look at our website to see that. The image you can see here is through the safety glass looking onto our Trumpf 3030 3KW fibre laser cutting 3mm mild steel. The beauty of this machine is the ease with which we can go from job to job with virtually no set up time. Here we are laser cutting some brackets from material off-cuts from a previous order. The ability to amend CNC programs from full production sheets to smaller off-cuts enables us to offer the best prices. Using up remnants especially of expensive or thick materials is an easy way to keep costs down when quoting for work.

For more examples of past sheet metal bracket projects please take a look at our Bracket and Angle Gallery.

Or if you want to watch the laser cutter in action follow the link.

So, if you have a sheet metal bracket that needs manufacturing please give us a call. We are always happy to help you with ideas to speed up the manufacturing process to save you money. Perhaps you have designed a bracket and we can change some CNC punch tooling to suit standard tools and reduce punching time. We may have just the form tool needed to produce the curve you want.

Our engineering are always willing to help.

Typical sheet metal housings from V and F Sheet Metal

Friday, October 12th, 2018

Looking for sheet metal housings for your next design project?

Here at V and F Sheet Metal we manufacture sheet metal housings every day of the week. From small tin plates PCB screening housings right up to complete electrical enclosures.

Sheet metal housings

Sheet metal housings

We manufacture sheet metal housings for a wide range of industries in Great Britain. These can include light fitting housings, industrial heating housings, professional audio housings and pump housings to name but a few.

The housings shown here have been manufactured in our factory in Fareham, Hampshire. Using CNC punching, laser cutting and CNC bending technology to efficiently produce these products. With batch sizes ranging from 1 off prototypes, repeating batches of many hundreds right up to thousands, we have the processes to match your needs. The material we work with is vast including all the standard mild steel, stainless steel and aluminium alloys as well as specialist lighting reflector materials, pre-painted materials and spring stainless steels.

Light fitting ceiling panels

Light fitting ceiling panels

As far as finishes go, what do you want? Zinc plating and passivating, anodising, Surtec 650, Iridite NCP, powder coating, screening, hot-dip galvansing you name it we can supply it.

What’s next?

For an impartial view on designing for the manufacture of sheet metal housings contact us on 01489 577786. If you already have some drawings, that’s great, please send them to sales@vandf.co.uk and our engineering team will take a look for you.

Would you like to see more images of sheet metal components to give you some ideas for your own designs? Take a look at our gallery pages within our website or on our: Pinterest Board.

Speak to you soon.

Inserting sheet metal fastenings in to aluminium brackets

Friday, September 21st, 2018

Inserting sheet metal fastenings using our Haeger inserter machine

We are inserting sheet metal fixings everyday of the week. They may be female threads such as the parts shown here or male threaded studs. Simple brackets like these can also have bushes inserted using one of our fly-presses when needed. If you follow the links you will see plenty of examples of sheet metal work projects with inserts.

Batch of sheet metal clamping brackets

Batch of sheet metal clamping brackets

Inserting sheet metal fastenings in aluminium top hat brackets

Aluminium top hat brackets

And here’s the process in action …


Fast Tube by Casper

Thin gauge aluminium brackets are perfect for receiving sheet metal fastenings. Aluminium is generally too soft to receive a self-tapping screw. Unless the gauge is considerably thicker we would not recommend tapping a thread. Pressed inserts however are perfect for the job.

If you have a new design for a product in sheet metal and it needs inserts please give us a call. We have lots of standard inserts on the shelf and we can buy in most within a day or two. As a result we can be manufacturing your parts and have the inserts in ready to go when needed. Just give us a call and let’s see what we can do for you.

Aluminium and mild steel sheet metal brackets manufactured especially for you

Friday, August 31st, 2018

Sheet metal brackets manufactured from aluminium and mild steel

If you are looking for aluminium or mild sheet metal steel brackets you have come to the right place. With over 30 years experience in sheet metal work we will produce brackets to your own designs. Our website has a vast array of past examples of sheet metal brackets made for our UK customers.

Mild steel sheet metal brackets

Mild steel sheet metal brackets

Here at V and F Sheet Metal we will CNC punch and laser cut the blanks for any aluminium or mild steel brackets. We will produce them to your design using the very latest CAD/CAM software ensuring accuracy to your initial ideas. For that reason we always use Radan sheet metal software to enable us to communicate with our customers. Whether it might be 3D design files or detailed drawings we will be able to support you with your manufacturing project.

Take a look at our past CAD/CAM examples to see what we get up to.

Once we have accurate blanks we have a range of CNC press brakes to fold the brackets. Using accurate tooling we will produce a wide range of shapes and sizes of bracket. Please take a look at our bracket gallery for more examples. Another good source for sheet metal bracket examples is our Sheet Metal Bracket Pinterest Board.

Aluminium sheet metal brackets

Aluminium sheet metal brackets

We can also work with other grades of material including stainless steel, copper and brass. More specialised materials such as zintec, bondcote and pre-painted steel are no problem to us.

In conclusion you can see that we are definitely the people to contact when you need sheet metal brackets. You can send us your drawings right now and we will be happy to take a look. Producing price alternatives for material type and volumes options is not a problem to us. If you would rather have a chat please call us on 01489 577786, we will be waiting for your call.

Folding sheet metal brackets from mild steel laser cut blanks

Sunday, May 13th, 2018

Folding sheet metal brackets from mild steel laser cut blanks using our Trumpf 7036 CNC press brakes

So the best place to start when you want an accurate sheet metal component is an accurate blank. Using years of experience and the latest CAD/CAM software we are able to offer this with little fuss. Linking CNC programs to our CNC punching and laser cutting machines leads to efficient manufacturing. If you can start with an accurate blank it makes folding sheet metal brackets so much easier.

laser cut mild steel brackets

laser cut mild steel brackets

The best way to produce an accurate sheet metal blank is to use a laser cutter. We have the option of cutting accurate sheet metal blanks using our Trumpf 3030 fibre laser cutter. Depending on the component’s shape, material and thickness we will decide whether to CNC punch or laser cut. These parts have been laser cut which was perfect for the shape and batch size involved.

CNC press brake tooling folding sheet metal brackets

CNC press brake tooling folding sheet metal brackets

Once an accurate sheet metal blank has been produced we can tackle the folding. We are lucky to have such a wide range of machines to fold our sheet metal work. Perhaps we might have a simple sheet metal part and fold it on a fly-press of Guifil CNC press brake. We may use our Safan e-brake with it’s 3M bed. In this case the Trumpf 7036 CNC press brakes were ideal for the job. The component’s CNC program was written in under 10 minutes. The tooling was all laid out for one bending sequence. And off we went producing parts.

CNC folded mild steel brackets

CNC folded mild steel brackets

Finally the finished article. A mild steel bracket with a series of bends and stiffening points built into the bends. Folding sheet metal brackets couldn’t be made easier than when using a laser cutter in conjunction with a CNC press brake.

Looking to get some sheet metal brackets manufactured then please give us a call. We love a challange, send us your STEP or DXF files and we will get working on a quote for you. Call 01489 577786 or e-mail sales@vandf.co.uk for help with your sheet metal project.

CNC punching stainless steel sheet metal components

Tuesday, May 8th, 2018

CNC punching stainless steel sheet metal components using our Trumpf punch presses

CNC punching stainless steel

CNC punching stainless steel

Nowadays when you think of cut stainless steel sheet metal components you think of laser cutting. If laser cutting is what you want we can certainly accommodate that with our Trumpf 3030 fibre laser. But, you shouldn’t ignore CNC punching especially on thinner gauges. These 304 stainless steel brackets were easily CNC punched out. If the shape is simple then CNC punching is a very competitive manufacturing method.

CNC punching stainless steel sheet

CNC punching stainless steel sheet

There are obviously some parts that are better cut on a laser machine. These could be where the shape is complex or the gauge is too thick to CNC punch. We will take a view on every drawing we receive from our customers. We will always select the best method to produce a quality part at the right price.

And using Radan CAD/CAM software enables us to swap from one machine to another very easily. If there is a bottleneck in production we can swap jobs around to suit your delivery needs.

You don’t have to worry about which method we will us unless it’s important to you. We have all bases covered here at V and F Sheet Metal and are always happy to help you. Send us your drawings and our engineering team will be please to take a look for you. Even if you just want to refresh prices on an old project we are here to help.

Z angle aluminium brackets laser cut and folded in Great Britain 2018

Wednesday, January 3rd, 2018

Laser cut aluminium strips

Laser cut aluminium strips

Z Angle Brackets

If you require aluminium brackets but you’re not sure who to contact then look no further! Here at V and F Sheet Metal, Hampshire we have the facility to help you. We have many years of experience to ease your journey from the initial idea or drawing through to final production.

Folding aluminium Z brackets

Folding aluminium Z brackets

First of all we begin the process using Radan 3D modelling design software before moving on to laser cutting and finally folding up to produce brackets.

The photos here follow the production of a simple aluminium bracket. Initially we cut out flat metal strip ready to be bent in to a z shape. Cutting out is quick using the latest technology Trumpf 3030 3 KW fibre laser. The second photo shows an individual strip in the process of bending using one of our Trumpf 7036 CNC press brakes. Finally once completed and inspected, the strips are packed up ready for delivery to the customer. If you would like to know more about bending then please read the CNC bending information on our website.

Folded aluminium Z angles brackets

Folded aluminium Z angles brackets

So please do not hesitate to contact us here at V and F Sheet Metal by calling 01489 577786 or emailing us at sales@vandf.co.uk. We have the ability to make many types of brackets and the expertise to assist you with your product from the initial idea through to design and final production. We look forward to hearing from you.

Merry Christmas from V and F Sheet Metal 2017

Thursday, December 21st, 2017

Merry Christmas from all at V and F Sheet Metal.

We just want to say thank you to all out customers for their business through 2017, we really appreciate it. We also want to thank the support of our suppliers through this year. Lets all hope that 2018 will be just as busy and profitable for all of us.

Merry Christmas

From the team at V and F Sheet Metal

Sheet metal fabrication in the UK – V and F Sheet Metal

Wednesday, December 6th, 2017

Laser cut and CNC bend zintec sheet metal work produced with Trumpf manufacturing equipment

Laser cut and CNC bend zintec sheet metal work produced with Trumpf manufacturing equipment

Sheet metal fabrication in the UK covers a wide range of processes. From laser cutting and CNC punching thin sheet metal to folding complex sections. Using various welding techniques and secondary manufacturing and finishing operations a large range of sheet metal fabrications can be produced.

Here at V and F Sheet Metal we specialise in batch production of sheet metal fabrications. From our factory in Fareham, Hampshire we supply sheet metal work right across the UK. We can support you with your new designs by producing prototypes. We can also produce small batches of sheet metal components and then where needed larger volumes. With over 30 years experience in sub-contract sheet metal manufacturing there isn’t much we haven’t seen before or made. From small batches to high volumes and from components just a few mm across to 3M long profile sections.

For far more information on sheet metal fabrications and what we can do with them take a look at this link.

Sheet metal fabrication in the UK

Zinc plated mild steel sheet metal brackets

If you want to see lots more examples of sheet metal fabrication please take a look at our Pinterest Boards. We have 1000’s of examples of sheet metal components, laser cut, CNC punched, CNC folded and welded.

Please take a look at our sheet metal fabrications blog post for more information.

If you are looking for a company to supply sheet metal fabrication in the UK V and F Sheet Metal are the people to contact on 01489 577786. Alternatively you can always e-mail us your drawing data and our engineering team will be happy to advise on your designs or produce estimate options. We can open PDF, STEP, SAT, IGES, DXF and DWG drawing files. If you only have a template to copy we can cope with the as well and produce you a dimensioned drawing if needed.

Sheet metal work manufactured in Great Britain 2017

Thursday, November 16th, 2017

CNC punched sheet metal work

CNC punched sheet metal work

If you are looking for sheet metal work manufactured in Great Britain here’s as good a place to start as any. During 2017 V and F Sheet Metal have invested in more plant and machinery to improve product quality and speed up manufacturing. The projects shown here are typical of the sheet metal work that we manufacture every day. Whether it’s CNC laser cutting or CNC punching. CNC bending from just a few sample parts to orders of many thousands. Parts may be simply left self colour or treated and finished in a variety of ways. Calling upon the talents of a range of sub-contract specialists in the area we can offer the complete manufacturing service.

Sheet metal trays

Sheet metal trays

Sheet metal work manufactured in Great Britain is cost effective compared with importing. We have many customers who use our services from Europe and the US. Or course our home market of Great Britain is where the majority of our customers as based. With the ability to communicate easily and offer quick samples we provide a useful service to many companies. With the latest sheet metal manufacturing equipment prices are also very keen.

Sheet metal work manufactured in Great Britain

Folded sheet metal work

To get a really good idea of sheet metal work manufactured in Great Britain you should take a look at our gallery pages and plant pages. They will illustrate the wide range of work we manufacture and the ways in which we save time and our customers money.

So if you are looking to get your sheet metal work manufactured in Great Britain give us a try. We are happy for you to call us and have a chat with one of our team of experienced engineers. If you wish to simply e-mail us your drawings that’s fine and we will work on producing estimates for you.

Sheet Metal work in Great Britain 2017

Monday, November 13th, 2017

Sheet Metal work in Great Britain

Sheet Metal work in Great Britain

Here at V and F Sheet Metal we are proud to be able to offer a wide range of sheet metal services to all our customers. Whether it’s laser cutting stainless steel fixings plates or CNC punching aluminium front panels. CNC folding electronics chassis components or mild steel angle brackets. Welding in a wide range of materials and gauges using modern welding techniques. We are here to help you with your designs and provide the best choice of manufacturing techniques to produce your sheet metal work in Great Britain.

With an active program of investment in sheet metal working equipment we are helping to keep sheet metal work in Great Britain. In the last year we have purchased a brand new 1.5 ton fork lift. We have invested in 1M power rolls for rolling up circular sections. We have also invested in another Trumpf 7036 CNC press brake to strengthen our folding section. Along with our other 6 CNC press brakes we have a great range of services to support the most complex sheet metal work.

To see one of our Trumpf 7036 CNC press brakes in action please take a look at our YouTube Channel. We also have dozens of other videos there uploaded from our work shop. They demonstrate CNC punch, CNC laser cutting and welding as weld and CNC bending. We also have a wide range Pinterest Boards demonstrating sheet metal work in Great Britain. Please use them to get ideas for your next sheet metal design project.

Using the latest sheet metal working CAD/CAM software we can tune designs to suit the correct and most efficient manufacturing machines. If you have a project that needs some input from a friendly sheet metal working company we are here to help. We can take a quick look at your designs and suggest areas that can be improved with a view to saving you money. Simply send us your drawings to sales@vandf.co.uk and we will take a look for you.

New CNC press-brake tooling pays dividends in production

Monday, November 6th, 2017

press-brake tooling

CNC joggle tooling

We can produce such a wide variety of sheet metal work with standard CNC press brake tooling. Using simple V tooling enables us to cover most of the bends our customers want in their products. Sometimes however, special press-brake tooling can make a big difference. It can reduce the setting time for a number of tools and reduce programming time. The biggest gain for you is the reduced production time easily saving the cost of the tooling after just a couple of batches.

Joggled aluminium brackets

Joggled aluminium brackets

By using joggle press-brake tooling a double bend can be achieved in one cycle of the machine. Not only is this quicker but a more reliable form can be achieved. The joggle tool can be adjusted to suit a range of material gauges and offset sizes. This bracket was produced from 3mm aluminium but it could just as easily have been mild steel or stainless steel.

This press-brake tooling is shown producing a joggle form in 3mm aluminium on our Trumpf 7036 CNC press brakes. The same tooling can be used on our Safan e-Brake CNC press brake making it a versatile tool for the shop floor.

If you have a sheet metal component and you are looking to save money it might just be that bespoke press-brake tooling could make a difference. Please send us your drawings and we will quickly be able to see if we can help. Email us at sales@vandf.co.uk or give us a call on 01486 577786 if you are still now sure.

Manufacturing sub-contract sheet metal work in Great Britain

Tuesday, September 26th, 2017

Manufacturing sub-contract sheet metal is what V and F Sheet Metal are all about. We have been manufacturing in Great Britain since the 1980s. We have a company ethos of constantly investing in the latest machinery and software to improve the quality of the parts we manufacture. Managing costs and improving order lead times is an everyday job for us.

Manufacturing sub-contract sheet metal

CNC punching plastic coated steel

Manufacturing sub-contract sheet metal for our customers can be range from the simplest flat plate right through to complex welded fabrication assemblies.

Laser cutting sheet metal work

Laser cutting sheet metal work

Whether we are using the latest laser cutting technology or CNC bending machines people are still the most important factor in any business. With a stable workforce we have a wide range of experience. Manufacturing special projects and prototypes to repeat batch work and kanban systems, we are happy to help you.

Supporting a wide range of customers in the UK and mainland Europe we will often alreadyd have come across a solution you need. Having a large library of standard CNC punching and bending tooling we can usually produce all your work without any tooling costs.

Trumpf 7036 CNC bendingSheet metal angle brackets

Trumpf 7036 CNC bendingSheet metal angle brackets

If you are looking for a long term relationship with a UK based company manufacturing sub-contract sheet metal then please contact us. We will be happy to talk to you about your latest sheet metal projects on 01489 577786. If you prefer to e-mail us your drawings then please feel free. We can work with STEP, SAT, DXF and DWG CAD data, please send it to sales@vandf.co.uk. We can produce you quote options, price ranges and advice on treatments and finishes to save you money.

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