In metal fabrication, cutting is the most basic process and a widely used one. Laser cutting is the leading-edge technology to execute such jobs in the industry because of its numerous advantages compared to other methods. Along with the many advantages, laser cutting has a few disadvantages too.
Well, let us first know what laser cutting in industries means.
What is Laser Cutting?
Laser cutting in industries is a manufacturing procedure where the focused beams of light are used to bore holes and cut out shapes from sheets of steel, polycarbonate and other materials with high accuracy. There are three primary industrial laser-cutting machine configurations: moving material, flying optics and hybrid systems. Laser cutting provides a clean edge and flexible process, but it is only sometimes suitable for large-scale manufacturing.
Now, we’ll highlight the advantages and disadvantages of Laser Cutting
Advantages of Laser Cutting
Many engineers favour a laser cutting service, and this is because it offers a lot of benefits. Flexibility, contactless cutting, cost-effectiveness, precision, repeatability, speed, versatility, excellent quality, and automation possibilities are all the many advantages of Laser Cutting.
Flexibility
Flexibility is one of the significant advantages of Laser cutting as there is no need to exchange tools for each different cut. The same setup is applicable for cutting various other shapes within the same material thickness. Furthermore, complicated cuts do not pose any difficulties.
Contactless Cutting
In the laser-cutting process, just the beam comes into contact with the material. Hence, no mechanical friction occurs to wear tools.
Precision
Precision is one of the primary advantages of laser cutting over other thermal cutting methods. An accuracy of +/-0.1 mm allows for achieving high precision without any after-treatment. In most cases, such a high standard requires no added tolerances.
Repeatability
+/- 0.05 mm ensures parts that are imitations of each other.
Speed
Laser cutting is very quick when compared with traditional mechanical cutting methods. Especially when the cases of more complex cuts are concerned.
Laser beats other thermal cutting methods like plasma or flame cutting in speed up to a certain thickness which is around 10 mm. The exact advantage point boils down to the power of the laser cutter, though.
Versatility
Versatility is one of the most significant characteristics of laser cutting. The versatility portrays itself in two forms.
Laser cutting is suitable for many materials, including metals, acrylic, wood, MDF, paper, etc. One machine can be designed to perform various jobs. It is a fact that cutting some of these materials relies on the power of your machine.
Numerous laser cutters are not limited to cutting only. These machines can also be used for Laser marking. And marking plays a significant role when producing everyday products.
For welding, a standard laser cutting head is not suitable, and a laser welding head cannot fulfil the cutting speeds and quality required. Some machines exchange the heads if a different process is necessary. In the background, combi-heads are developed, but these haven’t taken off yet due to their mixed limitations.
Lastly, the technology fits different profiles. Tube laser cutting can execute the process on box sections and open channels.
Quality
Laser cutters leave a slight burr when using the correct setup, and most of the time, it is not required to remove it.
Well, this depends on factors like material, thickness, and other aspects. There’s also a tiny heat-affected zone that acts as another bonus. The change in the microstructure along the HAZ, a smaller area, results in more predictable and reliable parts.
Automation
The job requires a few staff as modern laser-cutting machinery is highly automated. An experienced machine operator still plays a significant role in the final quality. Still, the cutting speed and little need for manual labour result in lower costs as compared to other cutting methods.
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