Understanding the Differences Between Flame – Laser – Plasma – Waterjet Cutting
This is a basic outline of the Flame, Laser, Plasma and Water Jet cutting processes we offer to our customers. If you are uncertain on which cutting process would be best for your project please call us. We are more than happy to discuss your options, after all our motto is “We’ve Got Your Back” and your project success is our success. We can Flame, Plasma, Laser or Waterjet cut any size, long or short run orders.
One stop sourcing means that if you purchase your products metal alloy through us can help you reduce costs when you use us for your secondary operations like Flame / Laser / Plasma Cutting.
Flame / Burning Cutting
CNC Flame cutting is also commonly referred to as CNC Burning and the parts manufactured are called burnouts. Oxygen is used as the cutting gas; and is blown into the determined kerf based on the material properties and thickness with compressed air pressures up to 6 bar. At this level the heated metal reacts with the Oxygen by oxidizing and “burning”. This effect assists the laser beam in precision cuts.
Why Choose CNC Flame / Burning Cutting
Flame cutting / Burning is generally used for cutting mild Steel and Aluminum. Flame / Burning cutting makes it possible to cut at high speeds and handle jobs involving thick plates such as mild steel with thicknesses in excess of 1.25 inches.
CNC Flame /Burning cutting service carefully and precisely cuts Steel and Aluminum in a variety of thicknesses into your specific shape and dimensions. Our CNC Flame cutting / Burning machines use a flame torch that moves across a plane to cut material into specific dimensions.
CNC Flame /Burning cutting is used to cut many layers of thin sheets also known as stack cutting to improve time and reduce costs.
CNC Flame / Burning Cutting Capabilities
- Tolerances as close as ± 1.5″
- Cut up to 40″ thick
- Contour and straight-line beveling
- Custom multiple-view cutting
- Close tolerance cutting up to 120″ wide x 800″ long
High Speed Laser Cutting
High Speed Laser cutting works by focusing a strong laser instead of a blade at a metal or plastic material. The material then either melts, burns, vaporizes, or is blown away by a jet of gas. The result is a crisp, clean edge with a high quality surface finish. Laser cutting can be used to cut tight tolerance on parts requiring fine details. Laser cutting can also be used to cut structural and piping materials as well as sheet materials.
Why Choose High Speed Laser Cutting
High Speed Laser cutting is ideal for quickly making custom parts out of sheets of metal or plastic materials because it is an easily reproduced high quality way of cutting your designs. Laser cutting is perfect for fine details required for consumer goods like jewelery , home decorations, medical products, business signs to less finely detailed products like structural parts and manufactured components.
High Speed Laser Cutting Capabilities
- Cut metal up to 1” thick
- Close tolerance cutting up to 60” wide x 120” long
Plasma Arc Cutting
Plasma Arc cutting can be performed on any type of conductive metal. The Plasma Arc cutting process uses electrically conductive gas to transfer energy from an electrical power source through a plasma cutting torch to the metal material being cut. The arc and the plasma stream are focused by a very narrow nozzle orifice. The Plasma Arc cutting process uses an intense heat of around 40,000° F. The temperature of the plasma arc melts the metal and cuts through the metal workpiece while the high velocity gas flow removes the molten metal material from the bottom of the cut, or the kerf. The plasma gases include argon, hydrogen, nitrogen and mixtures, plus air and oxygen.
Why Choose Plasma Arc Cutting
The plasma arc cutting process is much faster than a flame torch or abrasive saws, with low or no heat affected zone, especially on thinner metals. Because of Plasma Arc cutters are so intensely focused they are extremely useful for cutting sheet metal in curved or angled shapes.
Less preparation work is required to clean up the metal for cutting. A plasma arc is hot enough to burn through most surface coatings such as paint and rust and still provide excellent cutting results. There is minimal heat input and heat distortion of the metal with plasma cutting unlike other cutting processes. For example Jigsaw cutting and shearing saws both have issues with heat distortion of the metal being cut.
Difficult shapes like tanks, ventilation ductwork (HVAC) and other difficult to handle shapes are easily cut with Plasma Arc cutting. This is because no fixturing is required to hold the project in place.
CNC Flame / Burning Cutting Capabilities
- Aluminum
- Brass
- Copper
- Carbon Steel
- Mild Steel
- Stainless Steel
Water Jet Cutting / Abrasive Jet Cutting
Water Jet cutting is a process similar to water erosion in nature because the Water Jet cutter is a tool capable of slicing through metal and other materials using a jet of water with high velocity and pressure, or a mixture of water and an abrasive substance. Unlike nature Water Jet cutting is highly focused on where it cuts through material. Water Jet cutting cuts materials using a jet of pressurized water from 40,000 to 60,000 PSI (pounds per square inch). When the water is mixed with an abrasive material it is called Abrasive Water Jet cutting.
Why Use Water Jet Cutting
Water jets are capable of cutting many industrial manufacturing materials including Stainless Steel, Titanium, Aluminum and Tool Steel. Water Jet Cutting is also used when materials like rubber and plastic are being cut and are sensitive to the high temperatures generated by other methods.
Abrasive Water Jet cutting enables most materials to be cut to close tolerances, clean and square with a good edge finish.
There is almost zero problems with heat distortion like melting, distorting or warping because the Water Jet and Abrasive Jet cutting processes produce little to no heat and do not work harden the cut edges.
The finish provided by the Water Jet cutting process results in a smooth, sandblasted finish. Water Jet cutting eliminates burrs, jagged ends, rough ends and rough edges.
Waterjet Cutting Capabilities
- Tolerances as close as ± 0.005″