Pierce time by thickness, and why every pierce costs money

Fiber laser pierce times

From a shop's published quoting table (Aston Precision); these are Zorocut's starter values. The method — pulse or blast pierce — is not stated, and we found no published data comparing the two.

Plasma pierce delays

Hypertherm's Powermax45 XP chart (mild steel, air) gives 0.2 s at 3 mm, 0.6 s at 6 mm, 0.8 s at 10 mm and 1.0 s at 12 mm, with the torch at a pierce height of 3.8 mm; from 16 mm the chart calls for an edge start. A user on the Langmuir forum adds about 0.2 s to cover controller lag, and so does Zorocut's starter value.

What a pierce costs

• Zorocut prices each pierce as its pierce time plus 0.5 s to lift and lower the head, plus 1 s of rapid move until the nest is known (both our estimates).
• On 3 mm mild steel at €90 an hour that is 0.9 s of pierce and head time, or €0.0225 per pierce in per-pierce pricing; at 10 mm it is 2.5 s, about €0.06.
• On plasma, pierces also wear the consumables: Hypertherm notes that piercing shortens consumable life compared with edge starts, and plasma users report 2,500–4,500 pierces per consumable set on 45–65 A machines.

How to need fewer pierces

1. Holes smaller than the thickness often do not cut cleanly, and Zorocut's pre-cut check flags them. Drilling them after cutting saves a pierce and a poor hole.
2. On arrays of identical parts, the controller's bridge and co-edge tools let one pierce cut more than one contour — see common-line cutting.
3. On plasma above the pierce capacity — 12 mm on the Powermax45 XP — start from the plate's edge.
4. Ask whether every hole is needed: a decorative pattern of 200 small holes is 200 pierces.
5. Show the pierces in the quote: with per-pierce pricing the customer sees what the holes cost, and designs change.