Cut Faster Laser Cutting with 24 Kilowatts

Related Vendors

Taiwan Machine Tool & Accessory Builders' Association (TMBA)

Wuxi InfiMotion Technology Co., Ltd.

SIMTOS (Seoul International Machine Tool Show)

Rime GmbH has recently been using a TruLaser 5060 Fiber from Trumpf for high-power laser cutting.

Rieme in Riesa is a contract manufacturer and has successfully held its market position for over 30 years. Laser cutting has played a major role for the company and its customers for two decades. Due to the depth of manufacturing and the wide range of parts, there were temporary bottlenecks despite a total of four laser cutting systems. Therefore, an investment was made in another system: a TruLaser 5060 Fiber with 24 kilowatts from Trumpf.

Buying a machine must be a well-considered step, but the daunting task comes later for most companies. Does the machine maintain the quality and promised performance as seen in the showroom? Is it easy to integrate the machine into production? Can the service provide professional support in case of breakdowns? Rime was able to address all these questions after a six-month delivery time.

Cutting Results with Different Process Gases

After the smooth installation of the system and operator training in March 2024, the first cutting trials with the high-power laser could begin. The cutting speeds are impressive on almost all high-power cutting systems and cannot be compared with CO₂ technologies anymore. Materials such as aluminum, stainless steel, high-strength steels, or structural steels can be cut reliably up to a thickness of 50 millimeters (approx. 2 inches).

Feeds of over 18 meters (approx. 59 ft) per minute on 6-millimeter (approx. 0.2 inch) steel sheets could be tested with a nitrogen cut. This is one of the biggest advantages of fiber technology. Unfortunately, this process also has a downside: the formation of the fiber burr known in the industry. With certain material thicknesses and qualities, burr formation often occurs. As Rime and its customers demand high quality, this burr is removed before further processing through grinding machines or manual deburring. As with previous generations of laser cutting machines, cutting with oxygen is possible. The great advantage of this process is the reduction of the cutting burr. In turn, however, an oxide layer forms on the cut surface of the laser part.

It must be Weighed

The customer's requirements for the laser part and the cut surface determine which process gas is used. Machine builders are also familiar with the fiber burr and know the issues in the field. Generally, the topic is approached very pragmatically. Energy is still being invested in optimizing the nitrogen cut. Larger manufacturers mix a small amount of oxygen with nitrogen, thus being able to reduce the fiber burr and refine the cut appearance. Rime's conclusion from the analysis of the cutting results is that it must be weighed whether one prefers the advantage of speed or little to no rework. In both areas, the 5060 Fiber is outstanding.

Rime GmbH has a large inventory of over 500 material variations with various material types, surfaces, and thicknesses. During the cutting trials and the first production hours, Rime experts found that the 24-kilowatt machine is more sensibly used in the thicker range. The segment defined for Rime starts with 6-millimeter thick sheet material and ends at 40 millimeters (approx. 1.6 inches). For the most part, the machine is used by us for cutting structural steels or low-wear steels. In the production of laser parts from stainless steel, it is also on par with other machines.

Automation Solution Currently still Difficult

Some customers demand a bevel cut for laser parts. Rime has another XXL-format laser that has this feature integrated. The TruLaser, honestly, cannot quite compete in this area. Although Trumpf was able to adjust with the special function Edge Line Bevel, from Rime's perspective, this processing is not comparable to a "proper" bevel cut.

The cutting speed has already been positively mentioned. However, this also presents new challenges for Rime. Loading the machine with new sheet material and clearing the cut products take time. An automation solution is currently still difficult for Rime due to the variety of parts, production from batch size 1, and part lengths up to 6000 millimeters.

Machine Authentication

Machine Operator Authentication - Why knowing "who" matters