Economic benefits of laser materials processing

Lasers for manufacturing applications are reliable, proven tools that compete on an economic and productivity basis with more traditional technologies. Manufacturing processes include joining (welding, soldering and brazing), cutting, drilling and heat treatment. Some of the main advantages of choosing the technology are listed, In many cases, the operating parameters and environment can be chosen so that finished part quality is achieved without any further (often expensive) post processing. These advantages allow new, more cost effective, designs to be used in manufactured products. In addition, the very localised nature of the laser beam input, with the right choice of wavelength and pulse parameters often allow new materials to be used in products that are not considered processable by conventional means. The non-contact nature of laser products means that they don´t wear out and can be readily reused when the part or processing requirements change. The author´s company services and supports many lasers which the company supplied to customers in 1970s, indicating that they are still being well used