Content tagged with "laser"
Results: 43
Spanish
November 12, 2009
Láser y chorro de agua: ¿amigos o enemigos?
Figura 1
Las partes de muestra en tres espesores y dos materiales demuestran las diferencias entre el corte con un láser (izquierda) y con un chorro de agua (derecha). Los espesores de las partes, de arriba a abajo, son 0.125 pulg., 0.5 pulg., y 0.75 pulg. Los materiales son acero... Read more...
Article
June 29, 2009
Venting on the subject of clean shop air
For a ventilation system connected to a thermal cutting machine to function properly, it is best that the equipment is placed away from open shop doors and standing fans. A moderate breeze can overpower the ventilation effort very quickly. However, another reality is that today's fabricating... Read more...
Article
January 27, 2009
Laser and waterjet: friends or foes?
Fabrication has long been a cornerstone of U.S. manufacturing. It plays a central role, providing components and subassemblies to other manufacturing sectors, such as aerospace, appliance, and automotive. Significant advancements in metalworking equipment, materials, and applications have... Read more...
Article
July 15, 2008
Laser optics: Special delivery
Figure 1
Advanced optical components are required in beam-shaping devices for high-powered lasers.
In CO 2 laser cutting and welding, optics is where the rubber hits the road. No matter how precise the motion control or the beam quality from the resonator is, a high-quality, highly... Read more...
Article
July 10, 2007
Lifestyle trends expand use of lasers, ALAW presenters say
When the Fabricators & Manufacturers Association, Intl. (FMA), Rockford, Ill., and the Laser Institute of America (LIA), Orlando, Fla., announced in April 2006 that they had purchased the Automotive Laser Application Workshop (ALAW), FMA President and CEO Gerald Shankel explained FMA's... Read more...
Spanish
July 10, 2007
3 pasos para mejorar el mantenimiento de los láser
Los usuarios de máquinas láser lo saben, pero con frecuencia lo ignoran. Los manufactureros de láser le tienen una fe ciega, pero con frecuencia no lo promocionan.
Es el mantenimiento, y debería ser la consigna de todo aquél que posea y opere un láser. Con los tiempos de entrega y... Read more...
Article
November 9, 2004
Selecting a tube cutting process
Tube fabricators use a variety of methods—sawing, lathe cutting, rotary cutting, supported shear cutting, dual-blade shear cutting, and laser cutting—to cut tubing from mill lengths into shorter pieces for use in final fabrication. No single method is optimal for cutting the... Read more...
Article
September 14, 2004
Thinking about an equipment upgrade?
It's no secret that manufactured products change continuously. Technological developments and higher consumer expectations are two of the forces that drive changes in nearly every manufactured item. Just as manufactured goods change, so do the approaches used to manufacture them. From... Read more...
Article
July 13, 2004
Article
June 8, 2004
Plasma pleases plenty
In case you missed it, check out this excerpt from the article "National research programs explore plate welding for shipbuilding" in the March 2004 issue of The FABRICATOR®: One project objective is to introduce laser cutting technology—which is already being used to cut sheet... Read more...
Article
February 12, 2004
Laser cell system gives job shop the home field advantage
Photo courtesy of Lund Industries Inc., Wheeling, Ill. No stranger to the economic fluctuations in the industry, the 50-employee company has weathered the heavy volume demands in the economic boom of the late '90s as well as the current intense global tournament that has forced U.S.... Read more...
Article
February 12, 2004
Cutting through five myths about modern lasers
The following five myths about modern laser cutting machines can help the experienced user stay on top of the game and give the prospective laser user a few things to keep in mind. Myth 1: Automated laser cutting systems are too complicated, expensive, and big for small and medium-sized... Read more...
Article
January 13, 2004
Producing side-impact profiles
Euro-NCAP, which stands for European New Car Assessment Program, was introduced in 1997 by five European governments, together with the European Commission. The results of this program are followed closely by the general public, so much so that hardly any automobile producer would risk... Read more...
Article
November 20, 2003
Laser tube processing
Although many new applications are made possible by modern lasers, laser processing is not entirely new to tube production. Manufacturers have used lasers to cut tube and pipe since the late 1970s. At job shops most of this laser tube cutting was performed on flat sheet cutting laser... Read more...
Article
November 20, 2003
Six-axis tube laser adds new dimension to job shop
Nine years ago co-owners Phil Kooima and his father, John, got out of the stamping business and into lasers. They now have seven flatbed laser cutting machines from 1,000 to 6,000 watts, along with press brakes, robotic welders, and other support equipment in their 90,000-square-foot... Read more...
Article
October 23, 2003
Pinpointing future laser welding markets
While some laser welding equipment manufacturers are thriving right now, others still fight a battle as old as the technology itself—gaining acceptance for equipment that carries a hefty initial price tag (albeit one that can save money over time). Consequently laser welding... Read more...
Article
October 23, 2003
Using a gel-type tube lube
As one manufacturer of automotive exhaust assemblies recently discovered, selecting the most appropriate lubricant for a tube bending operation can have a dramatic impact on part quality, workplace cleanliness, and economic efficiency. Although the liquid lubricant it was using was reliable and... Read more...
Article
September 25, 2003
Roll formers look for a win
Many systems enable users to download a DXF drawing directly into the roll forming line's computer. Not everyone can be the New York Yankees, or even the roll forming version—especially in today's economic climate. It would be nice, though. The Bronx Bombers have used a fat wallet... Read more...
Article
September 25, 2003
Supporting the defense
United Defense's motto is Changing the future of defense™. One of its latest missions toward this goal was to introduce a direct diode laser into its Aberdeen, S.D., manufacturing facility. The company designs, develops, and produces combat vehicles, artillery, naval guns, missile... Read more...
Article
September 25, 2003
Article
April 24, 2003
Improving the bottom line in automotive applications
Total Cost of Quality
Most people think only about the costs associated with internal failures, such as rejects or scrap, and external failures, such as shipped product that needs to be repaired, scrapped, or returned. Other costs associated with quality that can be incurred include appraisal... Read more...
Article
March 13, 2003
Mechanized plasma cutting for HVAC applications
Today many HVAC shops use plasma cutters—both hand-held torches and CNC mechanized systems—to cut material for fabrication. These fabricators find that for their applications, plasma is a fast, clean, economical way for them to cut light-gauge metal. This overview of... Read more...
Article
December 12, 2002
Testing new waters Down Under
The Australian auto industry appears to have shrugged off global economic uncertainty to boost sales of new cars and trucks to 772,681 units in 2001, a 1.8 percent jump from 2000, according to the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI). The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS,... Read more...
Article
November 7, 2002
Focusing on tube cutting lasers
Object
It travels at 186,287.490 miles per second (299,792,458 meters per sec.). Its visible spectrum ranges from 400 to 700 nanometers. Its smallest unit is a packet of energy, a photon. While its chief use is illumination, it has many other commercial, industrial, and military... Read more...
Article
August 29, 2002
Get the most out of your laser
Gas quality and delivery system integrity play key roles in ensuring that downtime and repair costs are minimized. To make sure you're getting high-quality gas at the laser, the gas source and gas distribution system need to be maintained at an optimum level. To minimize downtime and... Read more...
Article
March 13, 2002
Article
November 15, 2001
Adaptive bending
In conventional press brake bending, the bend angle obtained often differs from the programmed angle even though it is produced on a CNC machine. To overcome this problem, the bend angle can be measured during the forming process and this information fed to the numerical control. This process... Read more...
Article
October 25, 2001
Article
October 11, 2001
Installing and maintaining coil cradles and reels
All stamping and forming operations outside of the powder or forging industries begin with coiled steel. In many fabricators' plants, the decoiler, payoff reel, recoiler, tensioner, or other coil handling equipment require constant maintenance. Installation The nature of the... Read more...
Article
September 17, 2001
Working safely with metalworking fluids
Metalworking fluids (MWFs) are widely used in many manufacturing industries. These fluids are used in the cutting, machining, and grinding of metal parts to cool and lubricate tools and workpieces, wash away the removed metal, prolong tool life, and prevent corrosion of the workpiece.... Read more...
Article
September 17, 2001
Article
September 17, 2001
Monitoring laser beam performance
In the last 20 years, the use of industrial lasers for cutting, drilling, welding, marking, and cladding has increased dramatically. Industrial lasers, unlike their laboratory cousins, are not designed with continuous monitoring in mind. The laser often is assumed to be operating at peak... Read more...
Article
September 17, 2001
Welding exhaust system components
In the field of automobile exhaust systems, such components as manifolds, pipes, catalytic converters, and mufflers are joined either by the car manufacturer or by a subcontractor to form a subassembly ready for attachment. Today, large numbers of these components are welded with a laser.... Read more...
Article
September 4, 2001
Exploring complementary cutting methods
Diversification is the linchpin of running a successful business. The key to producing quality work and investing in equipment wisely is knowing which cutting method—laser, plasma, electrical discharge machining, waterjet, or another—to use for a particular application. While... Read more...
Article
September 4, 2001
Putting a spark into cutting productivity
Figure 1 There are many ways to cut sheet, plate, tubing, and structural shapes, ranging from a hand hacksaw to power shears and lasers. The best choice depends on the situation at hand, but the goal always is to achieve the best cost, quality, and schedule results. While... Read more...
Article
August 16, 2001
In search of the perfect bend
Press brake manufacturers have made tremendous advances in the art of machine design and manufacturing. Machine frame components are designed to use proven mechanical engineering principles combined with CAD technology to identify the areas most susceptible to stresses consistent with the metal... Read more...
Article
July 12, 2001
Laser welding of stainless pressure tubes
The vast majority of welded stainless steel pressure tubing is produced with the gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) process. This process often is referred to as tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding. However, with the recent advent of reliable, high-power laser power sources, the laser beam... Read more...
Article
July 12, 2001
Turning up the power
Industry trends indicate that metal fabricators increasingly are selecting higher-power lasers for cutting applications. Two years ago, the most common power levels ranged between 1,500 and 2,000 watts. However, a statistical survey conducted by the AMT Laser System Product Group indicates a... Read more...
Article
May 15, 2001
Safety Fundamentals for Today's Industrial Lasers
In today's industrial workplace, lasers are used for cutting and welding metals, bar code scanning, inventory tracking, parts identification, measurement, as well as rapid prototyping. Simply put, the uses are many, and the applications seem limitless.
In a recent report... Read more...
Article
April 24, 2001
Predicting the outcomes of laser thermal forming
Applying a laser or any other high-density heat source to the surface of a metal sheet for a short time will distort the metal. If this distortion could be predicted, the laser could be directed so that the sheet metal would form the desired shape. This idea opens up many possibilities,... Read more...
Article
April 24, 2001
Troubleshooting your stamping operation
A manufacturing process can be defined as altering the configuration or shape of raw material and/or previously manufactured components with a combination of equipment, tools, and operators to create a new product. Over time, any manufacturing process becomes vulnerable to alteration through... Read more...
Article
March 26, 2001
Producing quality ASTM A249 and ASME SA 249 pressure tubes
Object Producing quality ASTM A249 and ASME SA249 pressure tubes takes more than just applying a stencil to the product. It requires a manufacturing process and a quality system that not only provide an excellent weld, but also condition the weld through proper cold working (forging) and... Read more...
Article
February 19, 2001
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