Coherent, Inc. has introduced the Metabeam 1000, a turnkey, laser-based machining tool designed to enable cost-effective cutting of sheet metal including stainless steel, mild steel, aluminum and brass. "The Metabeam 1000 uses a 1,000 W CO² laser, Coherent's Diamond E-1000, which is a completely sealed-off kilowatt CO² laser that has a peak power greater than 2,500 W, an M2 less than 1.2 and is maintenance-free for the entire lifetime," said a company spokesperson. "The Metabeam tool is designed to offer lower acquisition and operational costs when compared to legacy systems based on fast flow CO² lasers. The long wavelength infrared CO² laser output and added power enables the system to cut a range of metals as well as organic materials such as wood and plastic."

"In general, our customers are looking for a cutting tool with high performance and low cost of ownership but with the flexibility to meet the changing material demands in their facilities," said Stephen Lee of Coherent.

The Metabeam 1000 will be available with either a 50" x 50" (1.27 x 1.27 m) or 50" x 100" (1.27 x 2.54 m) cutting table and is designed to offer a cutting accuracy of 0.001" (25 m) over its entire range. "The system is a full feature machine tool that includes a capacitive height sensor to maintain constant spacing between the cutting nozzle and metal surface and comes standard with auto focus," said the spokesperson. "Additionally, the system has two independent, high-pressure gas supplies to rapidly switch between assist gasses, thus enabling cutting of a variety of materials with minimal setup time. Various automation enhancement tools, such as pallet shuttles, are available to facilitate integration into a production environment and increase productivity."

The Metabeam 1000 is designed to offer cost-effective processing of a range of metals and other materials for job shops, metal service centers and sheet metal fabrication shops. It is also suitable for in-house sheet metal cutting for manufacturers in a range of industries including white goods (appliances), automobiles, aerospace and contract manufacturing.

For more information contact:

Coherent, Inc.

5100 Patrick Henry Drive

Santa Clara, CA 95054

408-764-4000

www.coherent.com