“When you get into laser marking on plastics, you’re moving into a problematic realm,” says laser packages guru Josh Christley. “In many ways, it’s completely one-of-a-kind from marking metals. Metals are noticeably straightforward. But plastics are complex; that’s what makes them so versatile. And with that complexity, you get a hint of uncertainty.”
We solution to your maximum often requested questions on Gravure laser plastique and what laser engraving/marking machines paintings quality for marking plastics.
So, laser marking IS a sensible answer for plastic components?
It’s been a dependable workhorse throughout an entire spectrum of industries for decades. Aerospace, clinical contraptions and devices, semiconductors, car manufacturing each week I see new sub-sectors combine laser marking with their manufacturing strains to engrave plastic components with text (like serial numbers and element numbers); machine-readable data (barcodes, Unique ID codes, 2D codes); or graphics (emblems and different branding marks).
Compared to lasers, different direct marketing strategies like dot peen don’t continually play properly with plastic shapes and surfaces. And each printing and adhesive labels fall quick in phrases of cost (think about the consumables), environmental impact, permanence, visibility, speed, flexibility, and maintenance. So laser marking makes plenty of sense, for plastics in addition to different materials.
But there’s no one-size-fits-all method for laser-marking plastics, is there?
That’s real whilst you’re marking metals, as properly. The equal floor regulations practice any time you’re seeking out a laser gadget to fit your application: For a smooth, low-danger transition to a brand new technology, the primary precedence is to hook up with a dealer who’s inclined that will help you deep-dive into your processes, goals, and business. That’s the way you get a gadget that’s going to paintings for you.
Those are the basics for running with any cloth. It’s whilst the cloth is a polymer or a composite that matters begin to get interesting.
You’ve stated marking metals is noticeably straightforward. What makes plastics marking so complicated?
It’s just like the distinction among checkers and chess. To begin, we custom-layout each gadget we construct to fit the houses of the manufacturing cloth as carefully as 21st-century technological know-how and engineering allow. Nothing is off-the-shelf. That method we ought to recognize lots greater approximately your uncooked cloth than you would possibly imagine.
