What is steel plate?
Steel plate is a plate of metal, specifically steel, that can be cut and manufactured into a more elaborate product. Steel plates come in a range of thicknesses, and can be manufactured to a length or width that you need. There are common sizes that you’ll find, such as 48”x96” or 96”x120”. To put it simply, steel plate is a general term.
Types of steel plate
As there are different sizes, there are different types of steel plate: stainless steel (commonly known), high-carbon, low-carbon, or alloy steel plates. Each of these types of steel plate are used for different applications, some may be household items while others are much larger, like buildings or tanks. For example, at Clifton, we sell AR400, AR450, and AR500 steel plates (amongst others). These are abrasion resistant carbon steel plates, which is the most prominent type of steel we have at Clifton.
How is steel plate made?
High temperature steel is rolled into sheets, where the steel gains strength. Multiple layers of steel are compressed together to create a single piece of steel plate, which can then be cut or burned to the specific size needed. The type of steel created is determined based on the composition of elements used in the molten metal. Check out our post on 11 elements of steel and what they do to learn more about what how different elements affect certain properties of steel.
Other forms of steel
Bars
Steel in the shape of a bar. Steel bars are commonly used in construction.
Looking for steel bars? We’ve got you, check out our page on steel bars to see what we have. Don’t see what you need? Contact us, there’s a good chance we can help out!
Sheets
Sheets – Thin, flat pieces of steel. Can be cut and bent into many shapes, super versatile. A lot of what we sell here.
Interested in steel sheets? We’ve got options. I’ll link to AR400, a popular product of ours. Explore our other products for more steel sheet options.
Rolls
Steel that’s been run through rolls to be thinned out. Different types, hot rolled and cold rolled. Read more about those here.
Slabs
Considered a semi-finished product. Used mostly in the heavy machinery industry and for production of coils and plates.