Month: April 2022

Building Stainless Steel Furniture with Food Grade Welding

Posted on by norfas by norfas

One of the reasons why stud welding is such a prolific manufacturing operation is its versatility. Stud welding can be used to form powerful fastening systems for a variety of materials, including composite construction for bridges and other important infrastructure. Composite construction combines concrete and steel into a strong material that can resist enormous amounts of shear force, weight, and tension. Without the shear connectors and deformed bar anchors used in composite construction, we wouldn’t have the roads, bridges, multi-story buildings, and other large-scale structures that are key components of our modern world. The use of stud welding in composite construction is just the tip of the iceberg. Stud fastening systems are utilized across industries for anything from sheet metal construction to sanitary fabrication with food grade welding. No matter what industry you work in, you can find all you need for tools, supplies, and support with Northland Fastening Systems. NFS provides quality stud welding tools for rent or purchase, drawn arc, CD, and short cycle weld studs in a complete range of dimensions, custom stud options, welding accessories, and a repair program.

Food grade Welding

Stainless steel is a primary material used in food grade welding for many reasons, but, as a unique set of metal alloys, it can also be used for many other purposes when it comes to building furniture. Using stainless steel to construct various types of furniture with stud welding has many benefits. From aesthetics to practical purposes, manufacturers, artists, designers, and furniture companies build with stainless steel and stud welding to take advantage of their properties.

Sanitary:

For food service equipment, commercial and residential kitchen appliances, and other instances where good sanitation and hygiene are critical, stainless steel is a remarkable material. Because stainless steel has antiseptic properties and is highly cleanable, it pairs well with the smooth, crevice-free results that stud welding can achieve to build sanitary furniture and food grade equipment.

Anti-Rust:

Stainless steel also has corrosion resistant properties. The chromium content in stainless-steel alloys creates a passive film on the material’s surface. The presence of oxygen allows this film to self-heal when abrasions, cuts, and other damage occur. This means furniture made with stainless steel and stud welding operations can withstand corrosive environments and last longer than other metals.

Practical:

With its sanitary and anti-rust properties, stainless steel is already a practical material for building furniture of all kinds. Its durability, strength, and flexibility only add to its value as a furniture building material. Compared to many other materials used to build furniture, stainless steel is one of the strongest and most practical.

Aesthetics:

For design purposes, stainless steel offers a great range of finishes, from the lustrous sheen of a polished, bare surface to the vibrancy and color ranges that annealing, plating, and other finishing treatments can yield.

If you are working with food grade welding or other operations for furniture and equipment building with stud fastening systems, contact Northland Fastening Systems at (651) 730-7770 or request a quote online today.

Building Class A Crafts to Small Research Vessels and Other Small Boats with Stud Fastening Systems

Posted on by norfas by norfas

Stud welding is a widespread manufacturing operation today thanks to the powerful, fast, versatile, and clean results it provides. The first uses of stud applications with drawn arc welding began in the shipbuilding industry. During WWI, the rapidly increasing demand for military and seaworthy ships gave rise to the development of better stud welding technology. Using stud weld operations to perform strong, water-tight connections, the US Navy and industrial marine fabricators could meet the need for war-worthy vessels. After WWI, stud welding continued to be used in building vessels for military, commercial, industrial, and consumer use. During WWII, stud welding was again relied upon for shipbuilding, but also expanded as a manufacturing operation to the fabrication of other vehicles, containers, electrical systems, and more. With advancements in electrical technology, material design and processing, and automated systems since the end of WWII, stud weld fastening systems can be used to install connection points as thin as a 10-gauge pin to as thick as a 1” diameter shear connector stud. Whether you’re working small or large, you can find all the supplies you need with Northland Fastening Systems. Not only do we offer tools, studs, and accessories; we also provide repairs and the expert advice of our own welding technicians.

Fastening Systems

Although stud fastening systems have spread to so many industries today, those operations are still used frequently in the shipbuilding industry to manufacture a broad range of vessels. In addition to freighters, large military ships, and commercial liners, stud welding is also used in the production of small boats.

The US Office of Marine & Aviation Operations classifies small boats into five categories by length, weight, and usage. Those categories include:

Class A:

Boats that are shorter than 16 feet long overall fall into the Class A category. This generally includes small motorboats, daysailers and other small sailboats, dinghies, transport boats, and small fishing vessels.

Class I:

Vessels between 16 and 26 feet long are considered Class I boats. This can include boats with small sleeping cockpits like short haul fishers, camping cruisers, small racers, park ranger vessels, and small speedboats.

Class II:

Similar to Class I, Class II vessels include slightly longer haul fishers, longer distance racing sailboats, multi-bed cockpit sailers, and other fast motorboats. Class II vessels are between 26 to 40 feet long, so small cruise ships, yachts, and science vessels can be rated within that range.

Class III:

Class III vessels are between 40 and 65 feet long, generally including larger fishing operations, tugboats, small industrial crafts, ferries and other transport, grander yachts, police and fire department cruisers, and historical ships.

Small Research Vessels:

These vessels may be larger than 65 feet in length, but no heavier than 300 gross tons. SRV are used in short-term research projects or in close vicinity to labs and testing centers.

In today’s world, many small vessels and ships are manufactured with stud fastening systems. To learn more, contact Northland Fastening Systems at (651) 730-7770, or request a quote online today.

Commercial and Industrial Projects Built with Drawn Arc Welding

Posted on by norfas by norfas

Northland Fastening Systems supplies a complete range of products for stud welding manufacturers working at all sizes for drawn arc, capacitor discharge (CD), and short cycle operations. Not only do we offer tools for rent or purchase, studs in all dimensions, and welding accessories; we also provide repair services for most models and the advice of our expert technicians. NFS was founded in 1987 and started providing stud welding supplies to the industrial and commercial construction industries. While the majority of the market for our supplies in the 1980s to the early 2000s was dedicated to the construction industry, today it’s a little different. After the major construction work in Minneapolis, St. Paul, and Rochester that built up the cities into the 2000s was completed, the industrial market had room to grow. Today, about 80% of our supply chain goes to the industrial market, while the remaining 20% goes to commercial construction. For both the industrial industry and the commercial construction market, there are many applications of stud welding. In particular, drawn arc welding for shear connectors, bar anchors, threaded studs, and many other formats are utilized heavily throughout industrial and building construction.

Drawn Arc Welding

Some industrial and commercial projects made with drawn arc welding include the following.

Industrial Projects

  • Ladders and railings: For many purposes, secure ladders and railings made with structural steel are critical for industrial settings. Scaffolding, catwalks, safety bars, and egress ladders all serve significant roles in manufacturing. In addition to ladders and railings, structural steel welding is also used for beams of all shapes and sizes.
  • Chutes: Whether they are made for ducting, ventilation, turbines, or material transfer, chutes are often built with stud welding operations. Stud welding chutes are also critical in hydroelectric energy production.
  • Pipe shoes: Our plumbing, irrigation, oil, and power infrastructure is made possible with hundreds of underground and aboveground pipelines. These pipes need to be installed on top of thousands of pipe shoes that run along the length of the systems. Pipe shoes are built with stud welding fastening systems.
  • Modular fabrication: Many buildings and other structures are made with modular fabrications. Beam structures built into sectional modules can be shipped and fitted together more easily than large single pieces. These beams are fastened with stud welding operations.

Commercial Projects

  • Schools and universities: Campus buildings and grade schools have many components built with stud welding to ensure the safety of students and meet the requirements of an educational space.
  • Churches: Many churches are incorporating structural steel design elements, including steeples, clock towers, fencing, and more.
  • Municipal buildings: Stud welding is also key in building safety systems into municipal buildings, including police and fire stations, court houses, and prisons.
  • Minneapolis Skyway System: The Minneapolis Skyway is the largest enclosed second-level bridge in the world. It’s made up of 9.5 miles of pathways installed with welding studs.

To learn more about our supplies and drawn arc welding operations, contact Northland Fastening Systems today at (651) 730-7770, or request a quote online.