Making microbulk work in laser applications

摘要

Many laser-cutting facilities are exploring microbulk gas delivery as a way to improve their bottom lines. Often, these companies find that moving away from liquid nitrogen cylinders boosts their production capacity, slashes downtime, and frees up valuable floorspace. Take, for instance. Cutting Edge Laser, Covington, Ga. The manufacturer of highly engineered metal and fabricated components was losing valuable floor space and incurring additional labor costs because of its gas-supply chain. The company used up to 40 liquid nitrogen cylinders, or dewars, per month to fuel its 2,000-W laser. Each dewar lasted 1 to 3 hr, depending upon the thickness of the steel being cut. Doug Nielsen, co-owner, says that when the laser was running nonstop, the production team changed cylinders throughout the day. At any one time, about 10 full and empty cylinders took up valuable floorspace. Moreover, with each cylinder change-out, the laser-cutting line was down for about 30 min. The company installed a vaporizer, allowing a change-out while a tank was in use. But the production team still had problems maintaining sufficient pressure to keep the laser cutter running.