Near-application investigations for industry with a 10 kW fibre laser

When the first 10 kW fibre laser anywhere in the world was commissioned at SLV Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in August 2004, a breathtaking development reached a new dimension with the rise in the power in the field of the fibre lasers. In the course of 2005, various application investigations for industry were conducted at SLV with this laser source. In addition to customers from Germany and Europe, firms from the USA and Japan were also guests in Rostock with their terms of reference. Shipyards such as Nordseewerke Emden GmbH, Germany, and Kockums AB, Sweden, as well as component suppliers for shipbuilding such as Technology Systems Incorporation from Maine, USA, showed that they were impressed by the possibility of bringing high laser beam powers to the machining location via a flexible optical fibre cable and thus of being able to make easier use of the potentials inherent in laser technology.

For automobile manufacturers such as Toyota from Japan and the Japanese Sumitomo conglomerate which is active in the most diverse sectors, the high socket efficiency of the fibre lasers of min. 25 % was an essential aspect of the interest, in addition to the terms of reference relating to welding and cutting which they brought with them.

The investment in this laser source was a decision which was supported by the whole of GSI and has strengthened SLV Mecklenburg-Vorpommern as the leading agency for welding in shipbuilding.