How to Choose the Right Woven Wire Mesh Supplier

No matter what industry you are in, choosing a woven wire mesh supplier can be a difficult and sometimes painful process. You are choosing to put your trust in someone, not to mention your money and time.

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In the world of woven wire mesh, choosing the right specification and quality product can be crucial for the performance of your entire operation. We spend a lot of time helping potential customers decide if our product, our capabilities, and our culture is the right fit for them, so we know how important that decision is.

We wrote this article to help guide you in your wire mesh decision-making process.

We are going to dive into what type of buyer you are, get a real understanding of what to look for in a wire mesh supplier, and cover the importance of choosing an experienced wire mesh supplier.

1. Know What Type of Buyer You Are

When it comes to woven wire there are a lot of customizations and options out there. Knowing what these are before you talk to potential partners can help you estimate a lot of things for your project like cost, delivery or development time.

There are essentially two different ways to buy woven wire mesh: Raw Material or Material and added value services. There are different levels and cost ranges in each of those categories of course but that&#;s the most basic way to introduce this topic.

Buying Raw Material

Wire mesh can be sold as strictly &#;material.&#; The material is woven to your specific technical needs and either sold on a roll or cut to certain size pieces. Sometimes companies stock certain weave types so you may have a shorter delivery time. If you are looking for a very technical or specific weave type or spec, you may be facing a longer production or delivery time. 

The material itself could be in any price range. It could be very intricately woven filtration material or it could be a simple pattern like square mesh. Obviously, those two different weave types have very different price ranges but either way the process for buying woven wire this way is simple.

For more information on the cost of woven wire, you can read our Guide to Woven Wire Mesh which will explain cost ranges for different weaves. 

Buying Woven Wire Mesh With Added Value Services 

These services include anything additional that needs to be done to your mesh before it is delivered to you. Some of those services are: 

- Calendaring- Injection Molding- Sintering- Ultrasonic Cleaning- Customized shaping and sizing

There are some pretty distinct differences in what determines the amount of work needed for projects that involve added value services. 

For instance, you may simply need your cut-to-size pieces of mesh calendered to change the opening size. Though this is a pretty simple process, it may be a significant increase in time or cost from what you were going to pay for the material itself.

On the other end of the spectrum, you may be looking for a filter for your system that is entirely custom made from drawings with an engineering team all the way through to a final filter or customized product. This is going to be a much more extensive project that includes more people, time and resources. 

Knowing these types of things not only helps you become a more educated buyer, but it also helps you make sure you are finding the right partner who specializes and is capable of meeting your needs and is not looking to just make a quick buck off of the material itself. 

2. Find Someone Who Wants a Partner, Not Just a Customer 

Of course the relationship you have with your partners is important, but we want you to be sure you have the type of relationship that allows for open communication and transparency.

Building custom products involve a lot of working parts, and there will be roadblocks. Sometimes hearing about other challenges they have faced with other customers can help you get some insight into how they manage relationships.

To find out more, you may want to ask questions like:

- What makes this project a success for you

- What other similar projects have you worked on

- Can you provide me with specific examples of problems you have run into in the past and how you overcame them?

3. Get the Right Material 

This one is specific to the world of woven wire mesh. There are lots of places out there to get woven wire mesh. Some companies manufacture their own woven wire in house and others outsource depending on specification or alloy type or even just availability. For example, here at W.S. Tyler, we have parent and sister companies all around the world. This gives us a huge network of different types and qualities of mesh.

While this is generally a good thing, it is important that you as the customer know where your material is from and that you are getting the right mesh for your needs.

Some questions you could ask:

- Do you outsource your material?

- Where it is outsourced from?

4. Ask the Technical Questions 

It can be tough to trust that your product is going to be to the best standards without testing your final product or knowing what your customers will say. There are some technical things you can find before you decided to go with a wire mesh supplier that will tell you a lot about how seriously they take their quality control and product success.

Making sure you know your own industry standards before you ask these questions.

At W.S. Tyler we partner with an independent lab called Whitehouse Scientific Ltd that verifies the quality and accuracy of our woven wire. This company specializes in testing the accuracy of woven materials. This lets us operate in confidence knowing that the material leaving our building in any application is of the highest standard for our customers.

To help you in this decision you may want to ask questions like:

- Can you provide the necessary documentation for ISO or ASTM standards

- Can you prove the accuracy of your weave structures?

- Do you perform a bubble point test to check the accuracy of your weaves?

5. Know their Capabilities and Experience

If you are using woven wire mesh for your processes, flow rate or pore size is going to be very important to you. So, when it comes to taking that mesh and shaping, cutting or molding it, it can get tricky to do that without changing the functionality or opening size of the mesh.

It takes a certain level of experience to be able to form woven cloth correctly without sacrificing your filtration capabilities. This type of experience only comes from working with mesh in many different situations.

Let's look at a transmission filter as an example.

A transmission filter is a very precisely woven and cut to size piece of wire mesh that is formed specifically to fit a transmission system. The edges are plastic injection molded to hold the wire mesh in place and allow it to fit perfectly into the system.

If you were to get the filter from a particular woven wire mesh supplier and then send it somewhere else for your plastic injection molding, you are bringing on the potential for mistakes.

Not only does the company injection molding your mesh need to be skilled and careful during the process not to damage or change the mesh, but now you also have to worry about your product suffering damage during the shipping process.

Ask Questions like: 

If you want to learn more, please visit our website Mclassic Metal.

- Do you do everything in-house? 

- Have you dealt with this type of project before? 

To Sum It Up

We hope that after reading this you feel a little more confident when choosing your partner in your woven wire mesh journey.

If nothing else, we hope you remember that when it comes to finding a partner in such a scientific and precise industry, it&#;s not just about the product. Sure, quality and technicalities are important, but you need to find a company that you feel has the same morals and values as you.

As always, if you are interested in using W.S. Tyler for your customized product or woven wire mesh needs, get in touch with us and we will be happy to see if we can be the right partner for you.

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In the world of filtration, woven wire mesh is a vital asset for a wide range of uses. It provides desirable precision when filtering unwanted debris from the final product while offering the freedom needed to maintain a strong rate of flow.

But how do you determine what mesh specifications work best for your process? What are the deciding factors?

With 150 years of woven wire experience, W.S. Tyler is here to help. We understand that there are three primary factors that come into play when finding the best option. These factors are mesh count, wire diameter, and micron rating.

This article will go over just that, defining each factor, explaining why you should understand the best specifications for your operation, and the possible risks you face if you don&#;t take any one into consideration.

What Is Mesh Count?

Woven wire mesh is generally described by its mesh count. The mesh count is defined as the number of openings in a linear inch. 

When you hear terminologies such as 16, 100, or 300 mesh, this is referring to the amount of openings per inch. So if you have a 100 mesh weave, an inch contains 100 openings in any given direction. This means a 16 mesh weave is much finer than a 100 mesh weave. The photo on the left is an example of a 2 mesh.

Why is Mesh Count Important?

The list of applications in which woven wire can be used is virtually endless. For example, oil rigs use mesh to filter out sand and other unwanted debris when pulling raw oil from the ocean floor. Another popular use for woven mesh is the transferring of ink onto a substrate when screen printing. 

While these are two completely different applications, they both rely on the openings of the weave. 

As the mesh count corresponds with the number of openings in the weave, knowing what mesh count you need will allow you to ensure you are selecting a solution that allows you to have control of what&#;s passing through.

So, if you work in the oil industry and are looking to filter sand out of oil, you need to use a mesh count that will block out the sand particles while allowing the oil to flow at an efficient rate. This will probably be around 100 or below, depending on the size of the particles being filtered.

But what happens when you implement the wrong mesh count?

Well, using a mesh count that is too large for your process can result in unwanted debris making its way into the final material/product.  At the same time, using a mesh count that is too small can prevent desired particles from passing through, hindering the flow rate of your process and resulting in pressure buildup.

We will cover this further in a little bit.

What Is Wire Diameter? 

While mesh count refers to the number of openings in the weave, wire diameter refers to the width of the individual wires. The diameter of the wires determines how much open space there is between the wires and plays an integral role in the strength of the weave.

It is commonly thought that if a roll is 16 mesh, for example, that the size of its pores is 1/16 of an inch. This is not the case as the wires fill a portion of the opening, which directly affects pore size.

To put it simply, if the wires in the weave are thicker, there will be a smaller amount of space between the wires; however, the weave will be stronger and able to endure harsher conditions. If the wires in the weave are thinner, there will be a larger amount of space between the wires; however, the weave will be weaker and the weave will be prone to wear.

Discover how wire mesh suppliers achieve accurate wire diameters in the article below:

Why is the Wire Diameter Important?

There are numerous applications that subject the mesh to harsh conditions, whether it's high temperatures or filtering out course material. In such cases, you are going to want the strongest weave possible. 

Knowing the wire diameter will allow you to determine the right specifications that will allow you to get the results you want while preserving the lifespan of your mesh. 

Naturally, the thicker the wire in the weave, the stronger it is. However, you don&#;t want a wire that&#;s too thick for your particular needs. 

Let&#;s say you are working with coarse aggregates. If you use a wire diameter that&#;s too thin, you run the risk of destroying your mesh, putting your other equipment at risk.

Now, let's say you switch gears and begin working with fine sand. Using a wire diameter that&#;s too thick may make the openings too small and directly affect the micron rating, which we&#;ll explain next.

What Is Micron Rating?

While mesh count is the amount of openings and wire diameter is the width of each wire, micron rating is most easily explained as the exact distance between the wires in the weave. In other words, the micron rating is a direct reflection of how much of the opening space is not filled by the diameter of the individual wires.

To provide some perspective on how a micron relates to a more common unit of measurement, one micron is 1/ of a millimeter. 

Why Do I Need To Know The Micron Rating?

One of the more popular applications of woven wire mesh is filtration. Whether you&#;re filtering out sand during the fracking process or debris when recycling plastic, you need to be aware of two things: the opening count and opening size needed for your filtration process. 

Once both of these factors are determined, you can then pinpoint what micron rating you need.

Knowing the proper micron rating will allow you to have more control over the flow rate of what&#;s being filtered. That being said, failure to use the correct micron rating can lead to blinding, which occurs when particles get stuck in the weave openings and hinder the flow rate.

This, of course, is heavily dependent on what your filtering and the amount of waste buildup the mesh will be subjected to. 

So, to sum it up, using the correct micron rating will ensure impurities get filtered out while maintaining sufficient flow. This will promote an operation that is both energy-efficient and cost-effective. 

Mesh count and micron rating sometimes get confused when discussing woven wire mesh. Learn how the two specifications compare in the following article:

• Wire Mesh Specifications: Mesh Count vs Micron Rating

Gain A Better Understanding Of Woven Wire Mesh

Mesh count, wire diameter, and micron rating are all wire mesh specifications that must be discussed when designing a wire mesh solution, whether it be a roll or a fabricated part. Having a good understanding of what specifications are right for you will allow you to have complete control over the particle size range that passes through the mesh as well as the flow rate throughout your system.

Now, to ensure you implement a wire mesh solution that helps drive revenue, you must understand the jargon that surrounds the product. This will help prepare you for the conversations you will have with wire mesh suppliers, putting you in a better position to make the right decisions.

With over 150 years of experience helping customers across countless industries leverage the capabilities of woven wire mesh, W.S. Tyler strives to help educate those in the screening/filtering world understand how the versatile material can help innovate their process.

To gain insight into the key terms used within the wire mesh industry, read the following article:

The company is the world’s best Wire Mesh For Sale supplier. We are your one-stop shop for all needs. Our staff are highly-specialized and will help you find the product you need.

• Woven Wire Mesh: Glossary, Terminology & Measurement