Making Sure Your Plans Don't Get Lost in Machine Translation
Laser cutting may be what you want in order to have specific parts made, but you've got to have schematics that the laser cutting company can actually use. That means getting those plans into a format the company can either use directly or can convert to another format, and it means ensuring the diagram stays consistent through all the file changes. Even the slightest change can result in a piece that's off course enough to make using it difficult. With a consistent blueprint and careful transfers, you can have a laser-cut part that fits your plans exactly.
Put Your Design Into Digital Format
Technically, you could give a laser cutting company a paper blueprint of the finished piece that you want. However, laser cutting is computer-controlled nowadays, and that blueprint will have to be converted into a digital file before the laser cutting can commence. Some laser-cutting companies will do this for you, but others require a file that's already digitised and in a particular format. It's easiest if you can get that file into the right format before handing it over to the company.
Have the Laser Cutting Company Check the File
When you send the file to the laser cutting company, make sure they check the file's formatting by opening it as soon as possible. Sometimes files can change when opened in a different version of a program or even opened on a different computer. This isn't as big of an issue now as it was a decade or so ago when some formats could completely screw up a graphic just by being opened on someone else's computer in the same program and version. But you always want to be sure that the laser cutting company is seeing the same thing you are.
Make Sure Both of You Are Using the Same Borders
If you've used graphic templates before, such as for business cards that you order online, you'll have seen that sometimes the borders of the graphic area do not match up with the edges of the template. In other words, if you place something at the edge of the field where you can place graphics or text, the ends will be cut off in the actual printed materials. The same can happen when making sure your design for the laser cutting session is in the right format for the laser cutting company. Any time the design is transferred between media, formats or programs, verify that the current version is completely within the correct borders for cutting.
For more information on laser cutting, contact a professional near you.
