It would be difficult to make products like metal parts without the use of some type of machine. Manufacturers use tools like saws, sheers and rotating wheels to achieve the desired result. There are also tools that use heat to shape items. Laser machines can cut a piece of metal using a high-energy light beam, and plasma torches can turn gas into plasma using electricity.
When dealing with sheet metal, shearing comes into play. Shearing uses cutting blades to make straight cuts into a piece of metal. Also known as die cutting, you’ll often see shearing used on aluminum, brass, bronze and stainless steel. Another metal-shaping process is forming, which uses compression or another type of stress to move materials into a desired shape.