Lasers enable cost-effective day and night marking

"The quality of the signage is our top priority. The Coherent system ensures it, plus it increases production speed and even simplifies the process of marking customer-supplied graphics."

- Keith James, Director of Strategic Supply Chain and Manufacturing Operations, Crestron Electronics

Crestron Electronics, Inc. uses day and night marking to place characters and graphics on remote controls and keypads used in custom automation and display equipment for commercial, educational and home environments. As their products became increasingly sophisticated, they needed a way to move from simple alphanumeric markings to creating more complex markings such as graphics and logos. However, their small batches - often just one or two pieces - meant they needed a flexible marking system that would allow them to quickly create and produce custom marks. The combination of small batches and high quality marking meant that traditional day and night marking methods such as two-part injection moulding or rotary engraving were neither applicable nor cost-effective.

SOLUTION

Crestron Electronics now uses a Coherent LME laser marking system based on Nd:YVO4 laser technology for day and night marking. This system delivers increased speed and the ability to reproduce complex graphics that cannot be achieved by mechanical engraving with a steel cutting tool. The Coherent LME system software also provides Crestron Electronics with the essential capabilities it needs to service its own customers. Specifically, it allows their customers to easily define their own marks using the supplied application, send the design to Crestron Electronics, where the actual part is custom manufactured.

SOURCE

Using the Coherent LME system, Crestron Electronics can now easily produce virtually any type of mark, whether alphanumeric or graphic (logo or icon), with accuracy and high legibility. The Coherent Visual Laser Marker (VLM) software even allows Crestron Electronics salespeople to call up a keyboard layout on a computer screen, define any symbols or nomenclature their customer desires, and then simply email it all to the manufacturing plant. Crestron Electronics can then produce the part markings and the VLM software handles all the background tasks required to do so, with almost no operator intervention. The higher speed of VLM over mechanical methods has given Crestron Electronics a quick return on their capital investment.

Figure 1: Coherent LME produces complex graphics that cannot be created by mechanical engraving with a steel cutting tool.

Source: coherent.com