The “Speedy” laser engraving machines were developed to increase production efficiency with maximum processing speed up to 4.2 m/sec. and acceleration of 5 g. Due to the machine’s closed design, all of the important components are protected against dirt and dust. This means minimal maintenance costs. This in turn translates into a longer life and lower operating costs.

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Metals can be marked with a CO₂ laser engraving machine only by using a metal marking solution (a spray or paste), which must be applied to the workpiece in advance. When the solution is completely dry, it will be burned into the material during laser processing. When the laser process is finished, the excess must be washed off.

When using a fiber laser, for instance from the Speedy flexx series the laser marking will appear directly on the metal. Preparation and follow-up processes for applying, drying and cleaning are no longer necessary. In this time the machine operator can work on other orders to increase the company’s productivity.
The following contrasts two different ways of marking a stainless steel data plate:

Increased productivity of metal marking

Depending on your application, vector engraving is sometimes a better method. Edging a plate for example is faster if you score the frame (vector engraving) rather than engraving it (raster engraving). In this way the border line is created as a vector (hairline) in the graphic. When engraving, the vectors are traced, while raster engraving works line by line in x direction. In our example you could save up to 2/3 of your work time if you score the edge instead of raster engraving it.

Read more about the difference and settings of raster and vector engraving:

Raster engraving versus vector engraving

In our example, we want the metal plate to be marked using annealing techniques. There is a lot of blank space between individual graphic elements. However, because this space is traced during the engraving process, the processing time increases. To avoid this redundant movement and save time, we have divided the graphics into several different vertical color zones.

Due to the lower engraving speed required for this process, aligning the graphics saves time. In our example, we managed to reduce the processing time by 25% thanks to the optimized graphics.