ESAB Welding & Cutting Products (www.esabna.com) introduced a hybrid laser arc-welding process (HLAW). The company says its HLAW products are the first commercially available mechanized laser-welding systems to use laser only, laser with cold wire fill, or hybrid laser arc welding in a 2D gantry, 3D robotic or custom mechanized solutions with closed-loop weld process control. ESAB says HLAW combines laser welding with GMAW and a small amount of filler metal to create a weld bead wide enough to bridge weld gaps that are four times as wide as conventional laser processes can handle. Adding GMAW to the process increases the metallurgical stability of a finished part.

Separately, the company's new HandyPlasma 250 manual plasma cutting machine operates on 110/155V input and cuts carbon or stainless steel up to 0.25 in. (6.35 mm) thick. The single-phase machine is fully assem-bled and ready to cut, and weighs 16 lbs. Output is 20 amps at 20 percent duty cycle.