Waterjet Group says Flow technology offers best solution for titanium parts

With over 30 years' experience, The Waterjet Group's overriding criteria for this project was part quality and production speed, and following the installation this has become reality. The Waterjet Group has many customers in the aerospace and defense sectors: a selection of the current customers includes, Airbus , BAE Systems , Boeing , GKN Westland and Bombardier. When searching for the new system, Waterjet Group managing director Steve Smith wanted to overcome the "challenges" of waterjet cutting, such as kerf angle (taper) and undercutting (streamlag). This was of particular significance as the new machine would be cutting 60-180 mm titanium for the aerospace and defence industries. The test parts represented similar pieces currently processed by the Group, having difficult internal geometry. Part accuracy, combined with production times, were a crucial part of the justification and machine selection. Actual cut trails were carried out by several vendors to determine both geometry and production speeds. The decision to purchase a FLOW 6500 bar Dynamic Waterjet System was based upon Flow's technology and production capability. Not only were the parts from the Dynamic Waterjet the best, in terms of quality and accuracy, but also the production rates produced by the 6,500 bar HyperPressure technology were higher. The Waterjet Group claims that the 6,500 bar Flow Dynamic Waterjet has provided a new capability and, according to Mr Smith, complements the exisiting portfolliio of machines, confirming the company's position as market leader in Europe and the UK.