MS Plates, Flats and CRCA Sheets

HR (hot rolled) steel is rolled at high temperature and finished with a dark mill scale. It covers heavier thicknesses and is the right choice for structural and fabricated parts that will be welded and painted. Dimensional tolerances are looser and the surface is rougher.

CRCA means cold rolled close annealed. The steel is pickled to remove scale, rolled cold to a thinner gauge with tighter tolerances and a smooth, bright surface, then annealed in a closed furnace to restore ductility. The result bends, draws and paints far better than HR, which is why it goes into electrical panels, furniture, appliances, ducting and automotive pressings. CRCA is a thin product, typically up to about 3 mm; above that you are in hot-rolled territory.

IS 513 (Part 1) grades cold-rolled sheet by how much forming it can take. CR1 is commercial quality for simple bends and flat parts. CR2 is drawing quality, CR3 deep drawing and CR4 extra deep drawing, while CR5 is meant for the most severe draws. Older drawings may still use the earlier names O, D, DD and EDD. If your part is a simple bent bracket, CR1 is plenty; if it is a deep cup or pressed housing, ask for the deep-drawing grades and tell us the part.

General fabrication plate in India is usually IS 2062 grade E250. The grade number is the minimum yield strength in MPa, and the composition table on this page shows the main limits. The carbon equivalent cap of 0.42 is what keeps E250 easy to weld without special preheat in normal thicknesses.

Sub-grades matter for structures under impact or low temperature. E250 A has no impact test; BR, B0 and C are impact tested at room temperature, 0 °C and -20 °C. For most machine bases and brackets, A or BR is fine. For a structural job with a consultant's specification, follow what it says. Heavier structures may move up to E350 or E410, which are higher-strength grades in the same standard.

MS flats are narrow strips of hot-rolled steel used for brackets, frames, gratings, earthing strips and stiffeners. They are specified by width × thickness, such as 50 × 6 mm, and supplied in lengths.

Every rate in the steel market is per kilogram, so knowing the weight matters before you ask for a price. The rule uses the density of steel, 7.85 g/cm³:

• Weight (kg) = length (m) × width (m) × thickness (mm) × 7.85
• Example: a 2.5 m × 1.25 m plate, 10 mm thick, weighs 2.5 × 1.25 × 10 × 7.85 = about 245 kg
• For flats: width (mm) × thickness (mm) × 0.00785 = kg per metre, so a 50 × 6 flat weighs about 2.36 kg/m
• Rolling tolerances mean actual weight differs slightly from calculated weight

Plates come from the mill in standard sizes, and the full plate is usually the cheapest way to buy steel by the kilogram. If you need only a few pieces, send a cutting list with dimensions and quantities so we can tell you how the order can be met. Give allowances for machining or edge preparation in your sizes.

Give grade, thickness, width, length and quantity, or a cutting list if you need plate pieces. Sizes and grades are confirmed at enquiry. For raised-pattern floor plate see chequered plates; for zinc-coated sheet see galvanised and corrugated sheets. Pressure vessel work needs boiler quality plate, not E250.