Waterjet Cutting

Waterjet Cutting Services

TYMETAL Corp.’s custom waterjet cutting services have a variety of applications in many industries, such as aerospace, automotive, manufacturing, and architecture. Possibilities range from cutting complex three-dimensional shapes to simple straight cuts.

Waterjet cutting has become a staple in the aforementioned industries. When compared to laser and plasma cutting, waterjet cutting is suitable for a much more comprehensive range of materials. 

Waterjet Cutting Machine

TYMETAL utilizes a Flow Mach 500 4020 equipped with a Dynamic XD cutting head for its waterjet cutting services. This type of five-axis waterjet cutting capability gives your projects the power of precision that is crucial to your business.

Waterjet Cutting Materials

Waterjet cutting is a machining process that uses a high-pressure stream of water, often mixed with abrasive media, to cut through a wide variety of materials. This versatile and precise cutting method is widely used in various industries to achieve custom cutting and shaping of manufacturing materials such as metals, plastics, ceramics, composites, and more. In fact, waterjets can cut virtually anything provided exposure to water won’t cause any issues with the material.

Waterjet Cutting Applications

In the past 15 years, waterjet cutting has become one of the fastest-growing machine tool processes worldwide. The unique capabilities of waterjet cutting make it one of the most versatile production processes, and manufacturers in numerous industries have found a variety of applications for abrasive waterjet technology, including:

• Metal Cutting: used in the manufacture of aerospace components, automotive parts, and architectural metalwork
• Composite Material Cutting: used in industries such as aerospace and wind energy, where lightweight and durable components are essential
• Plastics Cutting: used for applications in signage, packaging, and component manufacturing
• Gasket and Seal Manufacturing: used to precisely cut gaskets and seals from various materials, ensuring tight seals in machinery and equipment

Advantages of Waterjet Cutting

The key advantage of waterjet cutting is its ability to cut a wide variety of materials with high precision, minimal heat generation, and no introduction of hazardous fumes or dust, making it suitable for many industries and applications. Let’s take a closer look at some of the unique advantages of choosing waterjet cutting for your next fabrication project:

Precision

Waterjet cutting provides high precision and accuracy, allowing the professional designers at TYMETAL to utilize tight tolerances and machine operators to cut intricate shapes with ease. This precision is especially valuable in industries where precise parts are required, such as aerospace and automotive manufacturing.

3-D Cutting Capabilities

When equipped with advanced cutting head wrist mechanics, waterjets can cut 3D shapes that contain features such as beveled edges and weld prep surfaces.

Ability to Cut Thicker Materials

Our waterjet generates a jet stream of water and abrasive that cuts materials measuring from 0.005 inches up to 12 inches thick. Most production laser cutters will top out at one inch (steel) and are only capable of cutting certain material types.

High Accuracy

Our advanced computer nesting software allows our waterjets to cut through any material with high accuracy. Waterjet systems can successfully attain tight tolerances as precise as one thousandth of an inch.

Versatility

Waterjet cutting can be used to cut a wide range of materials, including metals, plastics, ceramics, glass, composites, stone, and more. This versatility makes it a go-to option for applications involving various materials. If a material can withstand exposure to water during the cutting process, it can be cut on a waterjet.

No Material Hardening

Waterjet cutting doesn’t produce a HAZ (heat affected zone) in the material, which occurs with all heat-based cutting methods. This is advantageous when working with metals, as it avoids the need for additional machining to remove hardened edges and allows for secondary processes like tapping to be accomplished right off the machine with no additional machining required, saving time.

Environmentally Friendly

Waterjet cutting is an environmentally friendly process because it doesn’t generate hazardous fumes, gases, or dust. It also reduces the need for coolants and lubricants, further minimizing the environmental impact.

Easy Programming

Programs for waterjet cutting can handle complicated designs geometry with ease. Programmable computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) and nesting software allows operators to import waterjet cutting designs in .dxf and .dwg files formats and even certain 3D model file formats such as .igs and .stp.

Quick Turnaround

Because waterjets don’t require heat for the cutting process and are capable of attaining high cut speeds, you’ll get a quick turnaround on your projects.