About Cutting Methods

1. How do I determine which cutting method to use?
2. What are the advantages of using a laser cutting machine?
3. How does a laser compare to a router?
4. How does a laser compare to a steel rule die?
5. How does a laser compare to water jets?
6. How does a laser compare to Electrical Discharge Machining (EDM)/wire cutting?
7. How does a laser compare to knife cutters?

 

1. How do I determine which cutting method to use?

In order to determine the best cutting method for your process, conduct a careful examination of your production needs. All cutting methods have their advantages and disadvantages. Typical criteria used for most process evaluations should include the following:

• Material To Be Processed
• Range of Material Thickness
• Accuracy Required
• Material Finish Required
• Production Rate Desired
• Cost of Technology
• Operating Costs
• Operator Skill Requirements

 

2. What are the advantages of using a laser cutting machine?

There are many reasons to choose a laser cutting machine. There is almost no limit to the cutting path of a laser—the point can move in any direction. This means that very complex designs can easily be performed without expensive tooling costs or long lead times. Small diameter holes that cannot be made with other machining processes can easily and quickly be performed with a laser. The process is non-contact and non-force, allowing very fragile parts to be cut with little or no support, and the part keeps its original shape from start to finish. Lasers can cut at very high speeds. Lasers do not have parts that will dull and need to be replaced, or that can break easily. Lasers allow you to cut a wide range of materials, and produce a high quality cut without requiring secondary processes. Laser cutting is a very cost effective process with low operating and maintenance costs and maximum flexibility.

3. How does a laser compare to a router?

In general, routers provide a low cost method for a variety of capabilities. Face milling on a router produces a smooth, clean finish. A router offers strong drilling performance, and is good for cutting thick plate, or several thin sheets of material clamped together.

However, with a router you need to find a way to hold down the material. Our products have a vacuum cutting bed that provides material hold-down. A router needs to be sharpened and replaced over time, while the laser is “permanently sharp.” With a router, variations will also occur as the blade gets duller while cutting, and parts are limited in the complexity of the design. With lasers, the focused area is very small, so detail is vastly greater-—anything you can draw, you can cut. Routers are also unsafe due to small pieces that can fly loose, while our machines are enclosed and have a powerful vacuum bed that captures small pieces. Finally, routers are very noisy (to the point where safety equipment must be worn), but that is not the case with lasers.

4. How does a laser compare to a steel rule die?

In terms of dies, the cost of the tooling in a steel rule die is one of the lowest in all die technologies. The blades can also be changed easily, relative to other dies, when necessary. It takes 3 to 5 days to have the dies made, which is short compared to other die technologies, but tremendously long compared to laser cutting machines, where cutting is instantaneous.

Dies are great when accuracy is not required, such as for boxes or garments. Overall, however, there is a major lack of accuracy and fine detail. Designs are limited to complexity—the more complex the part, the more it will cost to produce and the longer it will take. Large dies are even more expensive, and the lead time even greater. In some circumstances, especially for short-runs, the job may not even be worth the costs. Lasers, on the other hand, have a very small focus, so you are not at all limited by design or size—anything you can draw can be cut quickly and accurately. If any changes need to occur to the design, dies are difficult and expensive to change—it needs to be completely retooled. With a laser cutting machine, you need only make the changes to your design and save them to your file. This makes it easy, cost-effective, and efficient to make modifications with a laser.

Dies wear out and have to be sharpened, while lasers do not encounter this problem. You will also require a lot of space to store the dies for your customers. The only space you need for your laser machine is for the machine itself. Finally, though it is possible to kiss-cut parts with dies, it is much more difficult and less accurate than with laser cutting.

5. How does a laser compare to water jets?

Water jet cutting works well for certain types of materials, such as titanium, granite, marble, concrete, and stone. Cut edges are clean with minimal burr. Problems encountered with other methods, such as crystallization, hardening, and reduced machine- or weld-abilities, are eliminated. Parts remain flat and there is no tooling to design or modify. Costs associated with secondary processes also do not exist.

In general, however, a water jet has lower precision than a laser because the focus is larger and it can not get the same level of detail that a laser can. Many materials cannot be cut by a water jet because they will shred or flutter. There are also lots of problems associated with the disposal of the abrasives used in the water jet, problems which do not exist for a laser cutting machine. The nozzles and parts wear out quickly, which leads to variations in the cut, as well as higher expenses for replacement components. With lasers, there are no parts to wear or break over time. Water jets tend to move fairly slowly, while a laser is typically much faster. Finally, your parts get wet with a water jet. It is very messy, noisy, and humid. Obviously, with a laser, your parts do not get wet, and the process is much cleaner with less inconveniences.

6. How does a laser compare to Electrical Discharge Machining (EDM)/wire cutting?

EDM allows for cutting complex shapes and thin walled configurations without distortion. EDM is suitable for materials considered too hard or where adhesion is a problem for traditional machining, and for materials typically machined by grinding. EDM can replace many types of contour grinding operations and eliminate secondary operations such as deburring and polishing.

In general, however, EDM is really only suited for metal cutting. Laser cutting machines, on the other hand, can be used for a wide variety of applications and materials. EDMs can cut really thick, hard metals, including steels with hardness above Rc 38. If that is your main application, then this process may be suitable for you. Otherwise, you will find the machine is very slow and fairly limited in its capabilities. There are also parts to replace, such as when a wire breaks, which can slow down production and increase costs. This problem will not be encountered with a laser cutting machine.

7. How does a laser compare to knife cutters?

Knife cutting machines have been designed to process a variety of materials including technical textiles, industrial fabrics, paper, corrugated materials and more. These machines can be equipped with a range of tool heads for total cutting, kiss-cutting, creasing, routing, milling, drilling, etc. They have the ability to produce prototypes and samples rapidly.

In general, however, knife cutters encounter problems with material hold-down. Our products have vacuum cutting beds which provide material hold-down. Knives also dull over time, so parts have to be replaced. This causes issues with variations in your part due to dulling. Lasers do not have any parts that can wear or dull, so these parts do not have to be replaced and accuracy is maintained throughout the entire cut. Also, knives can’t cut very thick materials. It is best used for thin sheet metal cutting. Otherwise, you will experience limitations in cutting that are not found with laser cutting machines. A laser can also easily cut hard plastics with adhesive backs that gum-up knife cutters.