Everything About
Laser Welding!
Heliner LaserWeld NZ is here to help. We’ve prepared everything you need to get started, including health and safety, setup instructions, and the best parameters for achieving the perfect weld. All procedures and information follow the most up-to-date New Zealand health and safety standards. Don’t hesitate to call us if you’d like further assistance!
My Laser Welder has Arrived, What Now?
A LaserWeld NZ technician will head over to install the machine and train your team. We’ll cover everything you need to know on site, but we’ve also made a series of useful videos on setup, operation and maintenance if you get stuck.
Health and Safety to consider
before welding begins
As with any new technology, safety is the number one concern. LaserWeld NZ has done extensive research into the relevant health and safety standards, and developed a robust SOP. You can find it on our website or with any machine we deliver. However, there are many procedures and infrastructure that are best put into place before the laser welder arrives, and we discuss some of the most important points below.
Where and how should I set up the laser welding workspace?
We recommend setting up in a completely enclosed protective enclosure. We’ll go into this topic in more detail further down. The general area should be well ventilated, and free of obstructions - as it’s a hand held device, trip hazards are particularly important to consider.
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The area should be surrounded by a clearly marked working boundary. Anyone not trained to operate the welder should be kept out of this boundary. If it doesn’t interfere with operations then they should be physically prevented from entering with a cage or equivalent.
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The conductive welding table should be used exclusively for laser welding. As the laser welder and normal TIG/MIG/ARC processes operate at very different currents, other welding processes can damage the laser.
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Any flammable or explosive materials should be stored away from the laser welding work area, and remove anything reflective from inside the protective enclosure.
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The welder should only be accessible by trained staff. There is a key that locks the emergency stop button, and this should be stored in a secure location when the welder is not in use.
How do I protect my staff working with the laser welder?
Training should be the first port of call. Anyone using the welder should be highly trained and have demonstrated competency before they are allowed to use the welder without supervision. Anyone not trained should not have access. A key point to get across is that most of the emissions from laser welding are infrared and cannot be seen. This doesn’t reduce the amount of damage it can do to the retina, but can make operators complacent as the hazard is invisible and they won’t notice the damage is done until it is too late.
To protect against these direct emissions, anyone operating the welder or within the enclosure must be wearing laser protective glasses and a welding helmet. The laser operates at a wavelength of 1080 nm ± 20 nm, and protection should be provided using OD 7+ rated eyewear for this specific wavelength range.
While it doesn’t put as much heat into the material as MIG or TIG, laser welding is still very hot, and sturdy, non-flammable clothing or overalls must be worn alongside high temperature resistant gloves. Anything that is rated for traditional welding will work. As in all workshop situations, enclosed toe steel cap boots are a must.
Operators should also remove jewellery, watches, and any other reflective clothing to minimise the risk of secondary radiation.
As with traditional welding, fumes from the gas and material are a long term hazard. An extraction system should be installed within the protective enclosure, and a respirator is recommended.
How do I protect my staff working around the laser welder?
Our recommendation is to construct a complete protective environment for the laser welder, separating it from the rest of the workshop both physically, and from laser exposure. There are many different ways of building an effective enclosure, such as completely enclosing it with solid laser protective panels, putting it in a separate laser safe room, or completely surrounding it with adequate laser protective curtains. Any option you choose should meet the following guidelines:
Any protective environment should reduce the laser radiation exposure to the surrounding area to below the level of a class 1 laser. As the emissions from the laser welder are not always visible, this needs to work for both visible and invisible spectra.
If there needs to be a gap in the enclosure to properly operate the welder, the gaps must be clearly labelled, as small as possible, and any windows must be fitted with laser proof glass.
Whenever the laser is in operation, unauthorised people should be prevented from accessing the protective environment. This could be a physical barrier, a trip device such as a light guard, an interlocking device, or something equivalent - as long as it doesn’t introduce a secondary hazard or prevent access during emergencies. If one is used, any trip or interlock device used should prevent the laser from working if a fault is detected, and should require an operator to reset after it is tripped. Whenever the laser is operating, there should also be a clear visual indicator, such as a ‘laser in operation’ sign.
All other hazards (laser, electrical, high temperature, fire, harmful fumes, and explosion) should be clearly labelled both inside and outside the enclosure following the relevant standards. A special hazard label for invisible laser radiation should be clearly identified, and all staff working around the enclosure should understand the risks and safety procedures for these hazards.
There are also hazards other than direct laser light when you’re welding. Some examples are; secondary optical radiation, ablated material, fumes, and high temperatures. Any enclosure used should prevent these from entering the rest of the workshop, which includes the outlet for the extraction system. Some fumes will inevitably escape any extraction system, so it is also important to ensure there is good ventilation within and around the protective enclosure to prevent buildup.
Any other advice for the laser welder working area?
There are several other important considerations. The cylinders for the shielding gas are pressurised, and therefore should be a safe distance from the laser welder with sufficient shielding to prevent them being damaged by any accidental laser strikes.
There should be a scheduled maintenance procedure for the enclosure and any devised used, carried out by qualified technicians on a regular basis. It’s important to be aware of any environmental factors such as humidity, temperature or corrosive elements in the surrounding environment that could cause the protective enclosure to degrade.
As people will be working within the protective cover, it’s important that there is enough room for staff to easily enter in the event of an emergency, and for staff to quickly evacuate if needed.
What are the key health and safety points for operating the machine?
As with the setup, training is the first step. All operators must be trained professionals, and must demonstrate competency before being allowed to operate the machine. Make sure they are familiar with LaserWeld NZ’s SOP, and any local health and safety policies.
The laser is absolutely powerful enough to cause severe retinal and skin damage from direct contact, or to anyone nearby if not properly protected. The most important point for your staff to understand is that most of the radiation is not visible. It is very easy to become complacent as you cannot see or feel the long term damage occurring. It is important to reiterate this point whenever new operators are trained.
For the laser welder to fire, it must complete a circuit with the grounding wire through a conductive medium (usually the welding table). However, this circuit can be accidentally completed if the grounding clamp is directly touching the welding gun, or through an unexpected conductive medium e.g. if the welder and clamp are both left on a metal table. Therefore, to prevent the welder from accidental firing, the grounding clamp and wire should be disconnected whenever the welder is not in use. The gun should never be left on a metallic surface, and should be immediately hooked back onto its holster whenever an operator is not holding it.
Another key safety feature is the emergency stop and key. This key locks the emergency stop to prevent unauthorised personnel from using the welder, and the e-stop should be locked out with the key and secure location whenever the welder is not being operated.
Even though the welder needs to complete the circuit to fire, never point it at another person. The laser is also powerful enough to cause burns and retinal damage from secondary reflected radiation. This can reflect from the welding table or workpiece, and therefore never stand directly opposite to the welding gun when it is in operation.
Never leave the machine unattended while it is on. Immediately halt any operation if you notice a malfunction or damage, and turn off the power. Most faults can be fixed by a LaserWeld NZ technician, but take especially good care of the fibre optic cable as repairing that is a longer and more intensive operation.
References and Further Reading
AS/NZS 4024.1702:2014 - Safety of Machinery - Human Body Measurements
AS/NZS 4024.1905:2014 - Displays, controls, actuators and signals - Indication, marking and actuation - Requirements for marking
AS/NZS 4024.2803:2021 - Safety of machinery, Part 2803: Electro-sensitive protective equipment - General requirements and tests
AS/NZS 4024.2804:2021 - Safety of machinery, Part 2804: Safety-related sensors used for the protection of persons
AS/NZS IEC 60825-4:2023 - Safety of Laser Products - Part 4: Laser Guards.
AS/NZS ISO 25980:2024 - Health and safety in welding and allied processes – Transparent welding curtains, strips and screens for arc welding processes
Baison Laser. Exploring the Art of Laser Welding Stainless Steel. Available at: https://baisonlaser.com/blog/laser-welding-stainless-steel/.
BOYI Prototyping. Porosity in Welding. Available at: https://www.boyiprototyping.com/sheet-metal-fabrication-guide/porosity-in-welding/.
Cavitar. Spatter Behavior in Laser Beam Welding Process. Available at: https://www.cavitar.com/library/spatter-behavior-in-laser-beam-welding-process/.
Cyan Tec Systems. How is Laser Welding Better than TIG? Available at: https://cyan-tec.com/laser-systems/how-is-laser-welding-better-than-tig.
Das, A., Dale, T., Masters, I., & Widanage, D. (2020). Feasibility of Fillet Edge Weld Using Laser Wobble Technique. 20th CIRP Conference on Electro Physical and Chemical Machining, WMG, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK.
Frostevarg, J., & Kaplan, A. (2014). Undercuts in Laser Arc Hybrid Welding. Physics Procedia, 56, 663-672. DOI: 10.1016/j.phpro.2014.08.071. Licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 3.0.
ISO 12100:2010 - Safety of Machinery - General Principles for Design - Risk Assessment and Risk Reduction.
MachineMFG. Overcoming 7 Common Laser Welding Quality Issues. Available at: https://www.machinemfg.com/laser-welding-quality-problems-solutions/.
Weiss-Aug. Laser Welding – Small Heat-Affected Zones. Available at: https://weiss-aug.com/2017/07/21/laser-welding-small-heat-affected-zones/.