Profab Machine supplies custom stainless steel plates in 304 and 316L, cut to size. If you have a drawing, we CNC machine the plate into base plates, mounting plates, flanges, or wear plates to match it. 17-4PH, 2205 duplex, 321, and 410 are available on request.
Stainless steel plate is specified by grade first, because the grade sets corrosion resistance, strength, and whether the plate can be hardened. Of the six grades below, 304, 316L, and 17-4PH are the regular grades. The other three, 321, 410, and 2205 duplex, are available on request.
304 stainless steel plate is the general-purpose austenitic grade. It resists corrosion in indoor, dry, and mildly humid areas, so machine frames, covers, and hopper panels are typical uses. It is the wrong choice for continuous salt spray or chloride washdown.
316 and 316L stainless steel plate contain 2 to 3 percent molybdenum, which gives better chloride pitting resistance than 304. They are the usual choice for marine hardware, coastal equipment, and areas cleaned with chloride-based chemicals. 316L has lower carbon, which reduces sensitization after welding.
321 stainless steel plate is titanium-stabilized, so it resists intergranular corrosion after exposure to the carbide-precipitation temperature range. Published data rate it for continuous service up to about 870 °C. Exhaust and heat-exchanger plates are a typical use.
410 stainless steel plate is a martensitic grade that hardens by heat treatment. It gives high hardness with moderate corrosion resistance. That makes it a fit for wear plates and pump or valve parts, but not for wet or salt-laden areas.
17-4PH is a precipitation-hardening grade. Its strength depends on the heat-treatment condition, from H900 to H1150. H900 gives the highest, at 1,310 MPa minimum tensile strength, which is why high-load brackets and tooling plates are made from it.
2205 duplex stainless steel plate has a minimum yield strength of 450 MPa under ASTM A240, more than twice that of 304. It resists chloride stress corrosion cracking better than the austenitic grades. Use it where strength and chloride exposure come together.
A finish is named by its ASTM A480 or EN 10088-2 designation. Beyond the finish itself, passivation and electropolishing are available on request.
Hot rolling, annealing, and descaling produce the No. 1 finish. The surface is dull and slightly rough, so it works for structural plate and machined parts where appearance does not matter.
2B stainless steel plate is cold rolled, annealed, and given a light skin pass, which leaves it smooth with a soft sheen. It is the most widely used finish on stainless flat product, common on food equipment and tank panels.
A protective atmosphere during annealing leaves cold-rolled BA stainless steel plate with a bright, reflective surface without polishing. Because BA is made on cold-rolled material, it is normally found on thinner gauges.
Polishing with abrasive belts gives No. 4 its brushed look, a uniform grain in one direction. It is the common visible finish on kitchen equipment and cladding. Put the grain direction on the drawing.
A mirror finish, No. 8, comes from polishing through finer abrasives and buffing. Decorative panels and signage use it because it is the most reflective finish.
Hairline is a trade term for a very fine unidirectional grain, finer than No. 4. It has no ASTM A480 designation, so send a sample or the target appearance with the order.
Stainless steel plate parts are used where a flat or load-bearing part must resist corrosion and washdown without paint.
Vessel flanges, tank liners, and filter plates are cut and machined from 316L stainless steel plate. These parts handle acids, solvents, and chlorinated process streams.
304 or 316L stainless steel plate in 2B is machined into conveyor side plates, hopper panels, and processing table tops, where washdown would rust carbon steel.
Stainless steel plate is cut to size for cladding panels and facade supports, where a brushed or polished finish stays visible without paint.
Backing plates and mounting plates for deck hardware and offshore fittings are machined from 316L stainless steel plate, where salt spray corrodes 304.
Pharmaceutical process rooms use 316L stainless steel plate in 2B finish, cut into equipment platforms, vessel jackets, and enclosure panels.
316L stainless steel plate forms the frame plates of chemical dosing skids and filter press frames, where chlorinated water attacks lower grades.
Check these points before you request a quote.
| Factor | What to Specify | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | 304, 316L, or another grade such as 17-4PH or 2205 | Name the full grade, including the L or PH suffix. |
| Thickness | Millimetres or inches, as on the drawing | Thickness sets the process route. |
| Size or blank | Final outline, or a blank size for saw-cut plate | The blank is the piece sawn from the full plate before machining. |
| Finish | No. 1, 2B, No. 4, or another finish | No. 1 and 2B come with the plate, while brushed and polished finishes are added afterwards. |
| Machining | Holes, pockets, tapped threads, and which edges are milled | Edges stay as saw-cut unless you mark them to be milled. |
| Condition | For 17-4PH, the heat-treatment condition (H900 to H1150) | The condition sets the strength. |
| Quantity | Pieces, and prototype or production | Quantity sets the quoted unit price. |
Sheet parts are stamped and bent, while plate parts are sawn and CNC milled. The table shows where the line falls.
| Inch | Millimetres | Product |
|---|---|---|
| 3/16 in | 4.76 mm | Sheet (under 5.00 mm) |
| 1/4 in | 6.35 mm | Plate |
| 3/8 in | 9.53 mm | Plate |
| 1/2 in | 12.7 mm | Plate |
| 3/4 in | 19.05 mm | Plate |
| 1 in | 25.4 mm | Plate |
Full plates come in these sizes. We cut them to your blank size, and other sizes are quoted from your drawing.
| Item | Typical Size | Supplied As |
|---|---|---|
| Plate thickness | 5 mm and up | Cut to your blank size |
| Full plate sizes | 1,219 × 2,438 mm (4 × 8 ft) and 1,500 × 3,000 mm | Cut to your blank size |
| Larger plate sizes | On request | Cut to your blank size |
We CNC machine your stainless steel plate parts ourselves, so you deal directly with the factory. Tiered pricing is available on larger orders.
Send a drawing, a DXF file, or a sample. After that, our engineers review the grade, the thickness, and the tolerances before cutting metal.
Order stainless steel plate cut to size, or order the finished base plates, mounting plates, and flanges made from it.
A stainless steel plate is bolted to a frame or machined into a flange. These two pages cover the products that go with it.
A flange is a round plate with a bolt circle, so plate stock can be machined into flanges.
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Under ASTM A480, plate is flat-rolled material 5.00 mm (3/16 in) or thicker and wider than 250 mm. Thinner material is sheet. The thickness table above shows where that line falls for common inch sizes.
Choose 316L where the plate sees salt, chlorides, or chloride-based cleaning chemicals, because it resists pitting better than 304. Choose 304 for indoor, dry, or mildly humid service, where it costs less.
2B is the usual mill finish for food equipment plate. It has a smooth surface straight from the mill. If your drawing or hygiene standard sets a roughness value, send it with the order.
Yes. We cut stainless steel plate to blank size on a saw, then CNC machine the outline, holes, pockets, and tapped threads. We accept DXF, DWG, STEP, IGES, and PDF drawings with dimensions.
A quote request needs the grade, the thickness, the outline or blank size, the finish, and the quantity, plus a drawing for machined parts. We accept samples as well as drawings.
Your quote arrives within 24 hours of your request.
A sample is typically ready in about 20 days.
Standard lead time is 30 days. Standard lead time is 30 days. Orders ship by sea, air, or express courier with a tracking number.
We set no hard minimum order, so small quantities are fine.
If you already have drawings, email them to [email protected].
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