INTECH North America Spotlights Thin Sheet Metal Fiber Laser Cutting Systems
Sheet metal fabricators who process thin gauge steel, stainless steel, aluminum, copper and brass evaluate two systems from Trumpf that offer a competitive advantage by reducing the cost of producing parts by up to 20 percent.
Posted: May 20, 2011
Sheet metal fabricators who process thin gauge steel, stainless steel, aluminum, copper and brass evaluate two systems from Trumpf that offer a competitive advantage by reducing the cost of producing parts by up to 20 percent.
On April 14-15, Trumpf Inc. hosted customers, distributors and members of the press at INTECH North America, an event held at their Farmington, CT, campus that featured technical presentations on laser technology and thin sheet metal applications and featured live demonstrations of two solid-state 2D laser cutting machines: the TruLaser 1030 fiber and the TruLaser 5030 fiber.
Sheet metal fabricators who process thin gauge materials will find that the TruLaser 1030 fiber offers them a definitive, competitive advantage in the marketplace. With its fiber-guided TruDisk 2001 resonator featuring 2.0 kW of solid state laser power, this fiber laser excels at extremely fast cutting of materials 0.16 in or 4 mm and less. This system also has the ability to process a wide range of materials in addition to traditional sheet metal, including highly reflective materials, such as copper and brass. This is due to the machine’s 1 micron wavelength beam from its laser, which can effectively penetrate the material.
The footprint of the TruLaser 1030 fiber is small, which means minimal space is required on the shop floor. It requires about half the floor space of a typical 5 ft x 10 ft machine. Designed and built in the U.S, this 2D laser cutting system has revolutionized the sheet metal fabricating industry since its release in the fourth quarter of 2009. “Continuing in the spirit of the TruLaser 1030 product line, this fiber system offers new technology at a low price,” said Stefan Schreiber, product manager. “With this system, we have taken a unique machine and made it even better by offering fabricators the ability to choose a 2D laser that will process thin sheet extremely fast, while providing them the utmost in efficiency, productivity and safety.”
On the other hand, sheet metal fabricators who cut parts out of thin sheet material will find that TruLaser 5030 fiber, using the fiber-guided TruDisk solid state laser, will reduce the cost of producing these parts by up to 20 percent. Because of its high dynamics, the machine is able to make full use of the solid state laser’s advantages and achieve very high cutting speeds in thin sheet when producing parts such as medical products, items for ventilation systems and façade elements.
In fusion cutting of stainless steel up to 4 mm thick (0.16 in), this fiber laser achieves feed rates up to three times faster than the CO2 version. This reduces the table time up to 45 percent and significantly decreases the cost per part. This fiber laser cuts not only construction steel, stainless steel and aluminum cost-effectively, but also non-ferrous metals, such as copper and brass.
The core of the TruLaser 5030 fiber is a fiber-guided TruDisk solid state laser with an output rating of 3 kW. With the 2D laser cutting system, users can process sheets measuring 3,000 mm x 1,500 mm (10 ft x 5 ft). To keep processing time as low as possible and to increase the flow rate of parts, this fiber system uses features that have already proven themselves in the CO2 laser version, including a single-cutting head strategy, automatic tip changer and all cutting data for a smooth cutting start.
Using a flexible beam line, the solid state laser can be placed independently of the machine. Also, the machine and the solid state laser come from the same source, which means the two components are optimally adjusted to each other. In principle, this fiber laser can cut the same sheet thicknesses as its CO2 counterpart. However, the differences lie in the quality of the components and the productivity for different sheet thicknesses. The 1.03 ?m wavelength of the solid state laser makes it possible to cut thin sheet using fusion cutting and nitrogen quickly and at the same time as high part quality.
When flame cutting construction steel, there are not decisive differences over the range of thicknesses between the two laser technologies. However, from a sheet thickness of about 4 mm (0.16 in), the advantages of CO2 lasers in fusion cutting become important as related to cut quality.
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