Why Water Jet Cutting is the Perfect Technology

Water Jet Cutting is close to being a perfect technology.

That’s a bold claim, you might think we’ve gone too far – got overly excited given our job is water jet cutting. However, hear us out!

Water jet cutting does one task to perfection, not just in the cutting itself but in all aspects of how it operates.

 

Perfection in cutting

Of course, we should start with the cutting. With a water jet, you can cut materials to a depth other technologies cannot match. You can also cut almost any material.

Combine the two and you have a technology that can metal to a depth of 25 centimetres, a laser, by way of comparison, struggles to cut through 3 centimetres of plastic.

True perfection might be the ability to cut through any material to any depth – and water jets are forever flowing in that direction. The jet pressure is increasing, and so the depth and speed of cuts will only increase.

What is certain is that for the vast majority of jobs, a water jet is capable of making the cut.

 

Perfection in the finished part

 

Whoever first described water jet cutting as being akin to accelerated erosion was spot on. The water jet creates the cut in the same way as the lapping of the tide might smooth a rock.

And, like the rock, the part cut is unharmed. There is no heat created in the cut, no friction burns or marks. Instead there is a cut that has happened through erosion – just extremely accelerated erosion.

With other technologies, there is a danger that the cut part could suffer structural damage – the heat applied to the edge being cut can weaken that area. This danger simply does not exist with water jets, and this is why industries such as automobile and aviation now rely on water jet cutting so heavily.

 

Perfection in accuracy

Depending on the nature of the job, water jet cutting can have an accuracy of 0.2mm. Again, this beats other technologies when all factors are taken into consideration. Laser cutters sometimes claim to have an even greater accuracy, but the heat generated in laser cutting can also cause micro abrasions, and these will make any miniscule gain in nozzle accuracy redundant.

 

A perfect one-stop solution

With water jet cutting, it is possible to undertake even the most complex cutting of parts in one process.

Modern XD cutting – 3 dimensional cutting that is – uses cutting heads that move in multiple axis and so can cut complex three dimensional parts without the need for secondary cutting (which would add both expense and time to the job).

With water jet cutting, a large, three dimensional cut can be carried out in one fluid motion, with no damage to the part and accuracy unrivalled by any other cutting technology.

 

Perfect for the environment

No heat created, no harmful waste products. Water jet cutting simply uses water with an abrasive.

No cutting technology is going to be perfect, in that some energy has to be used – but, in water jet cutting you have a technology which is far kinder to the planet than other options.

 

All round perfection

All the above is why we think water jet cutting is the closest thing to a perfect cutting technology – and it’s also the technology which is still improving, with higher water pressure, faster cutting and more accurate cutting heads.

If you are interested in discussing water jet cutting for your job, even if it;s just to find out whether it might be a suitable technology, then please do get in touch.

At TMC Water Jet, we are leading UK water jet cutters, we were first to bring in X cutting, we have cutting head accuracy that matches the best on offer.

And we are a business that has worked with clients ranging from the smallest business to multinationals. If it needs cutting, we can cut it!

Call us today on 01625 610 441.