What is laser engraving?

Marking with laser engravers is the process by which radiation is radiated from a source, amplifying the radiation and directing it through mirrors in the direction of the part. The physical reaction that the heat and radiation of the laser cause on the surface of the part results in the final laser engraving.

Laser marking systems are highly accurate, silent and guarantee a high quality engraving result, although it is very important to take into account elements such as material, power, focal distance and working area to decide which type of machine is best suited to each situation or type of engraving.

Laser marking technology also makes it possible to create permanent marks with the highest quality and definition on all types of materials; metals, plastics, wood, etc.

Advantages and benefits of laser engraving

Laser engraving machines have the main advantage of being able to be used on a variety of materials as mentioned above. In addition, unlike traditional mechanical marking, the use of a laser engraver provides the following benefits:

Speed: the speed of marking is a great advantage, since it allows to be more efficient and to shorten the engraving process.
Productivity: this marking system allows several identical codes to be engraved simultaneously.
Low maintenance: there is no physical contact between the marker and the part, there are no consumables and the lifetime of the laser source is 100,000 hours of pure marking.
Homogeneity: by being able to produce multiple identical markings, there is no variability between the engraved elements.
Accuracy: high quality, resolution and contrast marking, resulting in a value-added and durable marking, both for marketing, quality and production departments.
Profitability: it is true that the price of laser marking machines is higher than that of traditional engraving machines, but in the long term they are more profitable, since they are replaced less frequently and the production volume increases considerably (useful life of more than 100,000 hours of production).

Exceptional marking capacity on any material.
Marking on parts without the need for clamping or contact.
Marking in multiple formats (flat, cylindrical,…) of all types of parts.
Marking of logos, barcodes, QR and Datamatrix codes, alphanumeric texts, …
No additional cooling elements are required.
It does not use consumables.
Virtually maintenance-free technology.

Uses of laser marking

Laser engraving is an emerging system that is being used more and more, thanks in part to the benefits and advantages of this marking system, as we have seen above.

This technology is currently used for traceability, quality control and production process improvement:

Traceability: very useful to track and trace goods from the beginning to the end of the manufacturing process.
Quality control: it allows to store specific information of each element, merchandise, part or product in a database and to obtain its information to detect possible irregularities or to know when, where or in which production line it was manufactured.

Some of the industries and sectors that require laser marking or engraving systems are automotive, metals, extrusion, etc.

Laser marking applications

Laser marking is a very advanced and widely spread technology, as it is applicable for a large number of part marking applications. Some examples:

Marking for identification and traceability of parts.
Marking on surgical instruments.
Marking of automotive components.
Marking of parts in the aeronautical sector.
Marking of materials and electronic equipment.
Marking of metal plates.
Marking and identification of tools.
…