Laser Cutting & Engraving Services & Products
Carved Unlimited is a family owned laser cutting & engraving business based in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. Our family have always enjoyed being creative & the possibility of starting a business where we could live out that creativity, had been a lifelong dream. We became interested in the laser industry when we realized the vast possibilities, & numerous industries to which it could be applied, as well as the demand & gap for such a service in our city. We opened our studio on the 1st of June 2013.
We offer the services of laser cutting & engraving of a wide variety of materials. This opens the doors for designers and creative industries to have their ideas & products manufactured locally, in a relatively fast & cost-effective manner. We also make the technology of laser manufacturing accessible to the general public. Laser techniques allows for the production of single “once-off” items, to mass production. It also allows for the personalizing & branding of items. We work closely with many industries, including Graphic Designers, Printers, Signage Companies, Architects & Interior Designers, Crafters, Events Planners & Suppliers, & many more.
Materials are cut by directing the output of the laser, by computer, at the material to be cut. The laser beam then melts, burns, or vaporizes the material away. Laser cutting machines were used for the first time in production in 1965. There are a few different types of lasers, of which we use a CO2 machine.
Materials:
We can cut: Paper & Cardboard, certain Fabrics & Leather, Acrylics (Perspex, Rowmark), Polystyrene, Foam, Bamboo, MDF & certain other types of Wood, & Cork. We can also engrave on most of these, as well as on: Glass, Ceramics, Mirror, Granite & Marble.
We can do marking (with a specialized spray) on metals. The spray adds colour on top of the material, which is then fused into the material by the laser. This can be done in a variety of colours & can also be applied to glass & ceramic.
We can cut wood up to a maximum thickness of 16mm & acrylics up to 20mm.
Because the laser process is essentially a burning process, there will be a slightly burnt effect on the edges of most cut materials. This should be seen as a unique characteristic of laser cut items & be incorporated into the final look of the product. Where possible we try to minimize or clean the burning.
Our Machines:
We have two SA Argus laser machines. The 1060 has a 60w tube & a bed size of 1000 x 600 mm. The 1290 has a 150w tube & the bed size is 1200 x 900 mm.
