Stainless Steel Fabrication — Food Grade & Sanitary
304 and 316L stainless steel fabrication for food processing, dairy, pharmaceutical, and chemical equipment. Sanitary welds with back-purge. CWB 47.1 certified. Upload your drawings and get a quote from a shop that takes stainless seriously.
⚔ Get a Stainless Quote →Food-Grade Stainless Capabilities
Food processing equipment demands welds you can trust. No porosity. No crevices. No sugaring on the back side. We back-purge every sanitary weld with argon gas and clean between passes — the same way you'd do it in your own shop, but with documented procedure behind it.
| Capability | Specification | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Sanitary Welding | TIG (GTAW) with argon back-purge | Full penetration, smooth interior bead profile |
| Material Grades | 304, 304L, 316, 316L | Sheet, plate, tube, pipe, structural shapes |
| Max Thickness | 3/4 inch in-house | Thicker plate available through our supplier network |
| Surface Finish | Grind, blend, polish to 63 Ra | Higher-spec finishes via finishing partners |
| Inter-Pass Cleaning | Wire brush + acetone wipe | Between every pass — no shortcuts |
| Certifications | CWB 47.1 · ISO 9001:2015 | Full weld procedure documentation available |
Materials & When to Use Them
| Grade | Rate/lb | Best For | Not For |
|---|---|---|---|
| 304 / 304L | $2.15 | General food processing, bakery equipment, conveyor parts, tanks, hoppers | Salt exposure, aggressive CIP chemicals, marine |
| 316 / 316L | $3.35 | Dairy equipment, pharmaceutical, chemical processing, marine, outdoor food equipment | Budget-sensitive projects that don't need chloride resistance |
What Food-Grade Stainless Fabrication Costs
Stainless costs more than mild steel — but getting it right the first time costs less than a recall. Here's how we price it:
- 304 material: $2.15/lb + 30% markup = ~$2.80/lb finished
- 316L material: $3.35/lb + 30% markup = ~$4.36/lb finished
- Welding labour: $130/hr, with a +30% food-grade premium for back-purge and inter-pass cleaning
- Back-purge setup: 30 minutes flat per job (once, not per weld)
- Polishing: 1.5 min/ft for grind/blend, 1 min/ft for final polish
- Typical range: Small sanitary hoppers $1,500-5,000; vessels and processing equipment $8,000-40,000+
Our AI reads your drawings, IDs every material and weld, and applies these rates. A fabricator reviews the price before you see it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is food-grade stainless steel fabrication?
It's fabrication where the welds must be smooth, crevice-free, and free of oxidation. We use TIG welding with argon back-purge gas flowing through the inside of tubes and vessels to prevent "sugaring" (chromium oxide formation). This keeps the interior surface sanitary — no places for bacteria to hide.
When should I use 316L instead of 304?
Use 316L when your equipment sees salt, chlorides, aggressive cleaning chemicals (CIP systems), or outdoor exposure. The molybdenum in 316L prevents pitting corrosion that 304 can't resist. Dairy, pharmaceutical, and marine applications should always use 316L.
Do you fabricate to 3-A sanitary standards?
We understand 3-A Sanitary Standards and can fabricate to meet them. Our sanitary welds are full-penetration, back-purged, and ground smooth. If your job requires formal 3-A certification documentation, let us know upfront so we can quote the additional inspection and paperwork.
Can you polish stainless to a mirror finish?
Our in-house polishing achieves up to 63 Ra microinch finish — smooth and crevice-free, suitable for most food-contact surfaces. For higher-spec finishes (32 Ra, 20 Ra, or electropolish), we work with trusted finishing partners and include their cost in the quote.
Why can't online laser services quote stainless weldments?
SendCutSend, OSH Cut, and similar platforms only cut flat profiles — they don't weld, they don't back-purge, and they don't touch food-grade fabrication. Stainless weldments require certified welders, documented procedures, and sanitary finishing. That's what we do.
Building Food-Grade Equipment? Get a Real Quote.
Upload your stainless drawings. We quote the material, the sanitary welds, and the finish — no surprises.
⚔ Start Your Stainless Quote →