Metal isn't that expensive I guess but still, several hundred dollars and a turnaround time increase of a week+ minimum isn't always on the cards for every proj

Metal isn't that expensive I guess but still, several hundred dollars and a turnaround time increase of a week+ minimum isn't always on the cards for every project. Sure, if I had unlimited time and budget, I'd physically prototype and field test everything. Client demands tend to take precedence. Part of being a good engineer is balancing those concerns, learning which parts of the design and manufacturing process can be trusted implicitly and which assumptions must be rigorously tested - suffice to say I've been a lot more stringent about sheet metal design in the years since.