Laser Cutting + Bending: The Standard Sheet Metal Route

The production sequence for this part is straightforward: laser cut first, bend second.

Step	What It Does
Laser cutting	Fiber laser cuts the outer circular profile, central square cutout, four elongated bend slots, and all locating holes in a single pass
Sheet Metal Forming and Bending	Four slot positions are bent downward to form clips or mounting flanges, creating the three-dimensional support structure

Laser cutting works well here because it’s a non-contact process that produces clean, accurate contours with minimal heat distortion across the plate. For a 254 mm diameter disc with multiple different opening shapes, laser cutting is the most efficient way to complete all the profiling in one step.

The difficulty comes in the bending stage. All four bend slots sit very close to both the central square cutout and the outer edge of the disc, leaving very little clearance for the press brake tooling to operate without interference. In these tight conditions, it’s easy for bends to come out slightly skewed, or for the die to locally deform the plate surface during the pressing motion.

Addressing this requires either custom or modified tooling to fit the available clearance, along with careful sequencing of the bend operations to avoid the tooling from interfering with already-completed bends.

Part Structure and Function

Feature	Purpose
Round flat plate, 254 mm diameter	Provides a stable mounting surface
Large central square cutout	Allows cables, lenses, or core components to pass through
4 symmetrical elongated bend slots	Form clips or support legs after bending, securing the device body above
Small locating holes across the plate	Screw fastening and positional registration

White Powder Coating

Powder coating is applied as the final surface treatment. Dry powder is electrostatically attracted to the steel surface and then cured under heat, forming a uniform, dense coating that bonds tightly to the base metal. Compared to liquid spray paint, powder coating offers better adhesion, a thicker and more consistent film, and improved resistance to weathering and scratching.

White is a common finish for visible equipment components. It reads as clean and professional, and makes it easy to spot contamination or surface damage during routine inspection.

Applications

• Small automation fixture locating trays
• Equipment panel mounting flanges
• Circular device fixing bases
• Lens mounting brackets for machine vision systems
• Circular adapter plates for lighting equipment and instrument enclosures