Used mainly by our manufacturing engineering technology students, our fabrication lab provides individuals with hands-on experience about materials and processes used in fabrication, and it is used to show students how and when to apply these materials and processes in an industrial environment.
Fabrication has to do with studying and applying ways to form and connect materials in order to create a whole product. The process is one of the most important in the manufacturing of consumer products. For instance, what would modern society do without the likes of automobiles, ships, bulldozers and washing machines? All are examples of fabricated items. In fact even the building that houses our fabrication lab is an example of fabrication.
Therefore, students may learn how to form materials such as sheet metal and angle iron, (such as an "I" beam) in order to integrate them into the final product. This task might include one or more of the following processes: press working, shearing, bending, flame cutting, welding and fastening methods including adhesives.
Students may also be exposed to the post-fabrication methods of plating, coating, and painting for the aesthetic and protective improvement of a part or product.