Key Takeaways
- Aluminum delivers strength at one-third the weight of steel: That weight advantage drives selection in aerospace, EV, and electronics applications. Custom aluminum washers let designers capture the benefit without compromising on geometry.
- A 100+ year manufacturing legacy provides depth: Engineers trust suppliers with proven track records on critical applications. Our continuous operation since 1919 builds the institutional knowledge that prevents costly mistakes.
- Three core grades cover most applications: We stock 2024, 6061, and 5052 aluminum, each with distinct properties for different design needs. Selecting the right grade is half the engineering work.
- Finishes expand application range: Anodizing, sulfuric dichromate, black oxide, and cadmium finishes adapt aluminum to specific environments and visual requirements. Custom finishing eliminates secondary processing.
- Tolerance capability supports critical applications: We hold thickness tolerances to .0005 inch, with diameter control suitable for aerospace and defense programs. That precision is the foundation of an engineer’s trust.
A 100+ Year Legacy in Custom Metal Washers
Engineering trust is built over decades, not quarters. We have manufactured precision washers continuously since 1919, our full company history covers five generations of family ownership, multiple major industry transitions, and a continuous evolution of capability.
From 1919 Newark to Modern Fairfield Manufacturing
Bill Brewster Jr. founded the company in Newark, NJ, as a tool-and-die maker producing tools, dies, and metal stampings for the burgeoning industrial economy of the early 20th century. After his passing in 1958, his daughters Katherine and Marguerite relocated operations to Fairfield, NJ, where we continue to operate today. The Fairfield facility houses every step of our process from material receiving through final inspection.
When raw material, tool building, stamping, deburring, and final inspection all happen under one roof, traceability is straightforward and quality control is direct. There are no handoffs between facilities where parts can be confused, lots can be mixed, or documentation can be lost.
Five Generations of Family Leadership
Leadership has passed through five generations: Bill Brewster Jr., his daughters Katherine and Marguerite, Salvatore Freda Sr., Salvatore Freda Jr., and now President Brielle Freda Seminerio with Vice President Thomas Freda. Recent recognition includes the 2024 NJMEP Manufacturer of the Year award and the Metalforming Magazine Women of Excellence designation. Continuity of family leadership translates into continuity of standards.
Why Aluminum: Performance Properties Engineers Need
Aluminum is rarely chosen for tradition. Engineers select custom aluminum washers for the specific property combination aluminum offers: low density, good electrical and thermal conductivity, non-magnetic behavior, and the ability to anodize for corrosion protection or color identification. Each property unlocks design possibilities that steel cannot match.
- Lightweight: One-third the weight of steel, critical for aerospace, EV, and portable electronics.
- Conductive: Good thermal and electrical conductivity for grounding, heat sinks, and bus bar hardware.
- Non-Magnetic: Important for naval applications, MRI environments, and electronic warfare equipment.
- Anodizable: Surface treatments expand corrosion resistance and provide color-coded identification.
- Sealing Capable: Compresses to provide effective sealing in fluid and gas applications.
Common Aluminum Grades for Custom Washers
Aluminum is not a single material. The hundreds of available grades range from soft, formable foil to high-strength aerospace alloys, with substantially different properties. We stock the three grades that cover the largest fraction of custom washer applications: 2024, 6061, and 5052. Each is the right answer for specific design requirements.
Selecting the wrong grade is one of the most common avoidable mistakes in aluminum washer specification. A 2024 alloy chosen for strength may corrode in a marine application that calls for 5052. A 6061 chosen for general-purpose use may lack the fatigue strength a vibration-prone fastener requires. Our engineering team reviews each blueprint and flags any apparent material mismatch during the quote process, so you receive parts to the grade your application actually needs.
- 2024 Aluminum: High-strength alloy commonly used in aerospace structures. Excellent fatigue resistance, but lower corrosion resistance than other grades, requiring anodizing or cladding for exposed applications.
- 6061 Aluminum: General-purpose structural alloy with good strength, weldability, and corrosion resistance. The most common choice for custom aluminum washers in industrial and commercial applications.
- 5052 Aluminum: Excellent corrosion resistance, especially in marine environments. Good formability and moderate strength make it suitable for chassis hardware, marine fittings, and electronics.
Industries That Specify Our Custom Aluminum Washers
Aluminum washers ship from our Fairfield facility into industries where weight, conductivity, or non-magnetic behavior is a binding requirement. Aerospace and defense remain large markets, but the rise of electric vehicles, advanced robotics, and miniaturized electronics has expanded our aluminum business significantly.
Programs in each of these industries benefit from custom geometry, tight tolerance, and material flexibility that catalog suppliers cannot match. The same precision discipline that supports a satellite component also serves an EV battery pack or a medical imaging device.
Aerospace customers specify aluminum for airframe hardware, control surface components, and avionics enclosures. EV manufacturers use aluminum washers in battery pack assemblies, motor mounts, and high-voltage bus bar connections where weight and conductivity both matter. Medical imaging applications rely on aluminum’s non-magnetic behavior in MRI fields. Robotics designers select aluminum for moving assemblies where reduced inertia improves response time and motion accuracy. Each application benefits from the same precision capability we have refined over more than a century.
Finishes and Surface Treatments
Bare aluminum is corrosion-resistant in most environments, but specific applications demand finishes that extend service life, provide electrical insulation, or signal compliance with industry standards. We coordinate finishing with qualified local partners to deliver completed parts ready for installation, including anodizing, plating, and specialty coatings to customer specifications.
The choice of finish often matters as much as the choice of base alloy. Hard anodize adds wear resistance for parts in moving assemblies, while decorative anodize provides aesthetic and corrosion benefits at a lower cost. Sulfuric dichromate conversion coatings remain a defense standard for many programs. Color-coded anodized layers serve both a quality and a decorative function, helping assembly teams identify thickness, lot, or revision at a glance without referring to documentation.
- Anodizing: Hard or decorative anodized layers provide corrosion protection and color options.
- Sulfuric Dichromate: Conversion coating for additional corrosion resistance, often required by military specifications.
- Black Oxide: Decorative and mild corrosion-resistant finish for visible hardware.
- Cadmium Plating: Used in legacy aerospace and defense applications, with substitutes available for new programs.
- Color-Coded Identification: Different anodized colors mark thickness, material, or part number for assembly verification.
Tolerance Capabilities That Set Us Apart
Engineering trust depends on dimensional repeatability. We routinely manufacture custom aluminum washers to thickness tolerances of .0005 inch, with inside and outside diameter tolerances of plus or minus .001 to .005 inch. Our precision capability applies the same standard to orders ranging from 100 prototype parts to 100,000 production units.
Holding tight tolerance on aluminum is harder than on steel because aluminum is softer and more sensitive to tooling wear, springback, and edge condition. Our process includes incoming material inspection, tool maintenance schedules, in-process measurement, and final inspection that together produce repeatable parts across long production runs. Customers in critical industries return to us specifically because they can predict what they will receive, which simplifies their own quality systems and reduces the inspection burden on incoming aluminum hardware.
Request Custom Aluminum Washers Built on a Century of Trust
Engineers across aerospace, EV, defense, medical, and electronics rely on our custom aluminum washers because we deliver the precision, consistency, and documentation their programs require. Working with us is a partnership, not a transaction. Our engineering and manufacturing teams collaborate with your designers to identify the right alloy, finish, and tolerance grade for the application, and the three-step process below has not changed materially in decades.
- Send Your Blueprint: Submit your drawing and specifications. We sign any required NDAs before review.
- Receive a Quote: Within 24 to 48 hours, you receive complete pricing, lead time, and any technical recommendations.
- Start Production: Once accepted, we put your order on the production schedule and meet the deadlines we quoted.
Contact us today, and you will receive a complete quote within 24 to 48 hours with no tooling charges and the 100+ year manufacturing legacy your application deserves.