Flat Rolled Product - What's Leveled, Blanked, and Cut-To-Length?

Posted by: Mike Baufield on December 6, 2018

If you're looking for flat material, coil stock can be tough. While high-volume fabricators might have their own equipment to flatten coil and process it into sheets, too often you're at the mercy of pattern sizes and prepackaged quantities rather than being able to order what you need. The leveling and blanking process takes care of that.

What Does a Metal Slitter Do?

Posted by: Dani Weinhandl on November 28, 2018

Slitting is a machining service that cuts wide coils to narrower widths. It requires specialized machinery, and when it's done properly, metal slitting can make additional processing faster and more precise. 

I've outlined the top reasons why having your metal slit by a metal service center can add ease and save time.  

Mead Metals Customer Feature: KMC Stampings

Posted by: Brian Rothstein on November 16, 2018

Back in 1998, KMC Stampings was looking for a company they could work with who would support their needs and help them with some of their more niche requests. Specifically, they were looking for a materials vendor that could supply them a variety of materials in small quantities. You see, their existing vendors dealt in large quantities and didn’t carry the variety of materials they were seeking. That was when they first learned about Mead Metals. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves…

A Look at Mead Metals' Full Inventory

Posted by: Mike Baufield on November 5, 2018

As an industry-leading metal supplier, maintaining adequate inventory is an essential component of meeting the needs of our customers. It is our coil and sheet metal inventory that allows us to maintain efficient turn times and provide our customers with accurate lead times.

How to Read Mill Test Reports

Posted by: Mark Anderson on October 24, 2018

What is a mill test report? 

Mill test reports detail an important step in a metal product's journey: the step from the mill that melted the metal to the service center the mill sold the metal to. A mill test report is a quality assurance document that certifies a metal product's chemical and physical properties. Below, I'll outline what you typically see in a mill test report. 

The Quality vs Price tradeoff in Metal Products [Infographic]

Posted by: Brian Rothstein on October 15, 2018

We've all heard the phrase, "you get what you pay for," and when it comes to metal purchasing, this phrase definitely applies. To help you see how the price of metal products is oftentimes related to quality, we put together a handy infographic. Check it out: 

Mead Metals Customer Feature: Sons Tool Inc.

Posted by: Brian Rothstein on October 10, 2018

When it comes to smaller, niche metal service centers like we are at Mead Metals, every customer and every customer relationship is extremely valuable. We’re thankful anytime they’re willing to provide feedback or share their testimonial. Recently, I had the opportunity to chat with a Purchasing Manager from one of our long-term customers and learn what he appreciates most about working with us.   

What's Minimum Order Quantity?

Posted by: Mike Baufield on September 27, 2018

If you’ve spent a bit of time on our website, you may have noticed three letters strung together: MOQ. And in case it wasn’t made clear at the time, those three letters stand for minimum order quantity. It’s a phrase we reference throughout our website, and it’s important for our current and prospective customers to know about, so beyond knowing what these three letters stand for, let’s look at what they mean.

Nearshoring vs. Reshoring - What's the Difference?

Posted by: Dani Weinhandl on September 18, 2018

Back in July, I covered an interesting topic that’s been growing in popularity: reshoring. And although popular, it’s not the only effort manufacturers are making when it comes to the geographic location of their processes. This other option, which I’ll explain in more detail below, is referred to as nearshoring. But first, let’s review reshoring.

Brass vs. Phosphor Bronze

Posted by: Dani Weinhandl on September 10, 2018

While no two metal alloys are the same, some do have similarities with each other. Understanding the differences between similar alloys is an important step in ensuring you get the best material type based on your application. Because both brass and phosphor bronze are alloys of copper, they share some similarities, but they have distinct differences too.