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How often do you think about the materials you’re using in your business? If the answer is ‘not much’ or ‘not nearly as often as I should’, then you’ve come to the right piece. The materials you use can, almost literally, make or break your business depending on their quality and affordability. Why spend your hard-earned money on stainless steel straps or sign banding that won’t even hold up to the test of time? Let’s take a look at stainless steel, one of the most commonly used everyday materials, and how you can separate the fantastic from the mediocre.
History Of Steel
Steel has been around a very long time. It is, in fact, one of the most recycled materials on Earth. The American Iron and Steel Institute has even estimated nearly 90% of all steel in the world is recycled, making it not just incredibly useful, but very environmentally friendly. Studies have shown two out of every three tons of new steel will come from recycled stock as well as common byproducts, such as processing liquids and even dust. These can all be extracted, compounded and sold with the same quality as a brand new form of stainless steel.
Steel Quality
Good steel quality isn’t hard to come by. The material is inherently durable and very flexible, allowing it to be crafted, recycled and reused in all manner of ways. Although it has a noticeably higher resistance than other forms of metal, stainless steel is known for the way it reacts to changes in temperature — it will expand and contract in a way only stainless steel can, making it something many construction industries can’t bear to work without. The iconic antenna of the Eiffel tower, for example, is 984 feet in the summer but a full six inches shorter during the colder season.
Environmental Support
A good steel supplier should be recycling their way to a smarter, more efficient future. For every ton of stainless steel recycled, you’re not only saving on government grade strapping supplies and seals. You’re saving the equivalent of 2,500 pounds of ore, 1,400 pounds of coal and nearly 120 pounds of limestone at the same time. In a short? Stainless steel is the gift that keeps on giving. It only gets better and more efficient with time, that of which is pronounced in the Golden Gate Bridge — where 83,000 tons of steel were originally needed to build it, only half of that would actually be needed for a similarly sized bridge today.
Product Sizes
Nearly 70% of stainless steel is recycled in the United States every year. With so much material, you can imagine all the different properties you can take advantage of from a steel supplier. Stainless steel strapping, for starters, is manufactured in sizes that range from 3/8 inches by .015 to 3/4 inches by .30. Thickness can be measured, density can be adjusted and, no matter what tools you need, you can eventually put any and all stainless steel back into your local economy.
Visiting A Steel Supplier
When you have so much good material at your disposal, why settle for less? A steel supplier can give you the best resources possible, allowing you to create the products you need while helping out the environment and keeping the industry’s proverbial gears moving smoothly. The amount of energy to produce a single ton of steel has been reduced by a stunning 34% since 1972. Don’t confuse that for a dip in quality, though, as steel parts are now even more dense resistant and 30% stronger. Stainless steel is one of humanity’s greatest inventions. With every new decade making steel even better than before, this likely won’t change any time soon.
