How Patterns and Hole Shapes Can Influence the Purposes of Perforated Metal

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In the arena of metals and fabrication, appearance can be almost everything. Perforating in some respects, is of an art. It has been manufactured using perforating presses for above a century. As times change, metal perforating evolves also. Some of the principles behind perforating remain constant, also have and always will, while some have progressed consistent with advances in metallurgy and overall technology. Because of cnc programming and computer aided design, non-traditional patterns have grown to be available opening the doors for unlimited possibilities including perforated logos and perforated images that resemble almost anything you can imagine. All in all, the perforated patterns have changed, the quality of metals and alloys have improved, and the process of perforating metal has become much more efficient. But lets discuss the perforating patterns specifically.


Every perforated pattern obviously starts off with the shape with the hole. A few examples of hole shapes are circular, elliptical, oblong, oval, square, rectangular, hexagonal, octagonal, clover leaf, and triangular. Custom hole shapes can also be found by designing a custom perforating tool. Each hole shape brings its very own aesthetic characteristics. The layout of the holes can affect the strength of the perforated material. For instance, holes may be perforated in the straight pattern with each and every hole in perfect line both horizontally and vertically around the metal sheet. Rows of holes may also be staggered which is common practice to maintain strength in the finished product. The straight and staggered patterns create two entirely different appearances. In relation to strength however, a round hole perfed in to a staggered pattern creates the best overall strength versus open area. Round holes could be perfed more efficiently and economically than any other hole shape because the dies and punches needed to punch a round hole will be the easiest and least expensive to make. Round hole tooling may also last longer and is easier to maintain. A round hole and staggered pattern is regarded as the commonly commercially perforated pattern for only these reasons.

The opening pattern actually includes a direction on a standard mass produced perforated metal supplier. Take notice of a perforated sheet using a staggered pattern and you will probably see that the stagger is usually on the short dimension of the sheet as well as the straight rows of holes will run parallel for the longer dimension. For hole size, the one to one rule has to be considered. Usually of thumb, when perforating mild steel and aluminum, the hole diameter needs to be at least the thickness with the raw material for reliable tool performance. When it comes to stainless steel in particular, metal thickness needs to be at least one gauge thinner compared to hole width for safer and more reliable production. Regarding the punched patterns in metals another consideration is bar width, or perhaps the space between your holes. As with the hole diameter, a single to one ratio of space between holes is the absolute minimum with ease of production increasing width the width with the spacing. Open area is really a term used to describe the percentage of metal with holes as opposed to the solid, un-perforated metal. Outdoors area of the sheet will dictate many properties of the finished product including its appearance, needless to say, as well as its weight, its strength, being able to absorb heat, its sound absorbing capabilities, and its ability to pass fluids.

Perforated patterns are carefully selected both for their aesthetic appearance in addition to their real world performance as a finished product. A combination of hole sizes, hole shapes, along with a variety of perforating techniques create a virtually endless number of perforated patterns to choose from.