Wardjet Z-813 — 8'x13' Triple-Headed Water Jet

This incredible machine can cut almost any material on planet Earth up to 12” thick, with the exception of Diamonds, Carbide and Tempered Glass. Three heads on our Z-813 allows us to cut up to three 4' x 8' sheets simultaneously – allowing our customers to receive 3 times the product in the time it takes most companies to produce one. The Z-813 offers exceptional accuracy of +/- .005”, repeatability of +/- .001” and exhibits no “heat-affected zones”. The water jet cutting process utilizes a combination of water and abrasive forced through a cutting nozzle at up to 2200 mph and 60,000 psi and cuts at speeds of 0.01ipm to 250ipm.

See a side by side comparison of water jet cutting and laser cutting

Watch a short video of the water jet cutting machine in action

History of Water Jet Cutting

Hydraulic coal mining in New Zealand and the Soviet Union is believed to be the beginning of water jet cutting. Water was gathered from brooks and streams and directed to wash over a rock face to carry away the free rock and coal. Through 1853-1886, in the Gold Country of California, water was pressurized and used to move soft gold rock from the mining locations. This allowed miners to stand a distance away while the soft gold rock was being washed, which created a safer work environment for the miners because there was less of a chance of collapsing walls of blasted rock.

In the early 1900’s, Russia and Prussia had gained the knowledge of using pressurized water; they used this knowledge to wash away blasted coal. Approximately 30 years later, Russia evolved this idea and used a water cannon in the first recorded attempt to cut rock with water. Norman Franz, a forestry engineer from Michigan, experimented using water to cut lumber in the early 1950’s and installed the first industrial water jet machine. In the 1970’s there was a breakthrough in water jet technology when Mohamed Hashish created an abrasive which when added to pressurized water created the water jet technique.

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Water jet cutting is an environmentally friendly way to create your parts but to make this machine even more “Green” we have installed a state-of-the-art water recycling system which filters and reuses all water that is used in the cutting process. Not only is this great for the environment, but also helps you by cutting the cost of production. Should you be interested in receiving a quote for this high-tech process, please contact us.