What the letters mean
In the Chinese structural steel naming system, Q stands for the yield designation of the steel, and the number that follows rises with the strength of the material: Q235 is the lower-strength grade of the pair and Q355 the higher. Both are standard structural plate grades used across fabricated construction, and both are available across the BECO table and weldment range.
What the designation does not tell you is how the grade behaves inside a finished table — because that depends on the construction around it, which is the next point.
Where each grade typically fits
Both grades weld well in fabricated construction, and both finish the same way: stress relieved, shot blasted, then machined on the working faces. The machining route, hole system and flatness grades are available on either.
| Grade | Character | Typical fit |
|---|---|---|
| Q235 | The general structural grade | General fabrication, standard tables, frames and bases where loads are moderate |
| Q355 | The higher-strength structural grade | Heavier fabricated structures, thick-plate bodies and weldments where higher material strength is wanted |
Grade is one input among several
It is tempting to treat the plate grade as the strength decision for the whole table. In a fabricated platform, strength and stiffness come from the construction as a system: the plate grade, the internal reinforcement layout, the platform height and the support all carry load together. A well-reinforced Q235 body outperforms a lightly built thicker-grade body for most fabrication work.
That is why the quotation states the grade alongside the hole system, the flatness grade and the treatment, and why the recommendation starts from the workpiece: what it weighs, how it is clamped, and where the loads land.
The grade through welding and stress relief
Both grades are welded in normal fabrication practice, and both go through the same post-weld sequence: stress-relief annealing to let the body settle, then shot blasting, then machining of the working faces. The treatment protects the geometry the machining produces, and it applies regardless of grade — so the choice of Q235 or Q355 does not change the process route or the delivery time.
Confirming the grade on the quotation
- State the workpiece: size, weight and the clamping loads the table will see.
- Receive the recommendation: grade, construction, hole system, flatness and treatment, with the reasoning.
- Check the quotation: the grade appears in writing beside the hole system and flatness grade.
- Confirm the drawing before production, so the material that ships is the material that was quoted.
Other materials
Beyond the two structural grades, HT250 and HT300 cast iron and other materials are available on request for tables and weldments. The steel-versus-cast-iron guide covers that comparison; for most modular table applications, the fabricated plate grades above are the standard route.