Corrosion Resistance

Lower alloyed grades resist corrosion in atmospheric and pure water environments, while high alloyed grades can resist corrosion in most acids, alkaline solutions, and chlorine bearing environments, properties which are widely utilised in process plants, near beachs etc..

 

Fire and Heat Resistance

Special high chromium and nickel alloyed grades resist scaling and retain strength at high temperatures, up to over 1100°C. Higly reflective surfaces reflect most of the heat.

 

Hygiene

The easy cleaning ability of stainless makes it the first choice for strict hygiene conditions, such as hospitals, abattoirs, kitchens and other food processing plants.

 

Aesthetic Appearance

The bright, easily maintained surface of stainless steel provides a modern and attractive appearance, ideal for architectural applications

 

Magnetic and Non-Magentic

Where one or both of these characteristics is important to the customer, stainless steel provides a suitable solution.

 

On the other hand ferritics are magnetic, whilst austenitics offer non-magnetic.

 

Strength to Weight Advantage

Stainless Steels have high tensile strengths and excellent fatigue properties. Austenitic grades work harden with cold working, and duplex steels allow for reduced thicknesses over traditional grades. Substantial cost savings therefore result as well as increased competitiveness with alternative materials.

 

Ease of Fabrication

Modern steel making techniques mean that stainless can be cut, welded, formed, machined and fabricated as readily as traditional steels.

 

Impact Resistance

The austenitic microstructure of the 300 series provides high toughness, from elevated temperatures to far below freezing making these steels particularly suited to cryogenic applications.

 

Long Term Value

When the total life cycle costs are considered, stainless is often the least expensive material option.

 

Low maintenance costs

Stainless steel normally requires only a periodic wash with soap and water to maintain its original finish.

Stainless steel comes in a wide variety of product forms and standard surface finishes.

A complete range of products encompassing sheet, coil, strip, plate, bar, wire, tube, pipe, fasteners, etc is very important to meet the diversity of architectural applications.

 

Surface finishes which impart stainless steel with unique aesthetic appeal vary according to product form. The most common finishes however range from 2B, a silvery grey general purpose cold rolled finish, through BA (Bright Annealed), Hairline and No.4 (both with visible parallel polishing marks) and No.8, the most reflective finish, buff polished for high quality architectural applications.

 

Other non standard finishes are available on application including embossed and patterned finishes.

To many of these, colours such as gold, bronze, blue, red, green and black may be added by chemical process.

 

No. 4 brush finish-150-180 grit finish-A fine directional polish, typically used in the washroom accessories industry. Most 3.5" floppy diskette cover plates have this finish.

 

Hairline finish-80-140 grit finish-A well defined directional polish. These sheets are polished to provide a "continuous long grain" Hairline look. A finish which is popular with architects for its aesthetic look, it is equally popular with fabricators due to it's ease of fabrication and finish-matching properties after welding operations.

 

No. 7 mirror ** For comparison only; we do not sell **-A highly reflective finish, with "hazy" polishing lines that are still visible. This finish is often referred to as "directional mirror finish" or a "brush mirror finish." Polishing "grit" lines must be observed during the fabrication process to ensure a matching unidirectional finish on the final product.

 

 #8 mirror- This is the most reflective mirror finish on the market. All of the polishing, or "grit," lines from the preliminary polishing operations are removed. The look is that of a glass mirror. Sometimes referred to as a nondirectional mirror finish, Super 8, No. 9, Perfect No. 10, and even No. 12 mirror.

 

 #8 mirror finished sheets are guaranteed to be free from any manufacturing defects. This product represents the ultimate in mirror polished stainless steel. It is available as single-sided or double-sided mirror polished sheets.

 

Titanium colored stainless is available in gold, rose gold, rose copper, brass, bronze, black, brown, charcoal or as a hard clear coat over natural polished stainless steel finishes (Hairline,  #8 mirror and texture etched designs in Hairline or #8 mirror finishes).

 

Chemical etched designs stainless-A wide range of existing designs are available for the #4, Hairline, and #8 mirror finishes. In addition, sheets can be colorized with titanium depending on specifications and custom designs may also be specified.