Waterjet cutting and integrated machining for composite and advanced materials — cutting, milling and drilling on one platform.
Composites punish heat and delamination, which is why a cold process is often specified. A thermal cut chars the resin at the kerf and leaves the fibres at the edge unsupported; a mechanical cut that pushes the material can separate the layers before the tool has finished. Abrasive waterjet removes the material with a stream of water and abrasive, so the cut is made without heat and without the tool pressure that opens a laminate.
Composites, layered materials and mixed-material stacks are quoted per application: the build-up of the stack, the fibre direction and the finish you need all change the cutting parameters, so the configuration is confirmed against your drawing and, where useful, against a sample of the material.
Waterjet plus milling, drilling and edge processing on one platform, so a part does not have to be re-clamped between operations.
Bevels, angles and complex contours for shaped composite parts cut in one setup.
Straight 2D profiles on panels and flat parts where the cut stays vertical.
The Composite Centre combines abrasive waterjet cutting with milling, drilling and edge processing on the same platform. The practical difference is the number of setups: a panel is positioned once, the profile is cut with the waterjet, and the holes, pockets and edge features are machined without the part being lifted off the table and re-aligned.
The machine changes between the waterjet and the machining tool by the tool change built into the platform. Because the part is not re-clamped, the relationship between the cut profile and the machined features is held from the same datum — which is the point of putting cutting and machining on one machine rather than two.
Tell us the material build-up, the thickness and the operations you need — cutting, milling, drilling or edge processing. We will come back with a configuration for your job.
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