5 Reasons Laser Engraving Beats Rotary Engraving for More Complex Sign Designs

Some signs are quite straightforward, with simply a name or instruction printed in large block capitals. That said, it's far from unusual for businesses to require a sign with quite a complex design. If that's the case, you need to look to laser engraving instead of rotary engraving, and here are just five important reasons why.

1. Zero Contact

Rotary engraving uses physical cutting methods, so a part of the engraving tool will be pressed down against the material used for your sign. This can be a problem for more complex designs since the stress can slightly warp the material. That isn't such an issue when very large and plain designs are needed, but more complex and intricate designs are going to suffer from the contact since the material will already be somewhere weakened.

2. Photographic Quality

Laser engraving is extremely precise. When details need to be quite dense for a more complex design, it's impossible for a rotary engraver to do the job, meaning you'll be restricted when you come to choose exactly how your sign will look. With laser engraving, you can get line width right down to a fraction of a millimetre. 

3. High-Speed Operation

Laser engraving machines are controlled by a computer, and few parts need to be replaced during the process. The beam will move very quickly without ever risking a mistake, and a laser engraving machine can run for hours without ever needing to stop. Even if you only need a single sign, you could be waiting a while if you opt for rotary engraving instead, especially if your design is quite complex.

4.  Lack of Tool Wear

Because a rotary engraving tool needs to meet the sign material in order to make its mark, the edge of the tool will wear down over time. Again, this isn't such an issue if you only want a very simple design, but a worn tool can lose a measure of accuracy - that becomes more apparent when you require a very intricate design. A laser beam will never wear, so this isn't going to be a problem with laser engraving.

5. Easy Storing

If you have a very intricate design created, you can have the design stored and then replicated very easily in the future. After all, a laser engraving machine already uses a computer, so all you need to do is provide an old design to have an exact replica created. That's great if you ever need a more intricate sign replicated in a few years.

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