Design Guide: Sheet Metal Fabrication
Use our free guide to learn how to optimize your designs for sheet metal fabrication by following our best practices for key design elements, including bend radii, feature spacing, material selection, and more.
Download the Guide
Optimizing custom part designs for sheet metal fabrication requires careful consideration of various factors. These include material inputs, general tolerancing, finishes, bend dimensions and radii, inserts, welding, and more.
We've compiled our best design tips into this guide to help you understand the sheet metal fabrication process, key design considerations for optimizing your parts for manufacturing, and Xometry's sheet metal services.
Table of Contents
Overview
- What is Sheet Metal Fabrication?
- Types of Sheet Metal Forming
Tolerances & Standards
- General Manufacturing Standards
- Geometry-Dependent Tolerances
File Formats for Sheet Metal
- 3D CAD Formats
- 2D DXF Requirements
Sheet Metal Design Guidelines
- Wall Thickness
- Holes and Slots
- Bends
- Curls and Countersinks
- Hems
- Relief Cuts
- Notches and Tabs
- Corner Treatments
Finishes & Post-processing
- Mechanical & Chemical
- Surface Treatments
- Anodizing & Conversion Coatings
- Metal Plating
- Paints and Coatings
- Part Marking
Hardware & Assembly
- Welding
- Brazing and Soldering
- Mechanical Fastening
Additional Resources
- Stock Sizes and Gauge Lookup Chart
- Stock Material Thickness Tolerances
- Additional Xometry Resources
About Xometry
Xometry offers instant pricing for manufacturing, including precision CNC Machining, 3D Printing, injection molding, Urethane Casting, and Sheet Metal services. Xometry also provides live engineering support from our team of experts. Upload a 3D CAD file to get an instant quote.
