The Difference between Steel and Other Metals
Steel is a unique metal in human history. It was discovered in ancient times and first used for weapons. Steel was much harder than bronze, and the first armies to use steel virtually conquered the ancient world.
It wasn’t long before people than other uses for steel, though. Steel is much tougher than iron, lighter, and lasts longer. It also doesn’t rust as quickly. The main problem, in fact, was with production. It wasn’t possible to produce large quantities of steel, although the Romans, Indians and Chinese did produce huge amounts.
It was a long time, however, before steel became available to consumers the way it is now. It took 1000 years to get steel production to mediaeval standards, and nearly another thousand years to get it to modern standards.
Steel eventually became possible to mass produce in the 19th century, and it changed the face of the world. The steel industry produced the modern world.
Modern steel has a lot of advantages over other metals:
- Steel is extremely strong and can bear very heavy loads. Modern transportation and construction would never have been possible without steel.
- Steel is also very hard, suitable for cutting other metals and other materials. Nearly all processing machinery uses steel in some form.
- Steel is very cheap, easy to produce in large quantities, and suitable for a vast range of applications.
- 20th century steel fabrication techniques, like stamped metal pressing, drastically reduce the cost of household items and high-volume manufacturing.
- Steel enables precision engineering and mass production. Steel can be engineered to almost incredibly accurate degrees of measurement. Steel components manufactured this way are true “precision” instruments.
- Steel is the most widely used metal in the world, used for everything from spacecraft to kitchen utensils.
Modern Steel
These days, modern steel products are designed using 3D technology and 3D metal fabrication
techniques. Steel fabrication has become a true science in new ways, developing new and better methods of making machines, appliances, and structural construction products.
Stainless steel is one of the most popular metals for 3D printing, and it’s not at all unlikely that future breakthroughs may make it possible to print in 3D using high-grade steel in some form. Add to this the new 3D metal fabrication software, new printing capabilities and some more innovations, and steel is likely to become the metal of choice for the 21st century.
The steel of the future may consist of new alloys or even new compounds based on a combination of steel and other materials. Whatever the future brings, you can be sure that steel will still be the workhorse of civilisation as it’s been for so long.
Trufab Engineering, your one-stop steel fabrication service
Trufab Engineering is a leading steel fabrication company in Western Australia. We provide a complete range of steel fabrication services to the mining, agricultural and industrial sectors.
If you’d like to find out more about our products and services, call us on 08 9455 1377 or contact us online. We’ll be happy to assist.