A waterjet is an industrial tool capable of cutting a wide variety of materials using a very high-pressure jet of water mixed with an abrasive substance. It is a CNC machine (computer numeric control) that requires G-code to control its movements. G-code is a series of instructions that tell the machine to move to various points at a specified pace, based on a vector drawing in a CAD file.
Materials commonly cut with a waterjet include metals, stone, tile, ceramics, glass, foam, rubber, plastics, composites, and even textiles, leather, paper, and food. Though there are other ways to cut many of these materials, the waterjet has several advantages, including speed, precision, small kerf (width of cut line), and the fact that the cut generates no high temperature changes that can lead to warping or inaccuracy. Its accuracy/repeatability is within 0.004 inches, or about the thickness of a sheet of paper. Sharp corners, bevels, pierce holes, and shapes with minimal inner radii are all possible. Waterjets are capable of cutting through thicknesses of up to 6 inches in metals and 18 inches of most other materials.
MADE’s waterjet is used by our local members in St. Louis for a variety of reasons: sign making, furniture building, granite countertop inlay, metal fabrication, glass partitions, and much more. It pairs nicely with our welding bay and powder coating booth, both great for metal fabrication in our metal shop. It’s also located near our loading bay, making it easy to install your larger materials onto the bed if needed.
Ready to get started cutting with MADE’s waterjet? Learn how to use it in a training session, get started here!