Machined Metal Awards
One of the most popular types of custom awards we create for our clients are our machined metal awards, qhich are a specific type of fabricated award. Our customers often ask about the difference between cast sculpture awards and fabricated awards. In short, cast sculpture awards are created using a traditional casting process, which utilizes an original model and mold, while fabricated awards are hand-produced one award at a time. Fabricated awards can be produced from many different materials, including metal, wood, crystal, glass, and pre-existing objects that are meaningful to the organization commissioning the awards. This page focuses on our machined metal awards, which are created by using high-precision machining or waterjet cutting to extract custom images and shapes from raw metal materials.
Machined metal awards are a great solution for award designs that require precise cuts and tight tolerances. The fabrication process ensure that shapes, angles, corners, planes, and other aspects of the design adhere with near exactness to the design specifications. Sculpted awards, on the other hand, lend themselves to softer shapes and more organic designs, where some variability and uniqueness in each award can be seen as an asset and not a detriment.
In addition, machined metal awards are extremely flexible in terms of the aspects of the award that can customized for your specific awards, including their shape, size, finishes and colors. Some of the variables that can be adjusted with these custom awards are outlined below.
Examples of Machined Metal Awards
Options for Machined Metal Awards
Multiple Sizes
As stated above, custom fabricated metal awards can be created in nearly any size, ranging from a small medallion to large, freestanding awards that can be mounted on a large stand and displayed in a lobby. Because there are no molds involved in the fabrication process, resizing an award is a relatively painless task, often saving money in the long run.
A Different Look
Fabricated metal awards often have an 'industrial' or 'modern' look. Due to the fabrication process, the end result yields custom awards with a sharper-edged or 'machined' look, which works better than sculpture awards in some situations that require this design aesthetic. A number of process-specific finishing options are also available when choosing fabricated metal Awards. A few of those processes are outlined below.
Custom Colors
Fabricated metal awards can be created in an endless variety and combination of colors. We utilize a number of processes to add color to your fabricated metal awards, including anodizing, powder-coating, painting, electroplating and several others. Outlined below are some of the most common finishes for fabricated metal awards. Be sure to talk with our knowledgeable sales team to find the best fit and finish for your project.
Anodizing
Anodizing is a quick and simple way to add a touch of color to a fabricated metal award. Anodizing is an electrochemical process that converts the metal surface into a decorative, durable, corrosion-resistant, anodic oxide finish. The finish quality of the color is dependent on the finish of the metal. A high polished metal will produce a glossy look, while a brushed metal will produce a duller, flatter finish. Anodizing is perfect for adding color to an award while still keeping the raw material features (metal grain) intact. Anodizing is best utilized when applying one color to a large area. While anodizing is one of the least expensive options for adding color to an award, it is limited in the variety of colors you may choose, making some unusual brand color schemes tough to match.
Powder-Coating
Powder-coating is a type of coating that is applied as a free-flowing powder, not a liquid like paint, making it much easier to apply color to areas that traditional painting cannot reach. Powder-coating is by far the most durable of all the color finishes and was specifically created for such a purpose. This finish is best for covering large areas with a single color. This premium finish will hold up to the elements and works perfectly for both indoor and outdoor applications. Like anodizing, powder-coating finishes have a limited palette, so matching a custom branding color may prove difficult. But, unlike anodizing, there are literally hundreds of colors to choose from.
Painting
Painting is easily the most versatile of all of the finishing options for fabricated metal awards. Our fabrication team can create, mix, and match nearly any color or finish that your project may require. We work with many different types of paint, ranging from high quality automotive finishes, to epoxy resins, all the way down to a less expensive acrylic or enamel based paint. Paint can be finished in a number of different finishes as well, including high-gloss clear finishes, colored "candy apple" finishes, and matte flat finishes. The options are nearly endless. Just be sure to talk with a member of our sales team to find the right fit for your project.
Metal Plating
Much like our other awards, metal plating your fabricated metal awards is also an option. Metal plating has a very limited palette, however. We mostly work with the industry standard gold, silver, and copper plating. For a more detailed description, please see our Plating Options page.
Raw Metal Finishing
Another finish option when choosing fabricated metal awards, is to leave the metal, well, metal. We can opt to high polish the surface to give it a mirror-like appearance, or bead blast it to dull the surface (like most Apple products). We can provide a custom brushed finish, a scored finish, or even a custom grind finish to achieve the look you're after. As always, if you have any questions about raw metal finishes, consult a member of our sales team and they will answer any questions you may have.
Award Personalization
Most of the custom awards we create support some level of personalization, such as the recipient’s name, award name, presenting organization or date of presentation. Depending on the award design, this may be a combination of text and images (such as logos). Many of the custom awards we create can be mounted on bases with personalized engraving (see buttons below). Custom awards that do not include a base as part of their design may be able to incorporate personalization as part of the award itself. Once we understand your personalization needs, we will work with you to create a custom award design that supports these requirements.
Let’s Get Started!
As always, we would be happy to take a look at your custom award objectives and recommend the best design approach for your needs.