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Information Sheets
Laser Processing Machines
To do its work safely, reliably and cost-effectively, the laser source must be integrated with numerous other items to yield ‘a machine’.
The vital ingredients that convert a collection of components into a machine are a structure and control appropriate to the range of work to be done.
The machine may ‘stand alone’ or be integrated with other machines into a production line. Stand alone machines may be general- or special-purpose, the difference being that special purpose machines are optimised to perform a small range of pre-defined tasks at low cost, for example resistor-trimming.
Standard, general purpose machines have been developed to undertake a wide range of work and be easy to set-up for a new task. They are generally built to meet forecast business and have standard prices and delivery. Other machines, known variously as ‘custom’, ‘bespoke’ or ‘design to order’ are developed to meet the requirements of a particular customer in batches of ‘one to a few’. They are usually special-purpose machines and may evolve into standard special-purpose machines.
It is common for prototyping of a high volume product to undertaken on a general purpose machine. As soon as the design is frozen sufficiently, a custom machine may be commissioned. This will give greater throughput at lower cost per part. As volume ramps up, additional machines may be introduced until there emerges a standard machine.
| Standard | Bespoke, Custom or Design to order | |
|---|---|---|
| Special Purpose |
Dedicated to a well-defined task |
Stand-alone or In-line |
| General Purpose |
Wide range of work |
Specification and Justification
The only relevant justification for laser processing is that it yields the lowest cost of ownership. However, it is non-trivial to assess the process costs for each candidate process and system, particularly as the result is sensitive to each company‘s finance practices. Before quotations for potential laser solutions can be obtained, a clear system specification must be established. With this knowledge it is possible to identify all the other costs. The same must be done for each candidate technology.
Safety and Reliability
Safety can be a contentious issue in an organisation unfamiliar with the use of laser machines. It is wise to begin to address safety awareness at all levels in the organisation as soon as laser processing becomes a serious possibility.
The reliability of laser machines is affected by some different issues from conventional machine tools. It is important to understand all aspects of reliability as they affect the specification and the introduction of the machine into the production environment.
Samples
It is of inestimable value to all parties that truly representative parts of the correct material be processed before contract placement and during factory and site acceptance tests. These parts should preferably be from the same batch and be of identical material, so an adequate number of parts must be set aside for this purpose at the start of the project. There should be enough that unprocessed parts remain after completed machine acceptance because they greatly facilitate identification of any illusive processing problems during the machine‘s working life.