Shaped metal is is the main material in which you can create important craft station and high-level items. For beginners, shaped metal can be created in firepit by putting 2x irons in it. It can also be crafted in a smelter, where it is crafted extremely quickly. To speed up collect shaped metal is breaking electronic things in an abandoned house. See furniture.
If you need lots of shaped metal, make hammer, go to house, and break a lot of furniture. It is very effective in gathering shaped metal very quickly.