[Skip to content]

TWI
Search our Site
.

Cutting

Cutting is an important operation in producing sheets to size, removing waste material, making weld joint preparations and removing defects. Cutting can involve a number of techniques, including:

  • Mechanical (such as machining, sawing, shearing, punching, drilling)
  • Thermal (for example, oxygen cutting, spark erosion, laser cutting, plasma)
  • Hydraulic (water and abrasive water jet cutting)

TWI provides research and development (R&D) services, consultancy or demonstrations covering the following cutting processes:

  • Plasma
  • High-tolerance plasma arc cutting (HTPAC)
  • Abrasive water jet (AWJ)
  • Carbon dioxide (CO2) laser
  • Nd:YAG laser
  • 2kW fibre-optic laser
  • Carbon monoxide (CO) laser
  • Oxy-fuel cutting
  • Arc gouging
Contact Us
 
Cutting

TWI can provide Members with technical support to meet their specific needs:

  • Welding Engineering Helpdesk: call our qualified welding engineers or metallurgists free of charge
  • Consultancy on fabrication problems
  • Technology audit: an impartial review your welding procedures, assessment of workshop layout and quality management systems to improve quality and reduce costs
  • Re-appraisal of products with recommendations on alternative designs, materials and innovative joining processes

In addition, Members can visit TWI to take advantage of the latest technical developments and discuss business needs.

TWI has a broad experience in cutting processes. Recent projects include:

  • Centres demonstrating best practice cutting
  • Enhanced cutting process development
  • Comparison of cutting processes
  • Investigation into the quality of profiled cut edges
  • Fatigue properties of thermally cut edges
  • Development of techno-economic software for cutting processes
  • Oxy-fuel cutting of medium alloyed steels
  • Comparison of fuel gases for oxy-fuel cutting

TWI also developed Cutting Selector, an interactive knowledge-base covering commonly used cutting processes and techniques and engineering materials. Designed for use by non-specialist engineers during process selection and product design stages, this database offers guidance on process suitability and costs, as well as providing technical information about cutting processes.

For more information, please contact us.