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I’d Like to Buy a Photo Etching Machine, Please
March 13, 2025 7:18 am Leave a Comment
Here we go again. Another blissfully unaware caller wanting to do it himself. This time, I decided to go with the flow.

KS: Hi. My name is Kathy. How can I help you?

EE (Ethan the Etcher): Ah, hi. I’m Ethan and I would like to buy an etching machine.

KS: Sure…let me start an order sheet for you. Where is the etching machine to be delivered?

EE: I’d like to put it in my basement.

KS: How big is your basement?

EE: It’s pretty good size.

KS: Has the other equipment been installed yet?

EE: What other equipment?

KS: Do you have a cleaning line?

EE: Uh, no.

KS: How about a laminator?

EE: Nope.

KS: Exposure unit?

EE: No.

KS: Developer?

EE: No.

KS: Stripping line?

EE: No?

KS: Water de-ionizing system?

EE: Huh?

KS: Waste treatment system?

EE: Uh, no. What’s that for?

KS: It’s okay, Ethan. We can fix you up.

EE: Oh, good…

KS: Okay, I’ve got you down for all the other equipment. Let’s talk about the etching machine itself. How many chambers do you need?

EE: Chambers?

KS: Your choices are 1, 2, or 3.

EE: I don’t know what that means.

KS: How much etching are you going to do, Ethan?

EE: I don’t know yet.

KS: If it’s fewer than 50 sheets per day, a single chamber should be plenty.

EE: Okay, that sounds good.

KS: Do you have your contractors lined up?

EE: Contractors for what?

KS: Electrician, Plumber, HVAC…

EE: Not yet…

KS: Okay, tell the electrician that you are going to need 600 amps of 440 3-phase.

EE: I have 200 amp service.

KS: I bet it’s not 440 3-phase. That’s how much electricity you are going to need.

EE: That sounds like a lot.

KS: It is. Tell the plumber it’s a PVC only installation.

EE: Okay. Why?

KS: Because the etching solution will eat the plumbing if it is metal.

EE: Oh, yeah. I forgot.

KS: Tell the HVAC guy that you are going to need 400 square feet of safe-light Class 1000 clean room for laminating, printing and developing. How big did you say your basement is?

EE: How much room do you think I’m going to need?

KS: Well, a 2-car garage is usually around 600 square feet, so 8, maybe 9 garages…

EE: That’s way bigger than my basement. I’ll have to find another space.

KS: What about your permits? They probably won’t let you transfer them to another location.

EE: What permits?

KS: Planning and zoning, inland wetlands, department of environmental protection…And, who knows what else your state might require.

EE: Oh! How long does that take?

KS: Um, Ethan…There’s a reason why there are only 100 etching companies in the country. This process can take years and cost untold amounts of money.

EE: Oh, wow. I had no idea.

KS: Ethan, there’s an easier way.

EE: Boy, I hope so. I had no idea that buying an etching machine would be this big of a deal. So, what’s the easier way?

KS: Let us do your photo etching. We already have all this stuff. We’ve been doing this for more than fifty years.

EE: So, you don’t think I should buy an etching machine…

KS: Ethan, as much fun as it would be for me personally to sell you nearly $500,000 in equipment…no, I don’t think you should buy this set up.

EE: Um…you may be right. So, if you do my photo etching, how much does it cost?

KS: It’s usually less than $200 per sheet for 2 or more sheets at a time.

EE: Cool! That’s really reasonable.

KS: That’s what we’re here for, Ethan.

This two-chamber etching line is about 40 feet long overall.
How to save money on photo etching
7:11 am Leave a Comment

Here are some of the ways photo etching can deliver precision metal parts without driving up your costs.

Know the Rules

There are only a few of them, but they have a big influence on cost:
- Minimum dimensional tolerances are +/- 15% of metal thickness (to a practical minimum of +/-.0015″ on metal .010″ thick and less)
- Minimum hole or slot dimension to be not less than 110% of metal thickness
- Minimum land area between holes or slots to be not less than 80% of metal thickness (to a practical minimum of .005″)
What should be in your mind is “how much leeway can this application take?” Don’t design for the tightest tolerances your solid modeling platform can impose. For metals up to .032″ thick and dimensions in 3-place decimals, your design objective should be to minimize the number of dimensions that have to be controlled to less than +/-.005″.

( Don’t bother with 4-place decimals. We’re going to take exception.)

Feel Free to be Creative

Etching is cost agnostic when it comes to part complexity
With conventional processes like stamping, punching, laser cutting and wire EDM, the more complex your design is, the more your part will cost. Photo etching, on the other hand, can create parts with extremely complex geometries and features without increasing costs.

Consider a fine screen or mesh that would be used in a filtration device. Putting hundreds or thousands of tiny holes in a small flat part would be very costly with conventional processes, if the natural limitations of these methods even allow it at all. Since every feature on photo etched parts are created all at once, you’re only paying for the first hole. Your costs are the same whether you have one hole or zillions of holes.

Working with a photo etcher can be a cost-effective way to create precision metal parts.

We can help you with the whole job.
Often, the parts you need will require more than just the initial fabrication. You may require additional services like forming, welding, heat treating, surface finishing, etc. A good photo etching supplier will have resources that can quickly and cost-effectively finish these tasks for you

Need to try a few ideas? We can create sheets with multiple variations to facilitate speedy testing and development.
Conventional processes often come with expensive tooling, such as stamping or cutting dies that are not easily , quickly or cheaply modified. Photo etching uses photo tool. Most photo tools are less than $500. Your DXF file is all we need to implement a design change in a day or so.

We can also provide composite tooling, which is a way to make several different designs on one sheet of metal. If you need small volumes of multiple parts, but don’t want to pay for the individual tools, we can include all of their designs on one single tool and produce them all on one sheet, saving time and money. The only rule here is that every part has to have the same thickness.

To learn more about how photo etching can save you money, call us at 800-443-5218 or email us at sales@conardcorp.com and we can get started working on your designs!
How working with a photo etcher saves you money
6:55 am Leave a Comment

Here are some of the ways photo etching can deliver precision metal parts without driving up your costs.

OEMs have many criteria to consider when choosing a supplier for component parts. Quality, lead times, the ability of the process to handle the designs, costs – all play a major role in choosing the right supplier.

Manufacturers need supply chain partners that deliver high quality at competitive prices. Photochemical etching is an often overlooked opportunity to achieve both requirements. Here are some of the ways photo etching can deliver precision metal parts without driving up your costs:

Cost agnostic when it comes to part complexity
With conventional processes like stamping, punching, laser cutting and wire EDM, the more complex your design is, the more your part will cost. Photo etching, on the other hand, can create parts with extremely complex geometries and features without increasing costs.

Consider a fine screen or mesh that would be used in a filtration device. Putting hundreds or thousands of tiny holes in a small flat part would be very costly with conventional processes, if the natural limitations of these methods even allow it at all. Since every feature on photo etched parts are created all at once, you’re only paying for the first hole. Your costs are the same whether you have one hole or one thousand.

Working with a photo etcher can be a cost-effective way to create precision metal parts.

Turnkey services for ancillary operations
Often, the parts you need will require more than just the initial fabrication. You may require additional services like forming, welding, heat treating, surface finishing, etc. A good photo etching supplier will have resources that can quickly and cost-effectively finish these tasks for you

Low tooling costs
Conventional processes often come with expensive tooling, such as stamping or cutting dies. Photo etching uses photo tools – dimensionally stable layers of mylar film that adhere to both sides of the metal sheet and outlines the negative images of the part. These negatives, or clear spaces where the metal is exposed will eventually become the parts.

Most photo tools are about $300 or less. They can also be reused, allowing for large batches from just one tool. Additionally, we can have your tools ready in about a day, keeping lead times short.

We can also provide composite tooling, which is a way to make several different designs on one sheet of metal. If you need small volumes of multiple parts, but don’t want to pay for the individual tools, we can include all of their designs on one single tool and produce them all on one sheet, saving time and money. The only rule here is that every part has to have the same thickness.

To learn more about how photo etching can save you money, call us at 800-443-5218 or email us at sales@conardcorp.com and we can get started working on your designs!
How to Become a Photo Etching Ace
6:32 am Leave a Comment
In my experience, professionals involved in designing, engineering, and sourcing precision metal components have a pretty good grasp of a variety of fabrication processes. Except for photochemical machining (metal etching), to which the response is usually a blank look, shrugged shoulders and a negative head nod. You don’t have to be one of those people any more.

We really want to make it easy for you to add chemical etching to your portfolio of fabricating knowledge. We’ve put together an assortment of FREE user-friendly resources, including video, slide deck, whitepapers and blog posts that you can peruse at your convenience.

A 3-Minute Education

I recommend that you start with the video. This 3 minute post provides a visual overview of the steps and equipment required for the etching process. Most people have a mental picture of stamping, laser and EDM machinery. Now you can have one for etching.

A One-Page Summary

On this page, we have summarized the key features and capabilities of the photo etching process and have included information on tolerances and costs.

Photo Etching Versus…

How does chemical etching stack up compared to stamping, laser and waterjet? We did a study. You can get the results here.

Important Reasons for Engineers

Design-for-manufacture analysis is a critical step in product development. It is particularly important that the people responsible for this process have access to extensive information on the options available. This blog post highlights several key benefits of etching versus other processes.

Problems Solved by Photo Etching

We talk to lots of people about their fabricating challenges, and they are generally astounded when we can tell them that the etching process is a total solution for them. This blog post recounts three instances where etching completely solved the problems.

All in One Place

We’ve put together a brief (14 pages) but comprehensive guide for chemical etching that covers all of the specs, tolerances, costing examples. It’s FREE. You can get it here:

Answers Available. Questions Wanted.

You can call me at 860-659-0591. Write me at kstillman@conardcorp.com. Or, upload a drawing.
How Photo Etching is a Capable Alternative to Other Metal Fabricating Processes
6:09 am Leave a Comment
Photo Etching vs. “the Others”

Photochemical machining is the industry’s preferred moniker for this metal fabrication process. It is also readily called photo or chemical etching, The process derived from the then-nascent printed circuit board industry in the 1950s. The fabrication steps are nearly identical.

More recognized processes such as metal stamping and punching utilize hardened steel tools to shape metal parts and have long histories in metal fabrication. Plasma, laser and water jet cutting utilize directed energy to shape parts. And, wire EDM uses a wire electrode to burn away metal. In these cases the evolution of CNC (computer numerical control) in the 1970s allowed part geometries to be programmed directly into cutting machines.

The most “traditional” processes, stamping and punching, are sort of “brute force” processes, shearing metal using powerful presses. Plasma, laser and EDM rely on intense energy, literally burning their way through metal. Waterjet is sort of the “hot knife through butter” option, but you definitely wouldn’t want to get in the way of a pressurized stream of water that can cut through an inch of steel!

Photo etching, in contrast, would be like running a sheet of metal through your dishwasher and then taking out a sheet of parts.

“Stress Free” Precision Metal Fabricating

Photo etching is deemed a “non-conventional” method that fits alongside plasma, laser, waterjet and wire EDM for manufacturing many types of metal parts.

The more well-known fabrication methods have their own sets of undesirable side effects. Stamping and punching produce burrs from the shearing forces, and often cause “cold working” of the metal that may need to be alleviated by annealing. Plasma, laser and wire EDM impart significant heat into the work material. Plasma operates at about 25000 deg F; laser and EDM typically between 2500 and 5000 deg F. In these cases, the side effects of the intense heat include what are called “heat-affected zones” or recast layers that need to be rectified by secondary processes.

Photo etching completely avoids all of these side effects. The maximum temperature metal is exposed to in etching is 165 deg F. In addition, etching is particularly capable with very thin materials (routinely down to .001″)–which is beyond what is in the comfort zone for the other processes. Etching is also very capable with regard to both reflective and thermally conductive metals such as aluminum and copper, which can be problematic for lasers in particular..

Here’s a quick run down of etching specs and tolerances.

For more detail:

The photo etching process is used for fabricating metal parts for many different industrial applications including sensors, shields, retainers, flat springs, strain gauges, filters, screens, grids, shims, gaskets and more. For electronics, etching is used to produce a host of metal components used in RF, microwave and wireless applications, as well as lids and leadframes for microelectronics packaging. Photo etched direct bond copper is increasingly used in power electronic applications, particularly in wireless devices. It is also used to produce a host of electrical contacts, buss bars and other electrical interconnect devices.

Get the picture here : 3-minute video shows the process

Photochemical machining can be a very economical alternative to stamping, laser or EDM. With inexpensive film-based tooling that can be produced in a day, rapid prototyping is easily achieved. Order minimums are modest and can produce dozens to hundreds of parts at low cost.

To help engineers and designers in their design-for-manufacture (DFM) decisions, we have published a basic DIY Guide to Estimating Photo Etching Costs. It’s Free!

From Data to Details

The basics of the process include creating the photomask, which today is derived from CAD data and output on film from a laser photoplotter. This is known as the phototool. The metal to be etched is carefully cleaned and coated on both sides with a polymer film called photo resist. When applied, the photoresist film is unexposed and this must be done in a yellow safe-light environment.

The coated metal and the phototool come together in the imaging process where the black regions on the phototool prevent the exposure of the resist under intense UV light. The unexposed resist is washed away in a developing solution, leaving bare metal in the areas to be etched.

In the etching process, the exposed photoresist is strong enough to withstand the effects of the ferric chloride etchant. But the unprotected metal is dissolved right up to the edge of the resist. The etchant is sprayed at both sides of the sheet until cut through is achieved. After etching, the resist is washed away in a different solution.

Applications for Every Occasion

So, what can you do you with photochemical machining? You can make very thin metal parts, as thin as .0005″ (yes, five ten-thousandths). You can make fairly thick parts: up to .040″ in ferrous alloys, .065″ in copper alloys, and .080″ in aluminum. You can make parts with funny shapes and lots of holes and it doesn’t cost any extra. You can make some very little parts, as small as .020″ diameter. And, you can make some fairly big parts, up to 24″ x 60″.

Do you have a project in mind?
How Photo Etching Compares in Cost
6:03 am Leave a Comment
Many design platforms now offer some basic cost estimating for the fabrication processes that are already programmed in. But NONE of them know anything about photochemical machining, so how can you be expected to know whether etching might be your best option.

An industrious team from the UK set about to answer these questions and present them in a side-by-side format. They created a series of five increasingly-intricate 1-inch stainless parts and had them quoted in quantities of 100, 5000 and 50000 pieces by six different methods. The results are as intuitive as you might expect. What’s new is that they were able to express economic comparisons.

For example, for a simple one-inch disk for 100 pieces, wire EDM is the most economical choice, followed by laser, water jet and then etching. Wire EDM was about 30% of the cost of the etched part.

At the other end of the spectrum, take 50000 pieces of a 1-inch diameter x .005″ thick screen with .006″ holes: in this case, only etching and electroforming were viable solutions at comparable prices.

Stamping doesn’t become advantageous until the 50,000 piece level due to the impact of the tooling costs. But at the fourth level of part complexity, the amortization of the tooling cost puts stamping at nearly twice the cost of etching. Wire EDM is about twice the cost of etching at the 5000 piece level. Water jet is more than 5 times etching at the 5,000 piece level, and is not even a consideration at the fourth and fifth levels of complexity. Surprisingly, laser doesn’t make a compelling case at any level of complexity or quantity.

Designers and engineers are woefully uninformed about the capabilities and costs of chemical etching. As a result, they must try to fit some projects around the limitations of other processes. We’ve seen this happen many, many times. A lot of time, money and effort is wasted; sometimes tens of thousands of dollars and months of effort. Part of the beauty of etching is that we can put parts in your hands in a couple of weeks for about $600.

To get your free copy of the chart:

We’ve put a lot of info out here about the chemical etching process, including design rules, tolerances and costs.

But, if you are ready to cut to the chase, we are happy to provide a quote:
How Metal Filtration Favors Photo Etching
5:36 am Leave a Comment
Photochemical machining (PCM), also known as photo etching, is a precise manufacturing process that offers significant advantages over traditional methods, particularly for creating metal filtration media. This process uses light-sensitive photoresists and chemical etchants to shape and pattern metal components. It is ideal for manufacturing intricate designs, fine features, and thin materials.

Key Aspects of Metal Filtration Media

Metal filtration media are used in various industries, including automotive, aerospace, food processing, pharmaceuticals, and water treatment, where high-quality filtration is essential. Filtration media must have precisely controlled pore sizes, uniform structures, and exceptional durability to effectively separate particles or contaminants from fluids or gases. These filters are often made from metals like stainless steel, copper, or nickel for their strength, corrosion resistance, and longevity.

Traditional manufacturing processes for metal filters, such as stamping, laser cutting, or wire mesh weaving, can struggle to achieve the high degree of precision and uniformity required in many filtration applications. This is where photochemical machining offers significant benefits.

Benefits of Photochemical Machining for Metal Filtration Media

High Precision and Accuracy

One of the primary advantages of PCM is its ability to produce extremely precise and intricate patterns on thin metal sheets. For filtration applications, the pore size, shape, and distribution are critical to ensuring the filter’s performance. PCM allows manufacturers to produce highly accurate pore geometries, with tolerances from 50-125 microns, depending on the metal thickness. This level of precision is difficult to achieve using traditional methods, especially when dealing with complex or highly detailed designs.

This precision also enables the production of filters with custom-designed pore sizes tailored to specific filtration needs. The ability to control these parameters with high accuracy results in better filtration performance and improved fluid flow characteristics.

Burr-Free and Stress-Free Manufacturing

Traditional mechanical processes, such as stamping or punching, often result in burrs—small, raised edges on the surface of the material that can obstruct flow and reduce the filter’s effectiveness. Burrs also require additional finishing processes, adding time and cost to the production process. PCM, on the other hand, is a chemical process that dissolves unwanted material without causing mechanical stress or deformation. The result is a smooth, burr-free surface that enhances the performance of the filtration media without the need for secondary finishing.

Additionally, PCM does not induce mechanical stress into the material, which is particularly important when working with thin metals. Mechanical stress can lead to warping or cracking, which compromises the integrity of the filter. By using PCM, manufacturers can maintain the structural integrity of thin metal sheets, ensuring the durability and reliability of the filtration media.

Complex Geometries and Customization

Photo etching is ideally suited for creating complex and intricate patterns, such as those required for advanced filtration media. Manufacturers can create customized filter designs with highly detailed geometries that would be challenging or impossible to achieve with conventional methods. This includes intricate mesh patterns, irregular shapes, or designs that require precise control over pore size and distribution.

Etching also allows for the rapid prototyping of custom filtration solutions. Since the process relies on photomasks to define the pattern, changes to the design can be implemented quickly and cost-effectively. This is particularly beneficial for industries that require tailored filtration solutions for specific applications, such as aerospace or medical devices.

Material Versatility

PCM can be applied to a wide range of metals, including stainless steel, copper, brass, and nickel alloys, all of which are commonly used in filtration applications due to their corrosion resistance and durability. This versatility allows manufacturers to choose the best material for their specific filtration requirements without being limited by the manufacturing process.

Applications in Critical Industries

Photochemical machining is particularly advantageous for industries that require high-performance filtration solutions. For example, in the aerospace industry, filters are used in fuel systems, hydraulic systems, and air systems, where failure is not an option. The high precision and reliability of PCM-manufactured filters ensure that these critical systems operate smoothly.

In medical applications, where sterilization and particle control are crucial, PCM enables production of finely tuned filters that can meet stringent regulatory requirements. Similarly, in the food and beverage industry, PCM is used to create filters that ensure product purity and safety.

Conclusion

Photochemical machining offers superior results for metal filtration media by combining high precision, burr-free production, and the ability to create complex geometries. Its advantages in terms of cost-effectiveness, material versatility, and the ability to produce thin, intricate parts make it an ideal solution for industries requiring reliable and high-performance filtration solutions.

Request a Quote Today!
How Down-sizing Dimensions Favors Photo Etching
5:17 am Leave a Comment

In nearly every industry, the trend is toward devices and equipment that give users more power and functionality, even as the products get smaller and smaller.

In nearly every industry, the trend is toward devices and equipment that give users more power and functionality, even as the products get smaller and smaller. Consider:
- In aerospace, aviation and defense, vehicles need to incorporate a large number of electronic and communications technology without taking up a lot of space or adding unnecessary weight.
- Medical devices that can be implanted inside a patient’s body must be reliable yet minimally invasive.
- Consumer electronics are getting smaller with every new iteration. Yet the demand for more power and new features keeps growing. OEMs need to balance these often conflicting requirements if they want to stay competitive.
Why conventional fabrication methods struggle with micromanufacturing
As a consequence of the widespread miniaturization of devices and equipment, the components and subassemblies that go into the products must get smaller as well. But the most common conventional fabrication methods, such as stamping, laser cutting and wire EDM run into some difficulties when creating tiny parts with strict design requirements at high production volumes.

These processes tend to create mechanical or thermal distortions that can negatively affect the quality of the final part. With stamping or punching, you end up with burrs and hold marks on the parts. Component parts in the micro world must sometimes fit in spaces smaller than a millimeter. Photo etching can produce parts as small 0.5mm with features as small as 0.1mm.

We can provide quick estimates for your flat etched parts–usually in minutes.

Get an Instant Estimate

As devices get smaller, component parts must shrink accordingly. That’s where nonconventional fabrication processes come in.

Why OEMs should work with a photo etcher for their micro needs
Photo etching is an unconventional process that uses chemistry to etch through flat metal sheets in the shape of the final part. Using a phototool that prints the negative image of the part onto a flat metal sheet, we can create some extremely complex parts. This is because photo etching happens all at once, as opposed to the other nonconventional processes where each feature is machined one at a time.

Here are some of the key benefits of photo etching that OEMs with micro needs should know about:
- Burr-free parts. Photo etching doesn’t create burrs or uneven edges that throw small parts off.
- Tolerances can be held within +/- 15% of metal thickness. Because there is no tool wear, we can be extremely consistent, even when holding very tight tolerances.
- Parts are not exposed to extreme heat, which prevents thermal distortions and recast layers.
- Phototools are generally $300 or less and can be ready to go within a day. They can also be easily regenerated, meaning your costs don’t go up dramatically just because your volumes do.
- Etching can include a variety of design features, such as asymmetrical aspect ratios where one side of a hole is smaller than the other – perfect for meshes and screens in filtration devices.
For more on how photo etching can solve your toughest micro problems, call us at 800-443-5218 or email us at sales@conardcorp.com.
How did you ever survive before photo etching?
March 12, 2025 1:13 pm Leave a Comment
We’ve seen it time and again. From never heard of it to can’t manage without it. Photo etching becomes the go-to solution for precision metal parts fabricating once people understand its advantages. Among the key features are inexpensive, rapidly produced phototools ( 1 day), the ability to process metal foils as thin as .0005 inches (really!), and completely “stress free machining”: no burrs and no mechanical or thermal effects.

One of the things that adopters of the etching process quickly realize is that complex geometries of parts become non-issues. Whatever the size, shape, number of holes or other types of features are necessary for the function of the part, it’s all easy and essentially free. The cost of photo etching is driven by the “real estate”: the physical area of the part and the dimensional tolerances, which drive the sheet size. For metals up to .032″ thick, drawing block tolerances of +/-.005″ allow processing sheets up to 18″ x 24″, the most economical format, because the unit of labor is sheets per hour. The labor per sheet varies little because 2 hands have to handle whatever size sheet through six distinct manufacturing operations.

So, the economic objective is to get as many parts as possible per sheet. We have put together a table that illustrates the impact of dimensional tolerances and sheet sizes on part costs here. The benefit of understanding this relationship is readily apparent.

Modern design platforms have many manufacturing options “baked in.” Stamping, laser, EDM, CNC punching: click a drop-down menu and design rules are applied and cycle times are calculated. But, even when etching would be an absolutely superior option in both cost and quality, designers and engineers have no access to that information.

Part of our mission is to seek out and educate people involved in the design and development of precision metal components about the capabilities of the photo chemical etching process. To get the “30 thousand foot view”, this three-minute video about etching will put the right set of pictures in your head. And for more in-depth information, the Comprehensive Guide to Photochemical Machining offers detailed design and process information. (Go ahead…it’s free!)

We see photo etching applications in many industries. Electronics and semiconductor packaging; RF and microwave communications; industrial, medical and scientific instrumentation; metal filtration; brazing preforms; aerospace and defense…the list is both endless and changing daily.

So, if you have a fabricated metal application that is just not a great fit for the processes you know, give us a try. We might be exactly what you didn’t know you were looking for.

You can reach me at 860-659-0591 or kstillman@conardcorp.com
From model to metal: How ARE You going to get that part made?
1:09 pm Leave a Comment
Can doesn’t mean should…

Just because you can design it that way doesn’t necessarily mean you can make it that way. The beauty of sophisticated 3D design platforms is that they allow tremendous efficiency in the product development process. The ability to interpolate and generate physical solutions can deliver a lot of benefits.

Now, what do you do?

But, we’ve certainly seen our share of part designs that the machine said would work…if only you could get it made. Most of these platforms come fully programmed with knowledge about the most widely known metal fabricating processes: stamping ,laser, EDM, waterjet, casting, molding, forging, milling and many other options. NOT ONE OF THEM “knows” a dang thing about photochemical machining –usually referred to as etching.

If only you had known… (That’s why we’re here.)

In many cases, had the designer or engineer known about etching, he or she could have saved themselves weeks or months of time, money and aggravation trying to make a part using processes that were not well suited to the problem. We’ve seen it time and again.

It’s like a good virus…

And, the other interesting thing is: once they find that etching is a brilliant solution for the problem they had, they keep finding more applications that are so easily resolved the same way.

We have a number of customers for whom we’ve made dozens of different parts, and in a few cases hundreds of different parts, over the years. Metal etching works really well for many types of industrial, medical, scientific, electronic, mechanical and filtration applications.

Are you ready to give etching a try?

The chemical etching process is especially effective for thin gauge (<..020″…down to .001″) metals in a variety of alloys including those based on steel ,nickel, copper, brass, bronze, aluminum, molybdenum and silver. Part complexity is another advantage of etching. The more complex the geometry, for example lots of holes or irregular shapes, the better the fit. And, unusual features have zero impact on cost or time.

If you’d like to check this out for yourself, we’d be happy to offer a free quote!