10 Things to Consider When Buying Custom Wire Mesh Container

Since 1854, Edward J. Darby & Son, Inc. has been an industry leader in the global wire mesh market. From our custom manufacturing capabilities to our extremely robust and varied inventory, Darby is a fixture in the wire mesh industry and remains a preferred source for both large industrial users and small fabrication shops, alike. In keeping with the changing global marketplace and listening to the challenges many of our customers face, we would like to take this opportunity to share four (4) tips for keeping your wire mesh costs down.

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

Other Frequently Asked Questions

Edward J. Darby & Son, Inc. has developed a list of answers to some of the most asked questions we have received over the years. For questions and answers not discussed here, please contact us for more information. For questions related to wire mesh, please visit the wire mesh glossary or the wire mesh overview pages.

Do you offer blind shipments & drop shipments?

Edward J. Darby & Son, Inc. has been a major player in the wire mesh industry for over 160 years, and as a result, we have earned a reputation for honesty and trust. To that end, Darby offers both blind shipments and drop shipments. These special shipments ship directly from our facility to our customer’s customer, which saves both of them time and money. Blind shipments are ideal for customers who do not want to reveal the source’s name to their customers. We have worked with UPS and various motor freight carriers to enhance our customized blind shipment program. This program allows us to set up and schedule blind shipments and keep sensitive information private. We routinely use generic shipping labels and can easily use our customer’s own, if desired.

What is your cancellation policy?

Once an order is placed – verbally, via purchase order, or through e-commerce—Darby immediately begins to fill your order. Darby requests that you double check your specifications, quantity and dimensions before placing your order.

Orders that can be cancelled may be subject to a minimum cancellation charge of 25%. However, certain orders, including custom manufacturing, fabricated parts and cut-to-size pieces, are non-cancellable.

What is your chemical & physical certification policy?

Edward J. Darby & Son, Inc. can offer chemical and/or physical certification for most any woven or welded wire mesh. A request for Darby’s standard chemical and/or physical certification must be clearly stated on your official written purchase order. Unfortunately, in most cases, we are unable to provide certifications more than 60 days after the order ships.

For any non-standard or specialized certification, including, but not limited to, statements of DFAR and/or USA manufacture, Country of Melt, ROHS compliance, Conflict of Materials (Dodd-Frank), LEED, magnetic permeability, or a particular industrial specification, the request must be clearly communicated in the original request for quote (RFQ) and clearly stated on the official purchase order. In order to comply with these special certification requests, additional charges may apply. Please speak to a sales person or a quality control representative for more information.

What is your damaged shipment policy?

Upon receipt of your wire mesh shipment, it is the customer’s responsibility to inspect the package for any external damage. If external damage is found, the delivery receipt and other associated paperwork must note the damage before accepting the delivery. A photo in these instances is highly recommended. After opening the package, if the material is damaged, a claim must be made with the carrier. Filing the claim and requesting an inspection in a prompt fashion are the responsibilities of the customer.

Do you offer expediting services?

Darby understands that there are times when our customers “need material yesterday.” As a result, we offer numerous expediting services including same day shipments, rush delivery, pick-ups, and expediting fabrication. Because of our extensive inventory and devoted staff, we routinely ship stock material out the day your order is placed. We utilize UPS World Ship which allows us to ship material out Express Critical, Next Day Air, Second Day Air and UPS Ground. We also work closely with various motor freight carriers and same day courier services to make sure our customers receive material when it is needed. Surcharges may apply to some expediting requests; please contact us with your expediting requirements.

Because we understand today’s business climate, Darby also provides quick turnaround on most quotations.

What are your quality standards?

Most wire mesh that Darby supplies adheres to the standard specification for industrial woven wire cloth, namely ASTM-E2016-11. It is important for any purchaser of wire mesh and wire cloth to be familiar with this specification, which can be accessed online at www.astm.org. This specification discusses quality standards within the wire mesh industry.

ASTM E-2016-11 states that wire cloth “shall be woven with first-class workmanship, although some blemishes or defects are inherent in the weaving process.” Darby understands its role as a major supplier of wire mesh and wire cloth and abides by a specially designed quality initiative that aims to consistently provide its customers with high quality wire mesh.

Wire mesh is an industrial product and is intended for use in industrial applications, where functionality is the primary objective. Because mesh is an extremely versatile product, it is often used in applications not related to industrial use, for example in instances where appearance is critical.

Generally speaking, Darby is unable to guarantee perfect, or defect-free, material. Blemishes or defects are inherent in the weaving process and are virtually impossible to avoid. We encourage all customers who may have stringent quality requirements to discuss them with a sales representative and to review the permissible blemishes detailed in ASTM E-2016-11, if applicable. We routinely work with these types of customers and have been largely successful in meeting their requirements.

What are your quantity tolerances?

Most wire mesh that Darby supplies adheres to the standard specification for industrial woven wire cloth, namely ASTM-E2016-11. It is important for any purchaser of wire mesh and wire cloth to be familiar with this specification, which can be accessed online at www.astm.org. This specification discusses tolerances in the wire mesh industry, in detail.

Two of the more popular discussion points related to quantity tolerance are full roll purchases and fabricated parts.

ASTM E-2016-11 designates that a standard roll shall be 100 linear feet, +/- 10 linear feet; the roll may consist of up to three pieces, no pieces less than 10 linear feet. For example, an acceptable roll can consist of 1 piece, 50 feet, 1 piece, 30 feet, and 1 piece, 20 feet.

On custom manufactured items, including, but not limited to discs, cut-to-size pieces, and fabricated parts, there is a quantity variance of +/- 10%. All other variances must be agreed to prior to the acceptance of a purchase order.

Should a customer have any specific quantity tolerances, it should be discussed with Darby. For a more detailed look into tolerances, please visit www.astm.org.

What is your return policy?

From its inception in 1854 to today, Edward J. Darby & Son, Inc. has been committed to supplying high quality, industrial grade wire mesh. After receiving material and before cutting to size, fabricating or shipping, it is important that Darby’s customer inspect material to confirm it is received as ordered. Darby is unable to accept a return on any mesh that has been processed or modified.

Should the quality of mesh be in question, the disparity must be noted in writing within 10 days of delivery date. At that point, Darby will have the option to issue a Return Goods Authorization with shipping instructions. The customer is responsible for shipping costs back to Darby, unless the dispute is an error in Darby’s fulfillment of the order.

Darby reserves the right to inspect material before issuing credit, refund or replacement. Darby will inspect the material for non-conformance, including tolerances, defects and blemishes referenced in ASTM E-2016-11, or other applicable industrial standards. After inspection, should the material not conform to the applicable industrial standard, Darby issue a refund for /replacement of material and reasonable transportation costs.

Full, unprocessed, rolls that are authorized for return will be subject to a restocking fee. Darby may be unable to accept returns on incorrectly ordered items, mesh that has been cut, fabricated parts or custom manufactured items.

Do you offer special packaging requirements?

Often times, users of wire mesh require special packaging for their material. Some of the more popular packing requirements include: individually packaged and marked shipments, flat shipments, shipment with extra protection, consolidated shipments and customized boxed. Please contact us to discuss your special packaging requirements. Extra charges may apply.

Do you offer wire mesh analysis?

If you have a piece of mesh that you are looking to identify or even replicate, look no further than Edward J. Darby & Son, Inc. Our team of knowledgeable and experienced technicians has the ability to identify virtually any woven or welded mesh you may have.

We commonly identify mesh count, diameter wire, opening size and percentage of open area. We are happy to offer this service, free of charge. We also have the capabilities to distinguish specific alloys and chemical compositions; additional charges for this service may apply.

Can you make specific wire mesh recommendations?

This website has been designed with the goal of providing website visitors with all of the detailed information we have learned from our broad range of customers over the years. More importantly, this website has been developed to serve as a guide to assist in the decision making process for the purchase of wire mesh.

We are unable to make specific wire mesh recommendations for a specific application. If you are unsure about what mesh will work best in your application, we suggest sampling, prototyping or speaking to an expert or engineer in your particular industry.

Sample Policy

To learn about our Sample Policy, please visit here:

More Information Sample Policy

EVERGREAT supply professional and honest service.

Stainless Steel Architectural wire mesh is a series of high-tensile, grade 316 stainless-steel wires interlocked together and is commonly produced from 70% recycled material. The individual wires are woven on large weaving looms at Haver & Boecker, our German-based parent company, using a similar technique used to make clothes.

While it appears rigid and unyielding, stainless steel architectural mesh proves to be fairly flexible when a certain length is reached. Because of this characteristic, architectural mesh panels can be applied to countless applications.

Mesh Types

The term weave type refers to the way in which the warp and weft wires cross each other. It encompasses four different mesh categories: Woven wire, Cable, Fine, and Specialty.

Woven wire

Wire mesh is best defined as an assortment of rigid wires that have been woven together to form a sheet of mesh that is interlaced.

Cable Mesh

Cable mesh is a mesh type that is woven on a specialized weaving loom, much like woven wire. The key difference between the two is that cable mesh uses cables rather than stainless steel wires in the warp (vertical) direction.

Fine Mesh

Mesh profiles that are constructed out of wires that have a very small wire diameter. Fine mesh is particularly sensitive when introduced to mechanical stresses. That said, the application of the mesh is a key factor when classifying fine mesh.

Specialty Mesh

Specialty mesh is a mesh that features a unique pattern and carries the characteristic of employing several different wire types.

How Is It Made?

A weaving loom that is specifically designed to properly weave stainless steel wires is employed to weave architectural mesh. These looms consist of a warp beam, heddle frames (predetermined amount), a reed, a rapier band, and a front take-up mechanism.

The warp wires are the wires that run lengthwise and are fed directly from the warp beam.

The weft (or shute) wires are the wires that run across the width of the cloth during the weaving process.

The warp beam is a cylindrical drum that is wound with a specific number and length of warp wires depending on the mesh profile and size of the mesh panel. These specifications are calculated prior to winding the wires.

Heddle frames are holders used to separate the warp wires. Each loom contains at least two heddle frames. In a loom that uses two heddle frames, heddle frame 1 initially lifts half of the warp wires while heddle frame 2 pulls the other half down. The heddle frames switch positions after the weft wire is driven between the two sets of warp wires.

A rapier band is the mechanism that drives the weft wire between the two sets of warp wires after each heddle frame cycle.

A reed is the instrument that holds the warp wires in the desired spacing while also driving the weft wire into position.

Lastly, the finished roll of woven wire cloth is wound onto a front take-up mechanism and is removed in increments needed by the framing system of the project.

What Does the Weaving Process Look Like?

Once the beam is wound, and the heddle frames and reed are threaded, the whole assembly is transported to a weaving loom. The setup of the loom is then completed by a dedicated technician.

Once assembled, the weaving process is virtually automatic and seamless.

As the loom starts up, the warp beam begins to unwind in very small increments. The front take-up mechanism simultaneously winds the woven cloth at the same small increment in the same direction.

This movement allows the loom to maintain specific tensioning, which is critical when producing high-quality mesh panels.

As the two beams rotate, heddle frame 1 pulls half of the warp wires up while heddle frame 2 drives the other half down. It's at this point that the rapier, whether a two-part or one-part rapier, drives a weft wire between the two sets of warp wires.

Each weft wire is delivered from a separate spool of wire located at the side of the loom. As the rapier returns to its resting position to gather another weft wire, the reed pushes the latest weft wire into its final position.

This process is what creates the precise cross-sections needed to create the perfect aesthetic.

Once the weft wire is in place, the reed returns to its original position. The warp beam and front take-up mechanism then rotate at the same small increment, the heddle frames change position and the loom begins a new cycle.

These simultaneous movements are repeated over and over until the entire mesh cloth is woven.

Contact us to discuss your requirements of Custom Wire Mesh Container. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.