Precision Laser Cutting

Laser Cutting Services

Laser cutting has become the technology of choice for the micro components manufacturers, due to its micron tolerances and its flexibility in handling contours. Some of the most common precision cutting applications include:

• Components and assemblies for the medical industry using metals approved for medical implants and stents
• Parts for models and prototypes
• 3D parts from tubular material
• Parts from plated metals

Your Laser Cutting Partner

ANV has built its reputation on its very personal approach to each customer’s laser cutting requirements. We make every effort to understand each project in depth in order to achieve optimal results. At the very outset we are often able to help improve and upgrade a component’s design in order to optimize the production process.

Once we receive the final CAD design files our experienced engineers and technicians do the coding necessary to set up the precision laser cutting process. Before every production batch we prepare the fiber laser cutting machine for optimal performance by cleaning and polishing the optics, centering the nozzle, and calibrating the beam focus.

1. We carefully check the geometric dimensions of the first component produced, adjust the setup as necessary to ensure complete conformity to the design specs, and then continue the run.
2. Our Quality Control lab will then conduct tests as per customer request, including Austenite Final temperature (Af), electro-polish, geometric dimensions, pre-clinical bench testing, etc.
3. Our expertise, our state-of-the-art equipment and our results-oriented approach ensure a streamlined process for rapid prototyping of even the most complex components.

Our Laser Facilities

ANV’s laser production services are organized into several departments, each with its own specialized expertise but all working hand-in-hand to produce top-quality results in the shortest time possible.

Laser Cutting and Laser Welding Department

The laser cutting department uses state-of-the-art equipment such as fiber laser cutting machines. A unique visual system that we have developed and integrated into our laser-cutting machines lets us perform highly precise laser cutting on parts with no length limit and in varying dimensions. Our mechanical engineers and technologists are highly experienced, with extensive expertise in both laser cutting and laser welding procedures.

Electro-Chemical Treatment Department

Most of the components that we produce require specialized electro-chemical surface treatments, such as electro-polishing. The head of our electro-chemical treatment department is a PhD with 40+ years of experience in the field. The electro-chemical treatments are designed and executed by in-house chemical engineers, including developing our own electro-polishing solutions and equipment.

Thermal Treatment Department

It is not unusual that after laser cutting a component will undergo a series of heat shaping treatments. Our thermal treatment department is equipped with automated fluidized bath systems, a vacuum furnace and an air furnace, which allow us to perform a wide variety of thermal treatments. We also have our own workshop in which we build custom-made mandrels and jigs to meet each product’s shaping requirements.

Quality Control Department

Laser cutting quality is determined by a number of widely established criteria such as burr absence/presence, roughness, dimensional accuracy, formation of a heat affected zone (HAZ), oxide formation, etc. ANV ensures that each step of its precision laser production process will contribute to a final product of the highest quality. Our quality control department has trained personnel and cutting-edge equipment to verify that the results meet the customer’s quality requirements.

We are especially proud of the NCAT (Non Contact Af Tester) – a novel device that we have developed to determine the martensite-to-austenite transformation temperatures of either fully annealed or heat-treated nickel-titanium alloys by measuring the deformation recovered during the thermal transformation. The NCAT can determine the martensite-to-austenite transformation temperature (Af) for several devices & different shapes at the same time.

The Benefits of Laser Cutting

The following are some of the key benefits of precision laser cutting over other cutting technologies such as plasma, chemical etching or oxy-fuel:

• Remarkably high-quality surface finish, with the cut product rarely requiring additional finishing work such as burr removal.
• A fast processing method with ultra-high precision (5 microns tolerance).
• Because laser cutting is a non-contact process, there is virtually no surface blemishing, contamination, or part damage in even the most delicate components.
• Its very small Heat Affected Zone (HAZ) reduces part distortion/warping, which is critical for ultra-precision products such as medical implants or aerospace components.
• Optimal material usage: Efficient part nesting due to narrow kerf (cut) widths and programming flexibility.
• Computer-generated repetition of motion yields unmatched part production repeatability and accuracy.
• Cost-effective rapid design changes and small runs: no tooling required, minimal setup times, maximum programming flexibility.
• Decreased noise and decreased risk of operator injury compared to other manufacturing processes.
• Laser cutting environmentally safer and cleaner since it does not use chemicals or other toxic materials.

About Laser Cutting

Lasers (Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation) have been a byword for efficiency and quality in materials processing since their advent in the 1960s. By far the most popular application of lasers is for cutting.

The laser beam is a column of very high intensity light of a single wavelength. Laser cutting works by directing the output of a high-power laser, most commonly through optics. The focused laser beam, whose width can be adjusted, is directed at the material, which then melts, burns, vaporizes or is blown away, leaving an edge with a high-quality surface finish. A continuous cut is produced by moving the laser beam or workpiece under CNC control. Industrial laser cutters are used to cut flat-sheet material as well as structural and piping materials. Laser cutters are generally best suited to thin materials of <12mm.