When 

plate and sheet is formed at the mill, it is usually just beginning its fabrication journey. Many different
operations can be performed on the material in order for it to serve a specific purpose and provide a value to
the end customer. One group of fabrication processes that are often used is known as material removal. Three
common types of material removal processes are hole punching, notching, and drilling. While they do have
several similarities, they also have many distinct differences that are important to understand when choosing
among them.

HOLE PUNCHING OR DRILLING

a modern sheet metal fabrication process that is carried out by computer-controlled punch press
machines. Punch presses use special rams to create holes or indent forms into sheet metal using
dedicated computer software to position the ram.

What is Hole Punching?

The hole punching tools can be a variety of shapes.

What is Drilling?
Drilling is often carried out late in the manufacturing process with previous operations already
having enhanced the initial component’s value. The drilling application, although seemingly
simple, is a complex operation that can lead to significant consequences if the tool malfunctions
or is run beyond its capacity.

Advantages and Limitations of Hole Punching

Hole punching has many advantages over other material removal processes. One key advantage is speed.
All types of hole punching presses are relatively fast, but certain types such as servo-driven presses are
exceptionally quick. This gives hole punching an even greater advantage in cycle time duration when
compared with other hole-creating processes. Another key advantage of hole punching is the different
geometries that can be used to create the holes in the material. Since hole punching does not rely on sharp
tool rotation, but rather shearing force, the tool does not have to be round. This means that hole
punching has the flexibility to create squares, triangles, ovals, and many other shapes.

Hole punching does have its limitations though. Tool wear can have an adverse effect on the process and
leave large burrs and poorly shaped holes. Hole punching is also limited in the thickness of material that can be
punched. The thickness that can be punched varies depending on material type and the diameter of the hole
being punched.

Hole punching is commonly used on high production sheet metal fabrication such as automotive components,
airplane bodies, and decorative work.

Advantages and Limitations of Drilling

Drilling is quite different than hole punching or notching since it involves cutting through the material
by continuously removing layers of materials through a rotating tool with a sharp cutting edge. The
finesse of removing layers of material sequentially rather than all at once typically results in a lower
amount of part distortion. Drilling is commonly used in a wide variety of applications. Since it is a
relatively affordable process, many job shops use it for low rate production or maintenance tasks.
However, large-scale manufacturing operations may rely on drilling if part distortion is a concern, the
material is too thick, or partial-depth holes are desired.

Since it requires rotation to be performed, only circular holes can be created with drilling. Drilling also
results in more heat being applied to the material than that of hole punching or notching.

SAWING

The machining process primarily used to part material such as rough-cutting

excess material away before machining or cutting curved patterns in sheet
metal. Sawing machines substitute mechanical or hydraulic powered motion
for arm motion to achieve the speed necessary for production operations.
The cutoff operation is usually one of the first requirements in any
production process before any machining, welding, or forging is done.

Sawing is one of the most common manufacturing processes in a machine shop. It is

versatile, simple and reliable.

LASER CUTTING
1. LASER CUTTING
2. 13. INTRODUCTION  This is a high precision CNC process that can be used to cut, etch,
engrave and a mark a variety of sheet materials including metal, plastic, wood, textiles,
glass, ceramic and leather.  The two main types of laser used for this process are CO2 and
Nd:YAG.  Both work by focusing thermal energy on a spot 0.1mm to 1mm wide to melt or
vaporize the material.
3. 14. TYPICAL APPLICATION  Application are diverse and include modelmaking, furniture,
consumer electronics, fashions, signs and trophies, point of sale, film and televisions sets,
and exhibition pieces.
4. 15. RELATED PROCESS  CNC maching, water jet cutting and punching and blanking can
all be used to produce the same effect in certain materials.
5. 16. QUALITY  Certain materials, like thermoplastics, have a very high surface finish when
cut in this way.
6. 17. DESIGN OPPORTUNITIES  These processes do not stress the workpiece, like blade
cutting, so small and intricate details can be produced without reducing strength or distorting
the part.
7. 18. DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS  These are vector-based cutting systems: the laser follow
a series of lines from point to point.
 8. 19. COMPATIBLE MATERIALS  These processes can be used to cut a multitude of
materials including timber, veneers, paper and card, synthetic marble, flexible magnets,
textiles and fleeces, rubber and certain glasses and ceramics.
9. 20. COSTS  There are no tooling costs for this process. Data is transmitted directly from a
CAD file to the laser cutting machine.
10. 21. ENVIRONMENT IMPACTS  Careful planning will ensure minimal waste, but it is
impossible to avoid offcuts that are not suitable for reuse.  Thermoplastic scrap, paper and
metal can be recycled, but not directly.

Why lasers are used for cutting

Lasers are used for many purposes. One way they are used is for cutting metal plates. On mild
steel, stainless steel, and aluminum plate, the laser cutting process is highly accurate, yields
excellent cut quality, has a very small kerf width and small heat affect zone, and makes it
possible to cut very intricate shapes and small holes.

How it works

The laser beam is a column of very high intensity light, of a single wavelength, or color. In the case
of a typical CO2 laser, that wavelength is in the Infra-Red part of the light spectrum, so it is invisible
to the human eye. The beam is only about 3/4 of an inch in diameter as it travels from the laser
resonator, which creates the beam, through the machine’s beam path. It may be bounced in different
directions by a number of mirrors, or “beam benders”, before it is finally focused onto the plate. The
focused laser beam goes through the bore of a nozzle right before it hits the plate. Also flowing
through that nozzle bore is a compressed gas, such as Oxygen or Nitrogen.

Focusing the laser beam can be done by a special lens, or by a curved mirror, and this takes place
in the laser cutting head. The beam has to be precisely focused so that the shape of the focus spot
and the density of the energy in that spot are perfectly round and consistent, and centered in the
nozzle. By focusing the large beam down to a single pinpoint, the heat density at that spot is
extreme. Think about using a magnifying glass to focus the sun’s rays onto a leaf, and how that can
start a fire. Now think about focusing 6 KWatts of energy into a single spot, and you can imagine
how hot that spot will get.

The high power density results in rapid heating, melting and partial or complete vaporizing of the
material. When cutting mild steel, the heat of the laser beam is enough to start a typical “oxy-fuel”
burning process, and the laser cutting gas will be pure oxygen, just like an oxy-fuel torch. When
cutting stainless steel or aluminum, the laser beam simply melts the material, and high pressure
nitrogen is used to blow the molten metal out of the kerf.

On a CNC laser cutter, the laser cutting head is moved over the metal plate in the shape of the
desired part, thus cutting the part out of the plate. A capacitive height control system maintains a
very accurate distance between the end of the nozzle and the plate that is being cut. This distance is
important, because it determines where the focal point is relative to the surface of the plate. Cut
quality can be affected by raising or lowering the focal point from just above the surface of the plate,
at the surface, or just below the surface.
There are many, many other parameters that affect cut quality as well, but when all are
controlled properly, laser cutting is a stable, reliable, and very accurate cutting process. 

This process also has many similarities to the drilling and engraving processes. The former

involves the creation of thru-holes in a material or dents, like an engraving used in the later process.
These dents and holes are essentially cuts, and you’ll often see a laser machine also being used for
drilling and engraving too.
A vast range of materials and thickness sizes can be cut with lasers, making it a handy and
adaptable process.

This means that it can easily cut light materials such as cloth up to tougher metals and gemstones
such as diamonds.

What advantages does cutting with lasers have over other more
conventional cutting methods?
There are a huge number of benefits over other more conventional forms of cutting:

 undertaking a laser cutting process, making this a highly reliable process

What can it do?

Laser cutting can cut through a wide range of different materials, these can
range from acrylic, wood, paper and foam core to high carbon and stainless
steels, Laser cutting is not best suited to metals such as aluminium and
copper alloys as they have good heat conductive and light reflective
properties, these materials require the use of a more powerful laser. Laser
cutters are generally best suited to thin materials of <12mm but can cut
through materials around 25mm.

Advantages

Contamination of materials while laser cutting is reduced as there is no

real physical contact between metal and cutter.

Laser cutting has great accuracy as a laser can be focused into very
small points and can be computer controlled with great accuracy,
there is also no wear in a laser while it is cutting as there is with
more conventional methods, such as milling. The process helps to
dramatically reduce material wastage
There is a reduced chance of warping the material when laser cutting as
the laser only generates a small area of heat when compared to
plasma cutting. It’s a non-contact process, and so there is minimal damage caused to the
material you are working with and associated moving parts

Laser cutting can be more energy efficient than plasma cutting.

No mechanical force is applied therefore no physical damage can occur.

Disadvantages

Laser cutting has high energy consumption, and can draw a lot of power
to perform its cutting. Although it uses a large amount of power it
goes some way to making up for this cost with its fast and precise
cutting speed. The cost and setup of a laser cutter can also be
expensive when compared to other methods.

Work hardening along the edges of cuts can mean harder work if any further
machining is required.

 High quality cut – no finishing

 Ultra flexible – simple or complex parts
 Non contact – no surface blemishing
 Quick set up – small batches
 Low heat input – small HAZ, low distortion

 Lends itself to nearly all materials

Laser Cutting

Laser cutting is mainly a thermal process in which a focused laser beam is used to melt
material in a localised area. A co-axial gas jet is used to eject the molten material and
create a kerf. A continuous cut is produced by moving the laser beam or workpiece
under CNC control. There are three major varieties of laser cutting: fusion cutting, flame
cutting and remote cutting.

The laser cutting process lends itself to automation with offline CAD/CAM systems
controlling either three-axis flatbed systems or six-axis robots for three-dimensional
laser cutting.
The Production Process: How Do We
Make It?
2. What types of production processes do manufacturers and service firms use?

In production planning, the first decision involves which type of production process—the way a
good or service is created—best fits with company goals and customer demand. An important
consideration is the type of good or service being produced, because different goods may require
different production processes. In general, there are three types of production: mass production,
mass customization, and customization. In addition to production type, operations managers also
classify production processes in two ways: (1) how inputs are converted into outputs and (2) the
timing of the process.

Production process means the manufacturing activities beginning with conveyance of raw
materials from plant inventory to a work point of the same plant and ending with
conveyance of the finished product to the place of first storage on the plant prem- ises,
including conveyance of work in process directly from one manufacturing operation to
another in the same plant, including the holding for 3 days or less of work in process to
ensure the unin- terrupted flow of all or part of the production process and includ- ing
quality control activities during the time period specified in this subdivision but excluding
storage, machine repair and main- tenance, research and development, plant
communication, adver- tising, marketing, plant engineering, plant housekeeping and
employee safety and fire prevention activities; and excluding gen- erating, transmitting,
transforming and furnishing electric current for light or heat; generating and furnishing
steam; supplying hot water for heat, power or manufacturing; and generating and fur-
nishing gas for lighting or fuel or both.