Copper Supply & Fabrication in Savannah, GA

Both are high-conductivity coppers, but the difference is oxygen content and it has real consequences. C110 is electrolytic tough pitch copper, which contains a small amount of oxygen as a byproduct of refining. That oxygen is harmless for ordinary electrical applications, and C110 delivers about 100 percent IACS conductivity at low cost, making it the standard for bus bars, grounding, and general electrical hardware. C101 is oxygen-free electronic copper, refined to remove that oxygen, giving the highest purity and conductivity and — critically — avoiding hydrogen embrittlement. Oxygen-bearing copper like C110 can become embrittled when heated in a reducing or hydrogen-containing atmosphere, such as during certain brazing operations, because hydrogen reacts with the internal oxides. So if a part will be brazed, processed at high temperature in a reducing atmosphere, or exposed to hydrogen, specify C101. For everyday electrical conductivity at the lowest cost, C110 is the right pick.

Pure copper is extremely difficult to machine because it's soft and ductile — it tears and smears rather than cutting cleanly, builds up on tooling, and resists producing a good surface finish or holding tight tolerances. Tellurium copper, alloy C145, adds a small amount of tellurium that acts as a free-machining additive, breaking chips and allowing clean, fast cutting with dramatically better machinability, often rated several times higher than pure copper. The key benefit is that it achieves this with only a modest conductivity sacrifice, retaining roughly 90 percent or more IACS, so you keep most of copper's electrical and thermal performance while gaining the ability to machine complex parts efficiently. That combination makes tellurium copper the standard choice for machined electrical components like connectors, contacts, and welding-electrode hardware, where the part must both conduct well and be turned or milled to precise dimensions. For Savannah jobs that pair conductivity requirements with real machining complexity, it's usually the right specification.

Copper handles Savannah's coastal environment considerably better than bare carbon steel, but it's not immune. In humid, salt-laden air, copper naturally forms a patina, and in more aggressive salt-spray conditions it can corrode over time. For structural or decorative copper, the patina is often acceptable or even desired, but for electrical applications a corroded or oxidized surface raises contact resistance and degrades performance. The practical solution for electrical contacts and connectors exposed to the coastal climate is plating — tin, nickel, or silver — to provide a stable, low-resistance surface that resists the local humidity and salt. When you specify a copper electrical part for use near the port or in unconditioned coastal exposure, call out the required plating on the RFQ rather than leaving it bare. For internal or controlled-environment electrical hardware, bare copper is generally fine, but match the surface treatment to the actual exposure the part will see.

Common copper product forms are reasonably available in the Savannah market. Copper moves through the Port of Savannah, and regional service centers carry C110 in bar, sheet, plate, and bus stock with adequate depth for typical electrical and grounding fabrication. That supports same-week or near-term availability on standard sizes for the most common conductivity work. The more specialized grades — C101 oxygen-free copper and tellurium copper C145 — are less of a shelf commodity, so for those you should confirm the product form, size, and certification before committing, especially for aerospace-adjacent use where traceability matters. When you submit an RFQ, specify the alloy, temper, form, dimensions, any required plating, and certification needs. For aerospace work tied to the Gulfstream supply chain, look for suppliers and shops carrying AS9100 traceability so the conductivity hardware meets the same documentation bar as the rest of the program.