Our Guide to Expanded Metal Sheet - Kloeckner Metals

How are expanded metal sheets made? And what makes them such a widely used material?

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Expanded metal sheet fabrication is a highly efficient process that includes stretching, slitting, and rolling sheet metal. A machine stretches and then cuts the metal with an upper and lower blade to produce diamond-shaped openings. These openings provide structural bonding value without need for additional strengthening processes and give expanded metal a unique mesh-like appearance. Once the expanded metal sheet has been die-cut it is flattened with a rolling mill.

This fabrication process produces zero metal waste and fashions a strong, highly versatile, metal product that can be sheared into custom-sized sheets or wound into coils for various uses across industries.

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What is Expanded Metal Sheet Used For?

Expanded metal sheet provides strength and versatility across industries. Since the die-cutting process is adjustable, expanded metal sheet is ripe with decorative possibilities, whether for sculptural artworks, architectural screening, or other commercial designs.

Here’s a non-exhaustive list of expanded metal sheet applications:

• Machine and window guards
• Catwalks, platforms, and stair treads
• Screens and flooring
• Railing mesh on stairways, balconies, and construction sites
• Conveyor belts
• Racks and shelving
• Fire pits and grills
• Sound proofing
• Stereos and microphones
• Outdoor equipment, park benches and other playground equipment
• Air and fluid filters/strainers
• Shielding
• Ventilation Systems
• Decorative dividers and partitions
• Security Walls, Ceilings, Floors, Doors
• Concrete Reinforcements
• Greenhouses

What are the Types of Expanded Metal?

There are three common types of expanded metal sheets:

Standard Expanded Metal

Standard expanded metal is considered the most flexible and high value type of expanded metal sheet. It is widely available in a range of gauges and sizes and is characterized by a raised, slip-resistant, base. All strands and bonds are set at the exact same angle, made from sheet metal that has been pressed and die-cut. Raised expanded metal is commonly seen in stair treads, trailer ramps, shelving, and other applications where slip-resistance is beneficial.

Flattened Expanded Metal

Flattened expanded metal grating requires passing standard expanded metal through a cold rolled reducing mill. This process flattens the signature raised bonds of standard expanded metal and reduces thickness and weight to create a smooth, flat surface. This is a suitable material for many applications in the agricultural, commercial, and automotive industries.

Expanded Metal Grating

Expanded metal grating is a low-maintenance product produced from a single metal sheet. Without joints or welds, this metal product is a heavy-duty, open-air solution ideal for fire protection, and to prevent dirt, snow, grease and other unwanted debris accumulation.

Where does Expanded Metal Mesh Fit In?

Expanded metal mesh is made of a single sheet of compressed and stretched material. It can be used to replace metal or wire mesh since doing so produces a material that is stronger than fine metal mesh. It also allows for improved airflow and drainage capabilities. It is often the go-to choice for wire baskets.

What is Expanded Metal Mesh Used For?

When expanded metal is used for mesh baskets it can go into several high-impact industrial applications. From shot peening parts to shot blasting parts, expanded metal mesh baskets will provide the impact resistance needed to endure constant exposure to high stress conditions.

Expanded metal mesh baskets are also selected for storage, stacking, packaging, and delivery processes. They also provide good surface quality which aids in overall durability and withstands exposure to outdoor settings. Expanded metal mesh also provides protection from fire and can be seen as a protective shield on fire pits, grills, heating devices, and other products requiring high heat tolerances and airflow.

What are the Key Advantages of Expanded Metal?

There are various benefits of using expanded metals:

• Metal-saving, efficient manufacturing process. When compared to similar metal products—like perforated metal, which requires metal to be punched rather than cut and stretched—expanded metal fabrication does not produce any metal waste.
• Light weight. Flattened and expanded metals are thin and light.
• Low maintenance. Metal grating maintenance is simple and straight forward, and often comes with a protective coating that will prevent rust.
• Indoor and outdoor applications. Expanded metal sheets are used across indoor and outdoor applications, adding to this metal product’s versatility.
• Reinforcement. Expanded metal mesh can mix with glass, concrete, and other materials to add strength.
• High tensile strength. Expanded metals handle more weight and tolerate stress better than woven metals or jointed welds.
• Free movement of air and light. Metal that has been expanded allows for free movement of air and light. Liquids, dirt, grease, and other materials are also able to pass freely.
• Acoustic improvement and sound deadening capabilities. Expanded metal mesh can be used in microphones and speakers as well as extra layering to sound proof rooms and walls.

What are Common Expanded Metal Terms?

Expanded metal sheets are unique and include specific terms that will aid in understanding expanded metal sizes and expanded steel products in general. The above image shows standard expanded metal, with the gray areas indicating the raised, skid-resistant edge quality.

Bond: This is the intersecting point where adjacent strands meet. The bond is always twice the width of the strand.

Strand: This is the single metal strip which forms the border of the opening.

Strand width: The amount of material advanced for expanding.

Strand thickness: The thickness of the metal from which the expanded metal is produced.

Opening / Aperture Size: Typically the open area formed by bonds and strands is diamond shaped. Different die-cutting settings can alter the final material output characteristic, however.

SWO or SWA: Short way of opening, or short way of aperture is the dimension measured across the sheet in a direction parallel to the smallest side of the diamond, accounting only for the size of the opening.

LWO or LWA: Long way of opening, or long way of aperture is the dimension measured across the sheet, parallel to the largest side of the diamond, accounting only within the opening’s size and not the material edges.

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Mesh: Expressed in inches, this is the nominal distance from the mid-point of one bond to the mid-point of the next bond measured across the SWA.

Percent of Open Area: Designers and engineers calculate the degree to which light, air, or other objects can pass through a piece of expanded metal.

Pitch: This is the measurement from a point on one diamond to the same point on an adjacent diamond. In certain decorative designs this number may not be consistent throughout the expanded metal sheet.

Style: Expanded metal style is expressed as the gauge number for the thickness of the original metal prior to expansion. For metal grating, style is expressed in pounds per square foot.

Why is Expanded Metal 4 x 8 the Most Common Size?

4 x 8 is a standard size for expanded metal sheet. It provides weight and metal savings while conveniently fitting a wide range of common and specialty applications. Check out the 4 x 8 sizing chart below as a reference.

4×8 Flattened Expanded Metal Size Chart

Contact Our Qualified Team

Looking for expanded metal sheets in a different size? Kloeckner Metals supplies expanded metal sheet to customer specifications and will work with you to meet your unique needs.

Metal products come in all shapes and sizes, from thin sheets to heavy ‘I’ beams. Expanded metal is another example of the versatility of metal as a raw material. In this article, we’ll explore the multitude of uses of expanded metal and how you can make use of it in your projects.

What is Expanded Metal and How is it Made?

Expanded Metal offers a good alternative to traditional mesh panels, offering a lighter product with finer gratings. It is commonly available in mild steel, stainless steel and aluminum.

Expanded metal sheets are made by punching or shearing sheet metal with a special multi-bladed tool, then stretching and forming the sheets to produce uniform openings. It is an efficient process when compared to punched or perforated sheets, as it produces no wastage.

Expanded metal sheets come in two forms, raised and flattened. The former is good for higher strength, owing to its increased sectional area, and the latter is often used where a thin panel is needed, with no edges protruding.

Flattened expanded metal is made by passing the sheets through a secondary process to roll them flat, returning them to roughly the same thickness as the initial sheet material.

Key Benefits of Expanded Metal in Construction and Architecture

Used extensively in construction projects such as walkways, handrail infills and machinery guarding, uses of expanded metal are often easy to find on a construction site.

Elements such as scaffolding, walkways and ladders find particularly good uses of it, as it can offer high levels of grip, and prevent water from pooling, something checker-plate struggles with.

Expanded metal is also often found in architectural applications, owing to its unique look and inherent strength when compared to plain sheet metal. It can be used to provide an interesting facade for a building or to reinforce a lightweight structural element, such as lighting gantries or scaffolds.

Innovative Applications of Expanded Metal in Building Design

Used similarly to rebar (reinforcing bar) in concrete, expanded metal can be found in reinforcing plaster and render faces of buildings and other structures. Its large number of angular faces offers good adhesion with the substrate.

One of the benefits of expanded metal over weldmesh is structural rigidity, as the expanded metal has a greater depth to it, giving it some level of torsional and compressive strength.

This means it can be used as more than just an infill material, and instead contribute strength to the overall structure. One example of this is making noise and visual screening panels, often used around airports.

Expanded Metal in Interior Design: Enhancing Aesthetic Appeal

Interesting-looking materials are a favorite of interior designers; they offer a cost-effective way to add features to a space. Expanded metal can be used as both a screening material and as the basis of a supporting element for other materials, such as lighting or even greenery.

Combined with processes such as powder coating or simply using a bright, aesthetic material like stainless steel or aluminum, expanded metal sheeting can be either a focal point or a backdrop, depending on the use.

With an industrial look being more popular than ever, things like scaffolding fittings, unpainted steel fabrications and weld mesh are often seen in restaurants and bars.

Sustainable Advantages of Using Expanded Metal in Modern Construction

One advantage of expanded metal over perforated metal is the reduction of waste. Whilst the circles punched out to make perforated sheets are recycled, this takes extra energy, and expanded metal has no wastage during the manufacturing process.

Expanded metal is also sold as lathing material, used to reinforce and aid drywalling installations. It is more recyclable and long-lasting than some of the traditional alternatives.

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