What You Should Consider When Designing Aluminum Extrusion Shapes

Regardless of the reason you are needing aluminum extrusions, you must give careful thought and consideration to the design. With there being lots of variations to choose from such as the size, shape, finish and more, customizing aluminum extrusions can be a very detailed process. If you are wanting to design custom aluminum extrusion shapes for your company, here are some things you should consider.

Maintain a Uniform Thickness

As much time and effort as it takes to design the perfect shape, you don’t want to end up with walls that are uneven and inconsistent in thickness. When the thickness is even throughout, the production process will be that much easier as the alloys can move evenly as well.

Choosing the Right Alloys

While there are lots of aluminum alloys to choose from, you’ll have to consider the strength, surface finish and more if you want the best design. 7075’s are the strongest and are most commonly used to produce aluminum extrusions. However, when it comes to more delicate designs such as windows, trim, et cetera, a low strength alloy like the 6063 works best.

Of course, your aluminum extrusion shapes wouldn’t be complete without a proper finish. As with the production itself, there are also lots of finishing options for you to choose from. Whether you opt for a chem film, anodizing, machining, drilling holes, center-less grinding or punching holes, the finish can give you the most customized look. Throughout the enter process, from choosing the thickness of the walls to the alloys, keep your finished product in mind, so you can choose the production process that is right for your needs.