What Is Cold Rolled Steel Used for?

Cold rolled steel usually has a fine surface finish, tight size tolerance, and excellent machinability. Therefore, it is widely used in many applications, including manufacturing, construction, home appliances, automobiles, machinery, and so on. Below let us have a closer look at cold rolled steel uses together.

1. Manufacturing Industry

Cold rolled steel is a widely used material in the manufacturing industry. The very common cold rolled products made by it include:

1. Steel sheet — a thin, flat, and rectangular sheet of metal called cold rolled steel sheet.

2. Steel coil — a finished, thin, and flat steel sheet or strip which has been wound or coiled after cold rolling, namely cold rolled steel coil.

3. Tube — a steel piping with a hollow section and length that is much more than its diameter or circumference, known as cold rolled steel tube.

4. Substrate of painted steel — CR steel has good formability and paintability, making it the base metal of many painted steel products like galvanized steel, galvalume steel, SuperDyma steel, and PPGI steel.

In addition, other end products created by it include bars, strips, rods, and wires which are usually smaller than the same products available through hot rolling methods.

2. Construction

In the construction sector, cold rolled steel is commonly used for producing different steel structures such as columns, beams, joists, studs, floor decking, built-up sections, and other components. Such cold rolled steel uses have become more and more popular since its standardization in 1946.

In addition, it has been used in many different construction projects like bridges, storage racks, grain bins, railways, transmission towers, drainage facilities, roofing & wall systems, sheds, buildings, garages, etc.

3. Machinery

It’s proven that cold rolling can be potentially strengthened up to 20% compared to hot rolling. At the same time, this process offers cold rolled steel high stamping performance, no aging, good mechanical property, and low yield strength. Thus, it can be cut, bent, punched, drilled, and formed with excellent results. Therefore, more and more mechanical production factories will choose to use this material nowadays.

4. Home Appliances & Metal Furniture

Due to cold-rolled work, this steel presents a glossy, smooth, and sturdy surface. Also, it has a tighter tolerance, meaning CRS can be rolled thinner by up to 50%. This makes it have a lot of uses in home appliances and metal furniture. For it not only guarantees a longer service life but also provides a more aesthetic and visually appealing surface.

By far, the ordinary cold-rolled steel uses in this industry we can find include washing machines, dryers, office filing cabinets, school lockers, refrigerators, electric fans, microwave ovens, and so on.

5. Automotive Industry

Steel is an intrinsic part of the automobile sector, in which cold rolled steel performs better than hot rolled steel. This is because CR steel is relatively more finished, wear-resistant, and shockproof. Therefore, in this industry, it is predominantly used to manufacture bodies and load-bearing elements of cars and vehicles. Also, it can be used to fabricate electric motors, automotive seat parts, pressings, fuel tanks, etc.

6. Other Uses

The cold rolled steel uses are not limited to the above. It can also be applied in many other places. Here list some for your reference:

– Lighting/plumbing fixtures, conveyor systems, aerospace parts, firearm parts, packing materials, hardware accessories;

– Toolboxes, exhaust pipes, precision instruments, metal containers, lawnmowers, tables, chairs, water heaters, cans, etc.

Cold Rolled Steel Uses in Different Grades

Generally, cold rolled steel in different grades can be more suitable for one specific application. Here summarizes the common cold rolled steel products in different grades to show the points. Let’s see the table sheet below.

Products	Grades	Applications
Carbon cold rolled steel coil, sheet, and strip	Q195Q235-ASPCCST12	Mainly used in automobiles, machinery, construction, civil, and light industries
Cold rolled sheet and strip for deep drawing	08AlZF, HF, FSPCEST14	Mainly used for automotive and tractor manufacturing, and forming complex stamping parts
Cold rolled steel sheet and strip for bicycle	ZQ195ZQ215Z06Al	Specially used for manufacturing bicycles and their parts
Cold rolled steel sheet and strip for 200-liter steel drums	LTXY1XT2	Designated to manufacture the 200-liter steel drums
Cold rolled steel sheet and strip for automobile trunks	QG40	Suitable for making car trunks
Cold rolled steel coil and sheet for atmospheric corrosion resistance	05CuPCrNi06CuPRE	Mainly used for manufacturing automobiles, railway vehicles, marine containers, etc.
Cold rolled steel sheet for double-layer welded pipe	WBD	Mainly used in refrigerators, automobiles, and other industries that need double-layer CR metal sheets manufacturing
Semi-process cold rolled non-oriented electrical steel strip	BDG	Mainly used for the manufacturing of compressor motor cores
Cold rolled steel sheet and strip for polyvinyl chloride molding	QG40	Used as the substrate for polyvinyl chloride molding
Cold rolled steel strip for color coating	QG40	Used as the substrate for color coated steel

Still Want to Learn More about CR Steel?

If you are interested in cold rolled steel or want to purchase quality CR metal products, look no further than Wanzhi Steel. We are a reputable steel manufacturer in China with more than 20 years of industry experience, selling both cold rolled and hot rolled steel. We have full stocks of cold rolling and hot rolling steel coils and sheets in a wide range of widths, lengths, thicknesses, coatings, using purposes, and so on. Also, we are pleased to offer custom size and coating services through our metal service center network. Let’s start talking now!