Dot Peen Marking & Part Traceability in Ontario
Dot peen marking and part traceability at WeFab in Leamington, Ontario, put permanent part numbers on structural steel, stainless, and aluminum components.
Our dot peen marking system permanently identifies structural components with part numbers that remain visible through painting and powder coating. Durable identification helps simplify installation, improve traceability, and ensure every member is placed accurately in the field.
What Dot Peen Marking Does in Structural Fabrication
Dot peen marking presses a part number permanently into the surface of a fabricated component. At WeFab, it gives structural members an identification that outlasts tags, labels, and paint-pen marks, which makes field placement faster and traceability simpler.
Coated steel members often look alike, and a beam a few inches longer than its neighbour is easy to mix up in a laydown yard. Dot peen marking solves that at the source:
- Permanent part numbers marked into the metal itself, not applied on top of it
- Structural member identification that holds up through handling, shipping, and coating
- Correct on-site placement: erectors read the mark, check the drawing, and set the member
- Traceability from the shop drawing to the installed piece
WeFab offers dot peen marking on its structural fabrication work. The content of each mark is set by the project’s requirements rather than a fixed house format.
Dot Peen Equipment, Materials, and Marking Specifications
WeFab marks parts on a SIC Marking P63 dot peen marker, one station positioned at the quality-control stage. It marks mild steel, stainless steel, and aluminum, and it is programmed either manually on the device or from a PC.
| Capability | Specification |
|---|---|
| Marker | SIC Marking P63 dot peen system |
| Stations | 1 |
| Position in workflow | Quality-control (QC) stage |
| Materials marked | Mild steel, stainless steel, aluminum |
| Programming | Manually on the device, or from a PC |
| Character size and line length | Any layout that fits the marker’s marking window |
| Mark depth | Varies by material type |
| Mark content | Set by project requirements |
| Coating performance | Part numbers remain visible through painting and powder coating |
| Separate marking QA standard | None; marking is part of the shop’s QC step |
Dot peen marking: A marking method in which a stylus strikes the surface in a rapid series of small dots to form characters. Because the mark is an indentation in the metal rather than ink or a label, it cannot peel, smear, or wash off.
Part traceability: The ability to connect a finished, installed component back to its drawing, job, and fabrication record. In structural steel, it means the right member goes in the right place, and questions in the field can be traced back to a specific piece.
Why painted-through marking stays readable
A dot peen mark is a physical change to the surface. Paint and powder coating follow the contour of the metal, so the indented dots still show through the finished coating. WeFab does not run an in-house paint booth or powder-coating line (powder coating is subcontracted), so a mark that survives coating matters: the part number travels with the piece through every outside step.
How Dot Peen Marking and Part Traceability Speed On-Site Installation
Part traceability at WeFab follows each member from the marking requirements set at project start to the point an erector reads the mark on site. Marks go on at QC, survive coating, and let field crews match steel to drawing without guesswork.
Step 1: Set the marking requirements
The project’s requirements determine what each mark carries. Whether a piece list or mark map goes to the field crew is also decided per project.
Step 2: Program the marker
Mark content is entered manually on the SIC Marking P63 or sent from a PC.
Step 3: Mark at the QC stage
Once a piece reaches quality control, it is marked at the dot peen station.
Step 4: Coat without losing the number
Members go through painting or subcontracted powder coating. The indented part number remains visible under the finish.
Step 5: Ship, read, and place
Marked steel ships on WeFab’s owned flatbed and step-deck fleet. On site, crews read the mark, find it on the drawing, and set the member. On the Pelee Acres Warehouse, every beam was dot peen marked, allowing faster layout in the field.
Why Project Teams Choose WeFab for Dot Peen Marking and Traceability
WeFab has fabricated as South Essex Fabricating since 1994, rebranded WeFab in 2026. Marking, cutting, forming, welding, and QC happen under one 208,000 sq ft roof in Leamington, so part identification is built into fabrication rather than added on afterward.
- SIC Marking P63 dot peen station at the QC stage
- Mild steel, stainless, and aluminum marked on the same system
- Mark content set by your project’s requirements, not a fixed template
- CWB W47.1 Division 2 welding (Company Code DENDE1, held by parent company SEF)
- On-staff CSA W178.2 Certified Welding Inspector reviewing weld quality (see quality and precision)
- Owned trucking fleet, no freight brokers between the shop and your site
- $10M general liability and $30M bonding capacity, sized for industrial and data centre work
Service Area: Ontario First, US Projects by Arrangement
WeFab ships dot peen marked structural steel across Ontario. Our core service area is Windsor-Essex, London, Kitchener-Waterloo, Hamilton, and the Greater Toronto Area, direct from our Leamington shop, with US deliveries arranged through a customs broker.
Ontario oversize-load permits are handled in-house. Marked steel can be erected by SEF crews through field installation, within roughly 500 km of Leamington.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a dot peen part number stay visible after painting?
Yes. A dot peen mark is indented into the metal, so the part number remains visible through painting and powder coating. That is why WeFab uses it for structural member identification on steel that will be coated before it reaches site.
What materials can WeFab dot peen mark?
WeFab marks mild steel, stainless steel, and aluminum on a SIC Marking P63 dot peen marker. Mark depth varies by material type, and character size and line length are set by what fits within the marker’s marking window.
What information goes into each dot peen mark?
The content of each mark is set by the project’s requirements. Confirm what each piece should carry when you request a quote. Marks are programmed manually on the marker or from a PC.
Does WeFab send a piece list or mark map with marked steel?
It depends on the project requirements. Whether a piece list or mark map goes to the field crew is set per project, so raise it at the quoting stage and WeFab will confirm what accompanies the marked steel to site.
Request a Dot Peen Marking Quote
Send your drawing package and marking requirements to the WeFab estimating team. Marking is discussed with the fabrication scope, so identification is planned with the steel.
Call 548-919-0125 or email sales@wefab.ca to start a project.
Related capabilities: Quality and precision · Structural fabrication · Field installation · Logistics
