How to increase steel plate utilization and cut costs

Maximizing parts and profit per plate webinar

PlateSaver™ is a Hypertherm SureCut™ technology designed to increase plate steel utilization. SureCut technologies are achieved when high performance cutting hardware such as plasma power supplies and motion controls are combined with specialized CAM software and CNC software to provide higher levels of cutting performance.

PlateSaver combines the arc stability of X-Definition® plasma cutting systems with specialized software parameters to use shorter leads when starting and finishing a cut for less wasted space between parts. PlateSaver also takes molten metal into account by using moving pierces that cause molten splatter to fall within a predictable splash zone.

#1 Plasma cutting cost driver: scrap 

Hypertherm market research points to one major pain point when it comes to customer costs: scrap. Scrap is often cited by fabricators and manufacturers in the cutting industry as the single largest cost driver for their business. While scrap can be recycled for a return, the value of cut parts is always much higher than the value of scrap. Excess scrap drives down profitability. 

Problems in thick plate nesting 

One of the main problems in reducing scrap in thick plate steel is that plasma cutting thick plate requires increased lead-in lengths compared to cutting thinner materials. Longer lead-ins require increased part spacing which causes decreased plate utilization and fewer usable plate remnants. The longer lead-ins are required to establish cutting and provide space for the pierce and pierce puddle so they do not interfere with the part itself. 

The longer the leads are on a part, the more space is needed between parts to ensure the leads and the pierce puddle do not affect adjacent parts. Pierce puddles for standard leads also lack predictability. Without knowing where a pierce puddle will be, the cutting torch head may crash into a solidified pierce puddle or plate and the edge quality of the part may be poor. 

PlateSaver improves utilization by 3% or more

PlateSaver increases material utilization by 3% on average. Increasing material utilization by 3% delivers an equivalent 3% cost reduction for every part, every job, and every shift using PlateSaver. That can cut 3% off of the entire year’s material bill.

Metalgusa is a steel service center in Southern Brazil that adopted PlateSaver technology to fit more parts on each plate. In one project, Metalgusa went from 224 pieces cut per plate to 247 pieces cut, a 10% increase in pieces per plate. Not only did they make more parts with the same sheet, cut quality increased as well, improving quality, decreasing waste, and increasing profitability.

In addition to improving plate utilization, PlateSaver also helps maintain part quality, even with tighter part separations.

How PlateSaver works

PlateSaver is a standard feature for customers with a Hypertherm XPR plasma system, ProNest nesting software, and Edge Connect CNC. 

• The enhanced arc stabilization of the XPR allows for shorter lead lengths. With the XPR, when the torch fires and pierces and begins making its cut, the cutting travel distance needed to establish a quality cut before entering into the part geometry is significantly reduced. This enables shorter lead-ins.

• Specialty leads are applied by the CAM software. This adjusts the lead size, style, and location.

• The CAM software applies a moving pierce which creates a more predictable splash zone. Easily removable slag is directed away from the plate or onto parts that are already cut. When nesting parts so closely, carefully defining the splash zone helps preserve the cut path and maintain overall part quality. If you tried to decrease lead lengths without taking these steps, you would run into problems.

• CNC software helps ensure smooth execution of the pierce and the cut path. Hypertherm’s Phoenix ^® software on the EDGE Connect has a special “Puddle jump height override” command that helps enable the technology.

Results

The end result of using PlateSaver is minimized separation between parts while preserving the cut path and finished part quality.

PlateSaver is most effective when nesting square or rectangular parts. Without PlateSaver, square parts are staggered to provide room for the long leads. With PlateSaver, the leads are directed off the plate or onto parts that are already cut, increasing parts per sheet and significantly reducing scrap.

Benefits go beyond direct cost savings. Using less material to produce the same parts, you spend less time loading and unloading plate, decrease inventory and time spent on inventory management, and lower your carbon footprint by using less steel. 

Additional Considerations

PlateSaver is for use with mild steel only.

PlateSaver is used for X-Y cutting only. There is no bevel option on PlateSaver parts, but you can combine bevel parts and PlateSaver parts on the same nest.

There is increased sparking and spray with the moving pierce technique, particularly with thicker material (1 inch and up). All thick plate cutting results in sparks, and users should take steps to avoid personal injury, fire, damage to equipment, etc. You can use PlateSaver to direct the splash zone away from operators or sensitive equipment.

Slag buildup on the torch shield may occur more frequently with PlateSaver, particularly when cutting a large series of small parts. If this occurs, you can simply flick off the buildup to avoid impacting auto-height control.

In rare cases, a low line voltage condition to the XPR power source may impact the PlateSaver piercing operation. If you operate in a location where the power grid suffers from instability, the power instability may trigger a 620 arc stretch detected alert on the XPR causing a failure to complete the pierce. If this condition occurs, you can temporarily disable the XPR ramp down error protection (RDEP) function and this should resolve the problem. However, disabling the RDEP can result in decreased consumable life and it should be enabled as soon as possible.

PlateSaver component specifics 

To use the PlateSaver feature, you need three components:

1. Hypertherm XPR plasma system
2. Hypertherm ProNest nesting software
   • Version 14.2 or later
   • Updated machine setup file with correct code for your machine
3. Hypertherm EDGE Connect CNC
   • Phoenix 10.18.1 or later
   • Alltra

PlateSaver delivers results

PlateSaver increases plate utilization. Even a 3% increase in material utilization is significant, but companies like Metalgusa have increased parts per plate by as much as 10% or more. Increasing parts per sheet lowers annual material costs, decreases costs per part, and increases profitability. To learn more, visit the PlateSaver page on the Hypertherm website.