If your products are measured in millimeters or even microns, this is definitely not the place to make sloppy joints or apply too much heat. This is why most of the manufacturers in the medical and electronics fields are shifting towards the use of laser beam welding as the most preferred welding method.

It is high-tech precision engineering at light speed. If you are searching for welded parts or exploring suppliers, understanding why laser welding is so prevalent in these industries could be beneficial. Read on so that you can make a wiser, safer decision.

Precision that safeguards your product

In electronics and medical manufacturing, a weld is part of the performance, safety, and life of the product. When using conventional welding technologies, there might be a danger of:

• Heating up
• Deforming
• Excessively melting a wideheat-affected zone.

Laser beam welding directs a very narrow, powerful beam of light on the precise point that requires welding. The result?

• Tight weld seams
• Low heat dissipation
• Near-zero distortion even on thin or delicate parts.

When you are making a pacemaker housing or a metal case around a microchip, that level of control makes it possible to join components without cracking delicate materials or heating adjacent parts. Itlooks better and works better.

The pristine clean advantage

Both industries do not compromise on cleanliness. In the case of medical products, contamination is life-threatening. In electronics, a small particle or an impurity can be enough to make a device fail.

Laser welding is a one-touch or non-contact process. The welding tool does not involve physical contact with the part. Instead, pure energy is working on the part. That significantly lowers the probability of contaminating the joint with dirt, oil, or debris.

Better still, the process is frequently carried out under controlled conditions, such as cleanrooms. It can be combined with shielding gases to avoid oxidation. To you, as a client, it will mean welds that are:

• Smooth and without spatter
• Corrosion-resistant
• Ready to use without having to clean or finish it too much.

In a nutshell, no unsightly, unfinished connections with post-weld slims.

Strength without weight

When you are designing something to be used in the human body or to be incorporated into a thin, lightweight device, then fractions of a millimeter can matter. Laser beam welding offers both strong and discrete joints.

The heat is so specific and localized that you can work with thinner materials with the risk of burn-through or warping. This means lighter products and more miniature housings. Welding constraints no longer dictate the design.

In the case of medical implants, that is a promise of more comfortable and less invasive interventions for the patients. In the case of electronics, it implies more slender designs and lower material costs.

Speed and efficiency

Laser beam welding is not only known to be of good quality. It is also quick. A high-volume industrial welding company can automate it, and since it produces such clean and precise joints, the process typically requires no or minimal finish processing after welding.

That efficiency implies:

• Reduced production cycles
• Reduced costs of labor
• Quicker entry of your product into the marketplace.

In an industry where innovation is fast-paced, that pace can mean the difference between being ahead of the game or chasing the competition.

Material versatility

The highly successful application to challenging materials is one of the highlights of laser welding. The concentrated beam is up to the task whether you are handling stainless steel, titanium, gold, copper or a combination of dissimilar metals.

In medical assembly, that translates to the ability to assemble biocompatible metals without losing their properties. This is imperative when anything is going to be touching tissue or fluids. In electronics, one can easily establish reliable connections between metals that differ in conductivity, without weakening them or introducing additional resistance.

Satisfying the standards that count

Medical and electronic items are subjected to one of the strictest regulations of quality and safety in production. Compliance is not optional, whether it is ISO 13485 for medical devices or the stringent IPC in electronics.

Laser welding is highly precise, clean, and repeatable, thus making it an optimal method of fulfilling such demands. When you pick a partner like Micro Weld that implements this technology, you can rest assured that your welds will pass inspections on the first go.

Summing it up

Are you designing products to be used in medical devices or electronics? Here are the reasons why you should at least take a closer look at working with a supplier that provides laser beam welding:

• Less chance of the product getting spoiled or damaged by heat or contamination.
• Quicker turnaround but no compromises on quality.
• Flexible designs.
• Production of smaller, lighter, and more efficient goods.
• Assurance that you are up to the industry standards.

True, laser welding may be more expensive initially than older techniques. However, when you consider the cost savings associated with a smaller number of rejects, highly efficient production, and the increased life of the products, it will usually pay for itself several times.

Photo by ERFIN EKARANA: