Having established a cooperation for common application development in 2009 with Makino Milling Machine Co. Ltd. based in Tokyo, Synova SA enters on January 1st, 2012 into an OEM Agreement for the manufacture of Laser MicroJet (LMJ) machines based on Makino machine technology. Target markets for the new LMJ-machines are high-precision metal and hard-material processing industries. Major manufacturers of hard-material tools as well as electronic consumer goods have already expressed high interest in purchasing the equipment. Commercialization of the new LMJ machines will start in Japan with subsequent worldwide distribution.

For illustration purpose only (Photo: Business Wire)

The LMJ technology enables substantial reduction of total cost of ownership in material processing. The water-guided laser beam cuts/drills perfectly parallel and clean kerfs or holes with virtually no heat impact. As a consequence, production can be operated at lower waste rates, operational steps can be eliminated and the process allows to produce parts that cannot be produced at the same quality level with any other manufacturing process. LMJ technology has already been widely used in various high-precision application fields including metal, hard-material and semiconductor manufacturing.

The new manufacturing cooperation will bring together Synova's long-standing process application know-how with Makino's excellence as one of the world's leading industrial machine manufacturer. A first prototype of the LMJ machine has already been built, a beta-prototype will be ready for spring 2012. The new machine, built by Makino and sold by Synova under the brand of Synova can be ordered from now.

Both, Dr. Bernold Richerzhagen, CEO & President of Synova, and Masataka Kido, General Manager Makino EDM R&D Division are confident that the new long-term cooperation will result in an important value proposition for material processing.

Makino head-quartered in Tokyo, Japan offers a wide range of precision metal-cutting and EDM production machinery. Today Makino is one of the world-top-ranked machine tool suppliers with manufacturing, sales and service facilities all over the world. www.makino.com

Since 1997 Synova SA has pioneered the Laser MicroJet technology, exploiting the synergy of laser power with water. Synova has a large R&D facility as well as a vast Application Laboratory at its head-quarters in Ecublens-Lausanne, Switzerland. Sales and service of the machines is done from various Micro Machining Centers (MMC) and sales & service points around the word. www.synova.ch

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