Waterjet Glass Cutting Machines: The Buying Guide

What a waterjet does, and where it sits on the line

An intensifier pump raises water pressure to hundreds of megapascals. That water passes through a jewel orifice and becomes a fine, fast jet. Abrasive garnet is drawn into the stream in a mixing chamber and the mixture leaves the focusing tube. The jet grinds its way through the glass. The cut is cold, so there is no thermal stress line at the edge and no burnt residue.

On a glass line the waterjet usually sits after the cutting table, not instead of it. A scoring table is faster and cheaper for straight rectangles. The waterjet takes the work the table cannot do: interior cut-outs, curves, door openings, holes and inside corners. The Glass Waterjet Processing Lines from Rich Waterjet name door openings, Mickey shapes and holes as the work the station handles.

After the waterjet the part goes to edge work, washing and then tempering or laminating. Every cut has to be finished before the furnace. Some machines close the gap themselves: the 5-Axis Bridge Cutting + Waterjet combines cutting, drilling, milling, engraving and grinding on one bed, taking a slab from rough machining to fine finishing without moving it.

• Before: cutting table for straight rectangles, breakout, sometimes a first wash
• This station: shaped cuts, interior cut-outs, holes, door openings, inside corners
• After: edge grinding, washing, tempering or laminating

Types and configurations

The first split is the cutting head, and it decides edge quality. A three-axis head cuts straight down at 0 degrees. It is the simplest and cheapest to maintain, and it leaves a slight natural taper on the cut face because the jet loses energy as it passes through the material. The 3-Axis Waterjet from Rich Waterjet is a pure vertical machine of this kind. A V5 head tilts a small amount, 0 to 10 degrees on the V5-Axis Waterjet, purely to cancel that taper so the cut face comes out vertical. Rich Waterjet states that on splice material such as ceramic splice the resulting edge needs no further processing. A full five-axis head tilts far more: the AC 5-Axis Waterjet bevels from 0 to 60 degrees, with A-axis travel of plus or minus 65 degrees and infinite C-axis rotation, so it can cut a chamfer or a mitre in the same pass as the outline.

The second split is head count. One head does one part at a time. Two heads run in parallel and double output on repeat parts. The Dual-Head 3-Axis puts two three-axis heads on one machine, and it can be configured either as a single head with a single intensifier or as two heads with two intensifiers. The 3-Axis Waterjet can also be configured with two heads working together.

The third split is table size and structure. Standard bridge machines cover normal architectural panes. The Jumbo & Large-Format Waterjet covers everything above that, with tables from 1200 x 1200 mm on the RC1212 up to 2300 x 11300 mm on the RC23113, in bridge or fly-arm structures, using the same cutting heads and intensifiers as the standard line.

The last split is whether the waterjet stands alone or sits inside a line. A stand-alone machine is loaded by hand and suits mixed work. The Glass Waterjet Processing Lines put the waterjet inside a conveyor with an automatic up-loading machine, automatic barcode scanning, inline cleaning and an automatic unloading machine, available as a single waterjet line, a full processing line, or a three-axis dual-blade line.

• Three-axis vertical head: simplest, lowest maintenance, accepts a small natural taper
• V5 head, 0 to 10 degrees: tilts only to cancel taper, giving a vertical cut face
• AC five-axis head, 0 to 60 degrees: cuts true bevels and mitres as well as outlines
• Single or dual head, with one intensifier or one per head
• Standard bridge, or large-format bridge and fly-arm tables
• Stand-alone machine, or an inline station with automatic load, clean and unload
• Combined machines that add a saw blade, a milling spindle and a grinding head

How it works, step by step

The sequence is short. Most of the engineering sits in steps two and five.

Height control keeps the cut consistent on glass that is not perfectly flat. The AC 5-Axis Waterjet uses needle-type probing to generate basin cutting paths automatically and real-time altimetry to compensate for undulation in the slab. The V5-Axis Waterjet and the 3-Axis Waterjet both use three-point real-time altimetry on a cast-iron beam. Pressure comes from indirect hydraulic pressurisation with a dual oil circuit on every machine here, up to 420 MPa as standard on the AC 5-Axis Waterjet, with a 600 MPa option across the range.

• 1. Import or draw the part, set lead-ins, and nest it on the sheet
• 2. Probe the surface and let the altimetry set and hold the standoff height
• 3. Bring the intensifier up to pressure and pierce, starting slowly on glass to avoid chipping
• 4. Cut the outline, with the head tilting if the machine corrects taper or cuts a bevel
• 5. Feed abrasive at a steady rate through the pneumatic valve while the jet is running
• 6. Lift, drain the catcher tank, unload, and remove the spent garnet

The figures that decide the purchase

Eight numbers settle most waterjet decisions. Read them against the parts you cut most, not against the largest table on offer.

Choosing by what you produce

Pick the head first, then the table, then decide whether the machine stands alone or goes inline.

What a quote should include

Ask for the price factory-direct, then get every surrounding line in writing. On a waterjet the consumables and the water treatment are a bigger part of the true cost than on any other glass machine, and they are the lines most often left off a first quote. Request pricing with the following listed separately.

• Machine price factory-direct, with the table size code and head type named
• Intensifier: which pressure rating is quoted, and whether a second intensifier comes with a second head
• Water treatment: the softener system that holds inlet TDS at 100 mg/L or less, and who supplies it
• Abrasive handling: the pneumatic feed hopper, its 200 kg capacity, and removal of spent garnet
• Export crating, and whether the crate is seaworthy plywood or a steel frame
• Freight to your named port or door, noting weights of 5 to 10 T on the combined bridge machine
• Installation and levelling, including the catcher tank and drainage
• Commissioning: parts cut from your own drawings and signed off on site
• Training: how many days, where, and in which language
• CNC system: whether the domestic or imported Italian control is quoted, and what files it imports
• Spare parts kit: orifices, focusing tubes, seals, check valves and high-pressure fittings
• Warranty length, what it covers on the high-pressure circuit, and how a failed part reaches you

Lead times, installation and running costs

Lead time follows the table size and the head. A standard bridge table with a three-axis head is a catalogue build. A large-format or fly-arm table, or a machine with a combined saw and waterjet, is closer to made to order. Ask for a written date, and ask what starts the clock.

Installation is heavier than most glass machines because of the tank and the water. The catcher tank holds water and spent garnet and has to be drained and cleaned, so the floor needs a drain and access on the right side. The 5-Axis Bridge Cutting + Waterjet is listed at 5 to 10 T. The plant must also supply compressed air and treated water. The softener is not optional, because hard water shortens seal and orifice life faster than any other condition.

Running cost is dominated by abrasive garnet, orifices and focusing tubes, and pump seals. Garnet is consumed continuously while the jet runs, which is why the 200 kg hopper matters to shift planning. Orifices and focusing tubes are wear parts with a life measured in cutting hours. Electricity is not small on the pump: the AC 5-Axis Waterjet lists a 45 kW main motor. PLC self-diagnosis with alarms shortens the time an operator spends finding a fault.

Mistakes buyers make

Five errors account for most of the trouble with a first waterjet.

• Buying a waterjet to replace the cutting table. It does not. A scoring table is faster and cheaper for straight rectangles. A waterjet earns its place on shapes, interior cut-outs and holes, so size it for that work.
• Choosing a vertical head and then complaining about taper. A three-axis head cuts straight down and leaves a slight taper on the cut face. If the face has to be square, the V5-Axis Waterjet exists for exactly that, tilting 0 to 10 degrees so the splice edge needs no further processing.
• Skipping the water treatment. Every machine here specifies a softener holding inlet TDS at 100 mg/L or less. Buyers cut it from the first quote and then replace seals and orifices at a rate that costs more in a year than the softener cost once.
• Under-planning abrasive logistics. Garnet arrives in bulk, has to be stored dry, and leaves the machine wet in the catcher tank. The 200 kg hopper sets how often someone refills it. Work out delivery, storage and spent-garnet removal before the machine lands.
• Buying pressure instead of the right head. The 600 MPa option is available across the range, but a higher-pressure pump does not make a vertical head cut a bevel. Decide the head geometry from the parts you sell, then decide the pressure.

Machines on GlassMachines.net

Seven machines from Rich Waterjet, grouped by head type and by scale.

• Vertical cutting. 3-Axis Waterjet: a pure vertical machine on a high-precision cast-iron beam with an easy-maintenance three-point altimetry head, configurable with two heads on one machine. Dual-Head 3-Axis: the two-head version, sold either as a single head with a single intensifier or two heads with two intensifiers, aimed squarely at doubling output on repeat parts.
• Angled and bevelled cutting. V5-Axis Waterjet: a splice head that tilts 0 to 10 degrees to keep the cutting surface vertical, on an ultra-high-precision cast-iron beam with three-point altimetry and a pneumatic abrasive valve with no water return. AC 5-Axis Waterjet: the widest capability head here, IP68 waterproof and dustproof, bevelling 0 to 60 degrees with plus or minus 65 degrees of A-axis travel and infinite C-axis rotation, with needle probing that generates basin cutting paths automatically, 420 MPa standard pressure and a 45 kW main motor.
• Large format and combined machines. Jumbo & Large-Format Waterjet: the same heads and intensifiers on oversized tables from 1200 x 1200 mm to 2300 x 11300 mm, in bridge or fly-arm structures. 5-Axis Bridge Cutting + Waterjet: a bridge saw and an AC five-axis waterjet on one frame, with Ø350 to 450 mm blades, a 15 to 22 kW spindle, and optional 4.5 kW milling and 15 kW grinding heads at 24000 rpm.
• Inline production. Glass Waterjet Processing Lines: the waterjet built into a conveyor, with an automatic up-loading machine, automatic barcode scanning, inline cleaning and automatic unloading, available as a single waterjet line, a full processing line or a three-axis dual-blade line.

Specs to compare, in one list

Cutting head type and tilt angle

It decides whether the cut face is tapered, corrected to vertical, or bevelled, and no other option can change that later.

Table size

Fixed for the life of the machine, so it sets the ceiling on the parts you can quote.

Intensifier pressure rating

Higher pressure raises cut speed and lowers abrasive consumption for the same rate of cut.

Number of cutting heads and intensifiers

Two heads is the cheapest route to double output, but only if each head has the pressure it needs.

Maximum workable thickness

Thickness drives cutting speed and taper, and it is what separates decorative work from structural work.

Abrasive feed and hopper capacity

Hopper size sets how long a shift runs before an operator has to stop and refill it.

Inlet water treatment specification

Water hardness kills seals and orifices faster than anything else, so the softener belongs in the first quote.

CNC system and diagnostics

Control choice and PLC self-diagnosis decide how fast your own operator can clear a fault.

Questions buyers ask