Two have already been sold into the UK market, the first to Bristol-based LW Jenkins Ltd, a specialist in fine-detail sheet metal solutions for the electronics industry. The machine is due for delivery in August.
Aside from the large, single-diode module, there are many more advancements in the 3 kW ENSIS. Firstly, Amada’s patented ENSIS technology is capable of changing the laser beam mode, not just the focal spot size and focus position. This results in the optimum beam control for thin and thick sheet processing. The machine also offers single-lens processing for all materials and thicknesses, and features a large capacity nozzle changer to cover the full range automatically.
The machine is capable of cutting up to 25 mm thick mild steel, which is equivalent to the performance levels of a standard 6 kW fibre laser, but uses just half the power to do the same job. There’s a high speed pierce for 20 mm mild steel, and faster cutting than a 4 kW fibre laser. This performance is achieved by instantaneously changing the beam mode between pierce and cut. For piercing materials at the thicker end of the material spectrum, oil-shot functionality is available for added reliability.
The 3kW ENSIS also offers WACS II, the latest version of Amada’s proprietary Water-Assisted Cutting System. This allows the amount of water to be varied in two stages, providing further assistance when processing thicker mild steel.
Featuring a compact footprint, integral automation features include cut and pierce monitoring for stable processing, as well as an X-axis conveyor. If required, operators can gain easy access to the cutting bed from the side or end.
The ENSIS machine also provides much lower part costs by utilising compressed air cutting, not nitrogen cutting. In fact, cutting speeds are the same as nitrogen processing, with part quality comparable in many thicknesses. Across a cutting range of 3,000 by 1,500 by 100 mm in the X, Y and Z axes, processing feed rates of up to 100 m/min are possible.
