Accurate Metal Fabricating in Chicago, IL, offers expert stainless steel fabrication services to OEMs, manufacturers, and engineers across various industries. Whether you're building electrical enclosures, airflow systems, or hygienic housings, we deliver precision-fabricated stainless steel parts that meet your specs—and your timeline.
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Why Stainless Steel?
Stainless steel offers exceptional durability, corrosion resistance, and a clean finish, making it the go-to material for critical applications across various industries, including food processing and equipment manufacturing.
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Excellent corrosion resistance
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Long-lasting and hygienic
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Strong, temperature-resistant, and formable
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Clean, professional appearance
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100% recyclable
Need help choosing the right stainless grade?
Our Stainless Steel Fabrication Capabilities
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Laser Cutting – Clean, burr-free cuts with tight tolerances
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Turret Punching – Rapid, repeatable holes and formed features
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Press Brake Forming – Precision bends for simple or complex parts
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Welding (TIG, MIG, Spot) – Skilled welders trained on stainless assemblies
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Powder Coating – Our 5-stage wash system prepares stainless steel surfaces, ensuring optimal paint adhesion even on this challenging surface.
Have a design challenge? Our team can review your drawing for manufacturability and recommend material, thickness, or process optimizations.
Industry Spotlights
Food and Beverage Processing
The food industry demands stainless steel fabrication that meets strict sanitary standards. We use 304 and 316 stainless steel to fabricate portable carts, equipment enclosures, range hoods, and table tops. Portable stainless steel carts require careful attention to both functionality and cleanability. We design these with fully welded frames, proper drainage slopes, and smooth surface transitions. Our range hoods combine structural integrity with polished finishes that withstand daily cleaning in commercial kitchens.
Industrial Lighting Applications
Industrial lighting manufacturers rely on our stainless steel fabrication for fixtures that withstand harsh environments. Stainless steel's corrosion resistance makes it ideal for outdoor fixtures, high-moisture areas, and facilities with chemical exposure.
We fabricate housings, reflectors, and mounting brackets that combine structural strength with aesthetic appeal. The non-magnetic properties of 304 and 316 stainless steel make these grades perfect for specialized lighting applications where magnetic interference must be minimized.
Design Considerations for Stainless Steel
Stainless steel fabrication starts with proper design. We help optimize your designs for manufacturability while maintaining functionality.
Joint design affects both cost and performance. We recommend minimizing weld length while ensuring adequate strength. Proper fit-up becomes critical with stainless steel—gaps that might be acceptable in carbon steel can cause problems with stainless welding.
Surface finish requirements drive fabrication decisions. If you need a #4 brushed finish, we'll plan our process to minimize handling marks. We'll ensure proper weld quality for electropolished finishes to achieve uniform results.
Cost Factors in Stainless Steel Fabrication
Understanding cost drivers helps you make informed decisions about your stainless steel projects. Material costs typically account for 40-60% of the total project cost, compared to 20-30% for carbon steel projects. This higher percentage reflects the premium pricing of stainless steel.
Processing costs also increase due to slower cutting speeds, specialized tooling, and additional handling requirements. However, stainless steel's durability often lowers lifecycle costs through reduced maintenance and longer service life.
We help optimize costs through design refinements. Switching from 316 to 304 stainless steel can sometimes provide adequate performance at significant savings. At other times, investing in better surface finishes during fabrication can eliminate costly field modifications.
Perforated Stainless Steel Solutions
Our sister company, Accurate Perforating, offers perforated stainless steel that integrates seamlessly with our fabrication capabilities, making it ideal for projects that require perforated stainless steel. They perforate stainless steel in thousands of different patterns, handling materials from 24 gauge to 1/4" thickness and widths up to 60".
This partnership streamlines your workflow for perforated stainless steel projects. Accurate Perforating produces the perforated sheets, coils, or blanks to your exact specifications and then transfers them directly to our facility for fabrication. Whether you need perforated stainless steel enclosures for ventilation, decorative architectural panels, or functional components for food processing equipment, we coordinate perforation and fabrication under one production plan. This integrated approach reduces lead times, ensures quality control throughout the process, and provides you with a single point of contact for your complete project.
Why Choose Accurate Metal Fabricating
Our comprehensive in-house capabilities benefit your stainless steel projects. With fabrication and powder coating under one roof, we streamline your supply chain. Parts move directly from fabrication to finishing, eliminating the delays and risks associated with outside processing.
Contact our sales group in Cicero, IL, about your stainless steel fabrication requirements. Whether you need guidance on material selection, have questions about our capabilities, or want to discuss a specific project, we're here to help.