Month: March 2023

Our Market Today for Industrial and Construction Welding

Posted on by norfas by norfas

Northland Fastening Systems started in 1987 with the goal of bringing stud welding into the future and committing to excellence in service and products. Over the past 30 years, we’ve seen many changes in the stud welding industry, from new products and technologies to differences in the market itself. Today, stud welding is used across industries, including the construction of buildings and infrastructure, installing insulation, building electronics, and much more. In many ways, stud welding is a superior fastening system. Stud welding quickly provides a powerful, clean connection point, requires access to only one side of a work surface, is leak and corrosion resistant, and is cost-effective. For any manufacturers and contractors working with stud welding, Northland Fastening Systems has the supplies and services needed to get the job done. We provide a comprehensive supply of studs, accessories, tools, and other support for industrial and construction welding.

Construction Welding

In our past 30 plus years of operation, the biggest market change we’ve seen is the shift in demand for construction vs. industrial stud welding supplies. In the early days of NFS, many parts of the Twin Cities were still being built to become the metropolises they are today. The greatest demand for supplies came from the construction welding industry.

Now that metro area growth has slowed, a large increase in industrial demand has grown, shifting the majority of our market supply from construction to industrial.

80% Industrial

Today, about 80% of our business is with the industrial market. This includes customers manufacturing parts and assemblies of all kinds. We supply to the automotive, electronics, food service, sheet metal, agricultural equipment, robotics, and even furniture industries. The largest use of industrial stud welding supplies includes electrical enclosures and enclosures in general, commercial and industrial food service equipment, and the fabrication of multiple parts with sheet metal. Factory equipment is also largely built with studs and other types of industrial welding systems.

20% Construction

While demand for construction welding supplies has decreased, the construction market still makes up about 20% of our business. Many different types of multi-story buildings and other structures are built with stud welding. The use of shear connectors in composite construction is critical for bridges and other infrastructure, and thru-deck welding is a prevalent operation in modern building. In addition to thru-deck welding and shear connectors that fasten concrete to steel beams, bar anchors are also used in composite construction, and CD studs are key in the installation of insulation for most building types.

Stud welding continues to be one of the most versatile and reliable fastening systems today for both the industrial and construction markets. For more information about our supplies for industrial and construction welding, contact Northland Fastening Systems today at (651) 730-7770 or request a quote online.

Aluminum Alloys Used for CD Weld Studs

Posted on by norfas by norfas

Capacitor discharge (CD) stud welding has a broad range of applications from the installation of insulation with CD pins to the construction of electrical cabinets with larger diameter CD studs. CD stud welding and other types of stud welding are valued for the powerful connections they form; the quickness of each operation; and the clean, mark-free backside of welding surfaces. With power from a standard electrical outlet, an experienced welding technician can perform up to 20 CD welds per minute. When done correctly, those welds are more aesthetically pleasing than any other fastening system, and they are often stronger and longer lasting. For any diameter, material, or other specifications you need for CD weld studs, you can find what you’re looking for at Northland Fastening Systems (NFS). We provide a complete supply of CD studs, including pins and flanged or non-flanged studs with various lengths and thread sizes. Our CD studs are available in aluminum, mild steel, stainless steel, and brass with plating and annealing options.

 CD Weld Studs

When it comes to aluminum CD weld studs, we offer several alloy specifications that provide a flexible range of properties as well as custom stud options. Our main aluminum alloy studs include: 

●     1100 Series: Alloys in this series are commercially pure, containing a minimum of 99% aluminum. This makes these alloys also some of the most mechanically durable. 1100 alloys are highly conductive thermally and electrically, resistant to corrosion, and workable to form many parts. Other than aluminum, these alloys can contain 0.05-0.20% copper, 0.95% iron, 0.05% manganese, 0.95% silicon, and 0.1% zinc with additional residual materials up to 0.15%.  

●     5000 Series: This series of aluminum is typically alloyed with small percentages of manganese, copper, magnesium, chromium, zinc, iron, silicon, and zirconium. Aluminum content can range from around 94% to around 99%. Many of these alloys are considered universal for a broad range of applications, but several are specific to welding.  

●     6061 Material: In the 6000s series of aluminum alloys, 6061 is a precipitation-hardened material with magnesium and silicon as main alloying elements. The material has good weldability and contains about 96-98.5% aluminum with 0.80-1.2% magnesium and 0.40-0.80% silicon. The 6061 alloys have high tensile strength and mechanical properties.  

For all of our studs, including CD studs, special sizes are available by request. We have studs regularly available ¼“–2½“ long, and stud diameters [BL1] [JP2] [JP3] 2”-56“ and ⅜“-16“. Flange diameters are available between 0.125“ and 0.437“. If you are looking for aluminum CD studs or any studs in the additional materials we offer, you can request a quote online to get started with us today.

 For any other information about our CD weld studs or other supplies, repairs, and services, contact NFS today at (651) 730-7770.