Why You Should Be Using Waterjet
Economical, precise, environmentally-friendly
- Competitive Prototype Cost
- Production or Limited Runs on Short Notice
- Flexibility and Speed
- Production From Your Favorite File Types, including direct production from DWG™ and DXF™ Files, CAD Files
- Accuracy and Repeatability
- Precise, Intricate Shapes With Tolerances of ±.005″ (.127mm)
- No fumes and toxins emitted during manufacture, thorough filtration pre- and post-cut!
- No problems with reflective materials such as brass and aluminum.
- No heat input, so there is no burning or heat-affected zone (HAZ).
Versatile, Capable, Competent Cutting
Whether you are cutting foam, foil, rubber, plate metal, plastic, ceramic, or composites, we can help you. Tekla Waterjet’s cutting process promises smoother finishes, faster turnaround, and higher-quality product. You can almost definitely gain significant savings in time and money.
From educational materials to flat-pack furniture designs to custom signage to complex aerospace details, Tekla Waterjet can do it!
Send us an email with your material, tolerances (if applicable), and ideas for a free quote!
Compare with other methods and find the right solution for you!
We won’t always be the best solution, and we won’t try to sell you something you don’t need.
Our honest appraisal of most cutting alternatives is detailed below.
Waterjet
The most efficient process in most cases. Compare and see why!
- Accuracy: Average of ±.003″
- Thickness: 0.005″-6″ Standard
- Cutting Speed: 5-10x faster than EDM in most cases
- Edge Quality: Good
- Material Distortion: No
- Heat-Affected Zone: No
- Material Limitation: Virtually all materials except extraordinarily hard ceramics and tempered glass
- Setup: Fast, easy, repeatable, and often fixture-free
- Process: Cold, supersonic abrasive used to cut through material
Wire EDM
- Accuracy: ±.0001″
- Thickness: Up to 12″
- Cutting Speed: 5-10x slower than waterjet
- Edge Quality: Excellent
- Material Distortion: No
- Heat-Affected Zone: Some
- Material Limitation: Conductive materials only, little versatility outside metals
- Setup: Relatively easy
- Process: Spark erosion used to remove material from electrically conducive substrates
Laser
- Accuracy: ±.001″
- Thickness: Generally less than 0.25″
- Cutting Speed: Very fast cutting in thin, non-reflective materials
- Edge Quality: Excellent
- Material Distortion: Possible
- Heat-Affected Zone: Yes
- Material Limitation: only non-reflective metals, little versatility
- Setup: Relatively easy, laser must be tuned for different metals
- Process: Thermal/Burning
Plasma
- Accuracy: ±.030″ to ±.060″
- Thickness: Less than 1.25″
- Cutting Speed: Fast in thin sheets
- Edge Quality: Fair
- Material Distortion: Possible
- Heat-Affected Zone: Yes
- Material Limitation: Most metals
- Setup: Relatively easy
- Process: Thermal/Burning
Milling*
- Accuracy: ±.0003″
- Thickness: Works for 3D parts, no significant thickness limitation
- Cutting Speed: Fair
- Edge Quality: Excellent
- Material Distortion: No
- Heat-Affected Zone: No
- Material Limitation: Limited by table size, difficulty with laminates and thin parts
- Setup: Extremely time-consuming, lots of programming and operator attendance
- Process: Mechanical
Punch Press
- Accuracy: Fair
- Thickness: Works well for thin sheets
- Cutting Speed: Fast batch production after initial programming and setup
- Edge Quality: Fair
- Material Distortion: Some
- Heat-Affected Zone: No
- Material Limitation: Primarily used for sheet metals
- Setup: Time-consuming, expensive programming
- Process: Shearing
*Mantissa Industries, which Tekla Waterjet’s services fall within, has milling and turning capabilities in house. Integrated manufacturing is possible!