Why plasma?

Thick	Laser Laser provides excellent cut quality and productivity on material less than 6 mm. Laser technology has high capital equipment, running and maintenance costs, therefore a high level of business volume is required to pay back the cost of the equipment. Plasma Plasma provides an optimal mix of cut quality, productivity and operating cost for mild steel, stainless and aluminum across a wide range of thicknesses at a competitive capital equipment price.
38 mm (1 1/2")

Material thickness

6 mm 1/4" Thin
	Low volume	Business volume	High volume

Better cut quality

Greater material flexibilty Significantly higher productivity Signifcantly lower cost per length of cut

Significantly higher productivity

Increases flexibility to cut a wide range of material thicknesses and types

Significantly lower capital, operating and maintenance costs

	Oxyfuel	Plasma	Laser

Oxyfuel Oxyfuel is limited to mild steel and is not effective on stainless steel or aluminum. Cut quality	Good angularity Large heat-affected zone Dross levels require rework Not effective on stainless steel or aluminum	Excellent angularity Small heat-affected zone Virtually dross-free Good to excellent fine-feature cutting.	Excellent angularity Small heat-affected zone Virtually dross-free Good to excellent fine-feature cutting with narrowest kerf

Productivity	Slow cutting speeds Pre-heat time increases pierce times	Very fast cutting speeds for all thicknesses Very fast pierce times Quick-disconnect torches maximize productivity	Very fast on thin material (less than 6 mm-1/4") and slower on thicker material Long pierce times on thick material

Operating cost	Poor productivity and required rework drive cost per part higher than plasma.	Long consumable life, good productivity and excellent cut quality drive the cost per part lower than other technologies.	High costs per part due to power requirements, gas consumption, high maintenance costs and relatively low cut speeds on thick material.

Maintenance	Simple maintenance requirements can often be performed by in-house maintenance groups.	Moderate maintenance requirements: many components are servicable by in-house maintenance groups.	Complex maintenance tasks require specialized technicians.