Buying Guide for Metal Laser Cutting Machine

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2022-08-231739

What is Laser Cutting Machine?

Laser cutting machine uses focused high-power density laser beam to irradiate the work-piece, so that the irradiated material can melt and vaporize rapidly with the help of combustion or coaxial high-speed airflow, the high-speed airflow blows away the molten material, and then cuts the work-piece.

Why Replace Traditional Equipment with Laser Cutting Machine?

Flame cutting is the original traditional cutting method. It is mainly used to cut thick steel plates over 40mm in rough processing. Although it only requires a low investment, this technology is easy to lead to too large thermal deformation during cutting, too wide cutting slit, waste of materials, with slow processing speed.

Plasma cutting and fine plasma cutting are similar to flame cutting, and their accuracy and processing speed are much higher and faster than the latter one, becoming the main force of medium plate processing. The disadvantage is that the thermal deformation is too large when cutting thin steel plate and the slope is also large with a relatively high cost.

Laser cutting is both a technological revolution and a "processing center" in sheet metal processing. This technology boasts high flexibility, high cutting speed, high production efficiency and short production cycle, which has won a wide market for customers. In addition, it is able to avoid cutting force, deformation, and tool wear with good material adaptability. Whether it is simple or complex parts, it can be precisely and rapidly formed. Besides, with laser processing the finished products will have narrow cutting seam and good cutting quality. And laser cutter has a high degree of automation, simple operation, long effective life, and low labor intensity and no pollution. It can realize automatic cutting layout and nesting and improve material utilization rate, so as to achieve low production cost and good economic benefit.

Advantages of Laser Cutting Machine:

1. High quality and low labor cost

Characterized by its non-contact processing, laser technology does not damage the work-piece with the products free of extrusion deformation and in good quality. And the processed products do not need to be polished manually, eliminating unnecessary processing procedures and optimizing the labor intensity of workers.

2. Reduced mold investment and production cost

By directly processing various work-pieces without mold, the laser cutting machine can help to avoid mold consumption and the costs of repairing and changing molds. In this way, a large number of molds and their production costs can be saved, which is especially suitable for processing large products.

3. High precision and high efficiency

Due to its precision, flexibility and efficiency, laser cutter is capable of processing various complicated work-pieces. With the finished cutting graphics being imported into the control system, the worker can set the size for cutting, which directly shortens the product processing and manufacturing cycle and effectively improves labor productivity.

4. Fast speed and optimized working environment

With fast working speed, stable working situation, low noise and no dust, laser cutting machine will not produce chemical substances harmful to the human body and the environment. It also protects workers from health threats and production sites from pollution, reducing investment and pollution and helping the optimization of the working environment complying with the trend of environmental protection.

5. Low maintenance cost and high cost performance

The maintenance of mechanical products is very expensive, while the laser cutting machine has stable performance which is durable and can work continuously.

What is the Difference Between CO2 Laser Cutting Machine and Fiber Laser Cutting Machine?

Fiber laser cutting machine and CO2 laser cutting machine are the most commonly used laser cutting machines. The main differences between these two kind of machines are as follows:

1. Laser generator

The carbon dioxide laser is a gas molecule laser, with CO2 as the medium and O2, He, Xe, etc. as the auxiliary gas. The beam is transmitted and focused to the laser cutting head through the reflector. While the fiber laser cutting machine transmits the laser beam through diodes and optical fiber cables. Multiple diodes pump the laser beam and then transmit it to the laser cutting head through flexible optical fiber cables. In CO2 laser technology, the reflector should be used at a certain distance, but the fiber one will not be subject to such restrictions.

2. Conversion rate

Fiber laser is an advanced laser technology at present. The solid-state laser generator it uses is more efficient than the traditional carbon dioxide laser. The photoelectric conversion rate of the carbon dioxide laser cutter is only 8% - 10%, while it of the fiber laser cutter can be as high as 30%. That is to say, the overall energy consumption of the fiber laser cutter is 3-5 times lower than the overall energy consumption of the CO2 one, thus improving the energy efficiency by at least 86%, saving more power and also saving more production costs.

3. Cutting ability

The fiber laser has shorter wavelength which is only 1/10 of the wavelength generated by the CO2 laser, which can improve the absorption of the cutting material to the beam, and is more suitable for conducting in the thin and soft fiber. Compared with carbon dioxide laser transmitted by mirror reflection, fiber laser should be flexible and easier to maintain. A 3KW fiber laser cutting machine is equivalent to a 4-5KW CO2 laser cutting machine in cutting capacity and speed, greatly reducing operating costs.

4. Maintenance cost

The structure of CO2 laser is relatively complex, and the maintenance cost in the later stage is relatively high. Moreover, the CO2 laser system should be cleaned and maintained regularly, and the reflector should also be cleaned and calibrated regularly. In addition, due to the purity of carbon dioxide gas, the resonator should also be maintained regularly. Besides, the turbine transporting laser gas also needs regular maintenance and overhaul. The fiber laser cutting is basically maintenance free, with few vulnerable parts. It can withstand harsh working environment and has high resistance to dust, impact, humidity and temperature, thus its maintenance cost is low.

5. Processing material

The beam wavelength of CO2 laser is 10.64um, which is easier to be absorbed by non-metallic materials. However, the wavelength of the fiber laser is only 1.064um, which is 10 times shorter than the CO2 laser's. Due to this smaller focal length, the intensity of the fiber laser cutter is almost 100 times higher than that of the CO2 laser cutter with the same power output. Therefore, fiber laser cutting machine is very suitable for cutting metal materials.

The CO2 laser cutting machine is mainly used for cutting and carving non-metallic materials, such as wood, acrylic, paper, leather, fabric, etc., because of its low efficiency in cutting and carving metal materials. Fiber laser cutting machine, also known as metal laser cutting machine, is mainly used for metal materials. Such as stainless steel, carbon steel, galvanized steel, copper, aluminum, etc.

Which Field can Metal Laser Cutting Machine Work in?

Over the past several decades, China has gradually become an international processing and manufacturing center. With the demand for metal processing is increasing, the complexity of the process is becoming higher and higher. In terms of precision, higher requirements are also put forward for sheet metal processing which is the main component of metal processing in industrial production activities, and is also an important process of forming sheet metal products. It is widely used in various fields, such as household appliances, instrument metal shells, road billboards, garbage cans, charging piles and car washing machines.

1. Automobile industry

Laser cutting machine processing technology is widely used in automobile safety system, body, chassis, interior trim, automobile electronic and electrical equipment, engine, gearbox, transmission shaft and cardan shaft, exhaust and fuel system, parts and other places. Laser cutting technology can simplify the processing steps of the body, shorten the manufacturing cycle and improve the cutting speed. At the same time, improve the quality of automobile processing to meet the processing needs of different models.

Automobile Gear Shifting Set Laser Automatic Cutting Machine

2. Coil blanking

Using laser cutting technology of open-book blanking of a complete set of production equipment, by feeding trolley, uncoiled, leveling machine, buffer loop, servo feeder (such as servo leveling and feeding machine can replace the previous leveler and buffer loop, reducing area), laser cutting device, cutting platform, pallet device, waste treatment system, hydraulic pneumatic system and electric control system, through the system control of laser cutting head in laser cutting platform of 3 d motion cutting, instead of press and die, the realization of automatic blanking of the metal belt.

Laser Blanking Production Line CPL-3X2150

3. Construction machinery industry

Most of the plates used in the construction machinery industry are medium and thick ones. Laser cutting can solve the cutting and groove problems at one time, with high accuracy, high speed, material utilization rate, and is conducive to reducing labor costs.

4. Shipbuilding industry

The marine steel plate cut by laser cutters has good cutting quality and good perpendicularity of the cut surface with no slag, thin oxide layer, and smooth surface. In addition, there is no need of the secondary processing, but to conduct direct welding. And it has small thermal deformation, high curve cutting accuracy, reduced working hours, conducive to realize barrier-free cutting of high-strength ship plate.

5. Kitchen utensils and household appliances industry

Household appliances and kitchen utensils are mainly made of metal sheets, with many visible parts and high quality requirements, so the processing technology is strictly required. In this industry, the laser cutting machine is helpful to cut the range hoods, metal cook-tops, pots and pans, electric fans, cabinets and so on. The cutting precision is extremely high, the cutting seam is extremely narrow, and the speed is extremely fast, thus improving the yield.

6. Fitness equipment industry

The diversity of fitness equipment puts forward high requirements for processing, while the traditional processing methods are complicated and inefficient. Laser cutting has high flexibility, which can perform customized flexible processing on different pipes and plates, with the finished products are smooth and burr free without secondary processing. The quality and efficiency are greatly improved compared with the traditional process.

7. Advertising metal word industry

Because of the poor machining accuracy and cutting surface of the traditional processing equipment, the rework probability is quite high. The high-precision laser cutting technology does not require secondary rework, which greatly improves work efficiency and saves enterprise costs.

How to Choose a Laser Cutting Machine?

There are many factors having an impact on your choice of a laser cutting machine.

Primarily, you should consider which industry are you work in and how thick the products you need to cut. Generally speaking, laser cutting is suitable for carbon steel below 12mm and stainless steel below 6mm in many industries, such as automobile, sheet metal, coiling blanking and so on. However, the limited cutting thickness of the laser cutting machine must be reserved! For example, the maximum cutting thickness of a laser cutting machine is 16mm, which means that the laser cutting machine can cut 16mm at most. But if the laser cutting machine cuts 16mm for a long time, the service life of this machine will be damaged. There is a difference between the maximum cutting thickness and the regular cutting thickness of the laser cutting machine.

Secondly, the breadth should be considered. At present, the mainstream cutting format in the market is 3015 (3m * 1.5m). The cutting format of the laser cutting machine is generally customized by the manufacturer according to the needs of customers.

Thirdly, rag control is also significant, which is the most concern of customers. Generally, the materials cut by the laser cutting machine will somewhat form the burr, which is mainly determined by the cutting thickness of the laser cutting machine and the gas used by the it. In most cases there is no burr when the thickness is below 4mm. As for the gas choice, nitrogen is the best, oxygen is the second, and air is the worst. Metal laser cutting will have the best performance on the thin plate. Of course, with the popularization of high-power laser cutting machines and the continuous development and improvement of equipment, it is also good at thick plates cutting now.

From the perspective of the configuration of each part of the laser cutting machine, what aspects should be considered?

1. Laser

Laser is the most important part in a laser cutting machine. The longer the service life of a good brand, the higher the stability. Choosing a good laser can make the life of the equipment longer.

2. Engraving head

The cutting head is generally composed of a nozzle, a focus lens and a focus tracking system. Good cutting head can improve cutting quality and obtain better cutting products.

3. Operating system

The main function of the operating system is to process the graphics and image files designed by the user and finally make the control instructions for driving the motor and laser, so as to complete complex processing. A good operating system has simpler interactive pages and better nesting software, thus simplifying operation and saving materials.

4. Refrigerator

A refrigerator achieves refrigeration effect through steam compression or absorption cycle. There are many brands of water chillers. Good brands can achieve stable cooling effect for a long time, so that high load laser cutting machines can also operate within a stable temperature range.

Types of Laser Cutting Machine:

Sheet Metal Laser Cutting Machine

1. GF PLUS SERIES

GF PLUS is widely used for carbon steel, stainless steel, aluminum and other metal materials cutting and forming, with high speed, high precision, high efficiency, cost-effective and energy saving. It is the first choice of the metal processing industry.

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2. GF SERIES

GF is widely used for carbon steel, stainless steel, aluminum and other metal materials cutting and forming, with high speed, high precision, high efficiency, cost-effective and energy saving. It is the first choice of the metal processing industry.

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3. MARVEL PLUS SERIES

Help growing customers to solve the problems of low investment income ratio and high equipment maintenance cost. -Meet 100% metal material processing needs -Reduced procurement costs and reduced maintenance costs -One of the mainstream purchase models for market renewal.

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4. WALC SERIES

For the super-size sheet for efficient cutting, batch used in construction machinery, shipbuilding, rail transit industry, etc. And based on the market demand of large quantity of medium and thick plate groove, we independently developed the large-area five-axis groove cutting equipment on the high-speed and high-precision Siemens system.

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5. BF Series

It is designed in elevated gantry structure and possess the characteristics of stable structure, high rigidity and high speed.

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Tube Laser Cutting Machine

1. TUBE SERIES

The fast-speed full automatic CNC tube laser cutting machine of FARLEY•LASERLAB can cut circle tubes, rectangular tubes and other irregular-shaped tubes. The new tube laser processing production line not only implements automatic production, but also breaks through the limitation of plane cutting. Achieved multi-dimensional cutting, it is the optimal choice for metal tube laser cutting. HGLaser's TP series fiber laser technology utilizes a highly innovative resonator to automatically and precisely adjust the diameter of the laser beam. This unique feature enables continuous processing of thin-to-thick materials by a single machine with no lens change or additional setup required....

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2. LT SERIES

Special machine for laser cutting of pipe fittings and profiles, the preferred equipment for contactless metal pipe processing industry.

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3. TP SERIES

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4. Profile Series

Oil slotting pipe is the key part to protect from sand during oil mining. Oil slotting pipe can be classified into five types: bridge type oil slotting pipe, drilling slotting pipe, kerf slotting pipe, composted pipe, wire-wrapped slotting pipe. Oil slotted casing pipe is cut by specialized ultra-thin cutting disk and laser beam. There are many certain configurations kerfs with shape of longitudinal or helical straight line on oil slotted casing pipe. Farley Laserlab oil slotting pipe laser cutting machine adopts advanced technology, which can cut different type of oil slotting pipe. By means of focusing, high density and high-power laser beam working on sieve pipe, on the premise of exceeding a threshold value of laser power density, heat energy from working gas and laser beam’s chemical reaction is absorbed by material, thus causing a dramatic increase in the temperature of laser sport on the surface of the casing, partial melting or gasification of workpiece material to form a hole, then relative motion of the casing and laser beam can achieve casing cutting.

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3D Laser Cutting Machine

1. AUTOBOT Series

It is a kind of laser processing equipment specially developed for automobile hot forming parts. It mainly solves the problem of cutting holes and trimming of hot forming parts. It is characterized by high precision, fast speed and good dynamic performance.

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2. SF Series

Mainly for automotive, military, aerospace, construction machinery, shipping, hardware, decoration, medical equipment, mold, household appliances, fitness equipment and other fields of customers, to solve the problem of metal workpiece THREE-DIMENSIONAL cutting, its characteristics are high precision, fast, low cost, simple operation and maintenance.

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3. 3D SR Robot Series

Farley Laserlab's new 3D robotic arm laser cutting machine is bringing the latest technology to Australian and New Zealand Manufacturing. Farley Laserlab's new 3D Robotic Arm Laser Cutting Machine is bringing the latest technology to Australian and New Zealand Manufacturing. Specifically designed for use in high volume laser cutting environments, the 3D Robotic Arm Laser will vastly improve your production efficiency and accuracy which will give you a superior product for your market.