According to the companies, many existing systems lack performance. Replacement of the cutting head, controller or resonator is a cost-effective option to maintaining a state-of-the-art laser-cutting system, adding significant capability and operating cost savings, officials said.

Retrofit packages are available that include Hypertherm's new Fast Laser cutting heads and Mariner controller, coupled with Rofin-Sinar's new DC Slab and RF Laser series resonators.

According to Hypertherm, Fast Laser cutting heads deliver up to a 20-percent increase in cut speed on plate steel. They also expand the capacity and quality range of plate-laser cutting systems.

Rofin-Sinar offers two resonator designs. A new DC-slab design is said to feature superior beam quality, no moving parts, no optical consumables and 2-, 2.5- and 3.5-kilowatt models for high-speed sheet-metal cutting and thick-plate processing. It also offers a radio-frequency resonator design providing 5 kilowatts of cutting power for thick-plate processing.