Oxyfuel, Laser,Waterjet or Plasma? Which process suites your application best?.
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A comparison of cutting processes |
| ? | Oxyfuel | Traditional Plasma | LongLife Plasma | HyDefinition Hy- Performance Plasma | Laser | Waterjet |
| Hypertherm Systems Light-Heavy Duty | Powermax G3 1000/1250/1650 Max100 Max100D Max200 Pac500 HT400 | HT2000 HT2000LHF HT4000/HT4001 HT4100 HT4400 | HD3070 HD4070 HPR130 | 1-4 KW | 50HP 100HP | |
| Capital Costs | Low | Low-Medium. | Medium. | Medium. | High. | Medium-High. |
| Operational Costs | Relatively low utilizes large volumes of gas | Low-High Largely dependent upon plasma gas selection. Nozzles and electrodes are routinely exhausted during the cutting process | Low-High Largely dependent upon plasma gas selection. Patented Longlife technology extends consumable life 6 to 8 times longer than traditional plasma consumables | Low-High Largely dependent upon plasma gas selection. Patented Longlife technology extends consumable life 6 to 8 times longer than traditional plasma consumables | High. Electrical Usage and laser gas consumption is extensive. Mirrors and related optics add additional high costs | Low-Medium
Using high volumes of water, high cost on consumable changeover |
| Maintenance | Most service jobs can be performed by on site maintenance staff | Some service jobs can be performed by on site maintenance staff | Some service jobs can be performed by on site maintenance staff, service backup is medium cost | Some service jobs can be performed by on site maintenance staff, service backup is medium cost | Some service jobs can be performed by on site maintenance staff, service backup is high cost involves specialized technicians | Some service jobs can be performed by on site maintenance staff, service backup is high cost involves specialized technicians |
| Safety Issues | Low | Comparable to Oxyfuel | Comparable to Oxyfuel | Comparable to Oxyfuel | More expensive shielding required on some processes | Low |
| Thickness Capabilities Mild Steel | 3/16"-98" (4.8mm-2.5m) | 18 gauge-3" (1.3mm-76mm) | 18 gauge-3" (1.3mm-76mm) | 26 gauge-5/8"" (1.3mm-16mm) | 0.003"-3/4" (0.076mm-16mm) | 12 gauge - 12" (1mm-300mm) |
| Thickness Capabilities Stainless Steel | Not Used | 22 gauge-5" (0.8mm-12.7cm) | 22 gauge - 3" (0.8mm-76mm) | 28 gauge - 3/4" (0.4mm - 20mm) | 19 gauge - 5/8" (1mm - 16mm) | 22 gauge - 8" (0.8mm-150mm) |
| Thickness Capabilities Aluminum | No Used | 22 gauge-6" (0.8mm-15.2cm) | 22 gauge - 3" (0.8mm-76mm) | 18 gauge - 3/4" (1.3mm - 20mm) | 19 gauge - 5/8" (1mm - 16mm) | 12 gauge - 12" (1mm-300mm) |
| Cutting Speeds | Slow on material less than 1" thick. Speeds improve on material thicker than 2" (51mm) | Fast cutting speeds throughout thickness range | Very fast cutting speeds throughout thickness range. Fastest choice for greatest thicknesses. | The fastest choice and best cut quality over the widest range of material thicknesses. slightly slower than traditional and LongLife process. | Faster than plasma on very thin material (less than 1/8" (3.2mm)) only. | Slow cutting speeds throughout thickness range |
| Cutting Heads | Infinite | 1-4 | 1-4 | 1-4 | 1 | 1-6 |
| Materials | Mild Steel and titanium only. | All electrically conductive material. | All electrically conductive material. | All electrically conductive material. | Metals, plastic, wood and textiles | Metals, plastic, wood, textiles, leather, stone and food |
| Flexibility Across Materials | Limited. | Plasma cuts a wider range of thicknesses over more metals. | Plasma's fast speeds and ability to cut all electrically conductive metals make it an essential production tool. | More than laser, plasma tolerates rust, oil and other surface conditions. | Very good; may have difficulty on highly reflective surfaces. | Good: Cuts most materials but lacks in speed in comparison, though it is made up with quality of cut. |
| Cut Quality (kerf width, dross, squareness, smoothness) | Average | Similar to oxyfuel | Similar to oxyfuel. See chart for cut quality across thickness ranges. | Approximates laser quality on thin material and similar to oxyfuel as thickness increases | Best for plate less than 1/42 (6.4mm) thick and common line cutting. | High quality achievable, dross free, due to no heat process |
| Process Precision/ Tolerance possible | 0.03"(0.8mm) | 0.03"(0.8mm) | 0.03"(0.8mm) | 0.01" (0.23mm) | 0.003" (0.076mm) | 0.006" (0.15mm) |