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Laser Cutting Laser cutting is a technology that uses a laser to cut materials, and is usually used in industrial manufacturing. Laser cutting works by directing the output of a high power laser, by computer, at the material to be cut. The material then either melts, burns or vaporizes away leaving an edge with a high quality surface finish. Industrial laser cutters are used to cut flat-sheet material as well as structural and piping materials. Some 6-axis lasers can perform cutting operations on parts that have been pre-formed by casting or machining. Advantages of laser cutting over mechanical cutting vary according to the situation, but two important factors are the lack of physical contact (since there is no cutting edge which can become contaminated by the material or contaminate the material), and to some extent precision (since there is no wear on the laser). There is also a reduced chance of warping the material that is being cut as laser systems have a small heat affected zone. Some materials are also very difficult or impossible to cut by more traditional means. Laser cutters usually work much like a milling machine would for working a sheet in that the laser (equivalent to the mill) enters through the side of the sheet and cuts it through the axis of the beam. In order to be able to start cutting from somewhere else than the edge, a pierce is done before every cut. Piercing usually involves a high power pulsed laser beam which slowly (taking around 5-15 seconds for half-inch thick stainless steel, for example) makes a hole in the material.
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