Computer numerical controlled (CNC) water jet cutting uses computer software instead of manual operation to cut, drill and engrave almost any two dimensional material. This allows for high repeatability, precision, accuracy and fine detail.
Many materials, including most metals, glass, marble, stone, plastic, composite materials like fiberglass, wood, rubber and foam are easily cut with either pure or abrasive water jet cutters. Some materials likes ceramics and other delicate materials cannot be cut using this method, and very strong materials like diamonds cannot be cut this way either. The aerospace, automotive, electrical, architectural, construction, film, sporting goods, medical and appliance industries all use CNC water jet cutting to form products like tiles as well as irregularly-shaped car, train and plane parts. Gears, knives, bike parts, headstones, outdoor business signs, decorative mirrors, lenses, surgical instruments and musical instruments can all be products of water jet cutting processes. Nearly all modern water jet cutting machines are computer numerical controlled and are able to recycle both the water and abrasive particles many times. The water jet is either pure water or contains abrasive particles. Abrasive water jet cutting particles like garnet, sand and diamond are sometimes added to cut through stronger materials like stone and metal. In pure water jet cutting, the water erodes away the material, while during abrasive cutting the particles erode the material.
CNC machinery cuts down on labor costs since operators are only needed briefly for setup and occasionally for maintenance and repairs. The process begins when a drawing of the desired shape is downloaded into the software. The cutting machine is programmed to exactly follow the shape of the design with the nozzle until the part has been cut. CNC machines produce parts that are identical in high volumes with accuracy and precision. Because these systems are fully automated, multiple products are cut very close together, thus reducing the amount of scrap and waste material. Sheets between .0001 and eight inches thick, multi-layer and even heat treated materials are all easily cut with CNC water jet cutting machines. Because CNC water jet cutting machines produce cuts and holes with extremely high precision, burrs are eliminated and the smooth edges require no secondary processing. The CNC components of a water jet cutting machine consist of software that directs CAD/CAM systems to instruct the tooling movements made by the nozzles.
