Fonon Corporation Unveils Update to Laser Marking Systems for Circumferential Marking Applications
April 11, 2016
Latest system more economical, efficient than dot peen or inkjet marking
LAKE MARY, FL, March 21, 2016 – Fonon Corporation (OTC: FNON) today announced an update to the LaserTower Professional CM Series, a line of direct parts marking system with advanced programming capabilities and an integrated rotary axis, providing the ability to perform full circumferential marking of cylindrical items. The LaserTower Professional CM can now processes the widest variety of industrial materials of any laser, including materials made from highly-reflective metals.
Equipped with a removable rotary indexer, the LaserTower Professional CM scribes text, barcodes, 2D codes, custom artwork, and other images or graphics onto curved, arched, or rounded surfaces of a production line component. The system is also designed for marking flat, non-curved objects.
The LaserTower Professional CM provides a fast, simple way to mark, etch, engrave, or ablate the widest possible variety of industrial materials, from plastics, wood, marble, stone, and fabrics to highly-reflective metals such as aluminum, chrome, steel, copper, brass, and titanium. It also works well with composites, acrylics, wood, and fabrics.
A member of the Laser Photonics product family, the updated system now ships with either a standard CO2 laser for processing organic materials and plastics or a fiber laser for processing most inorganic materials and metals.
The advanced fiber laser option is ideal for marking and engraving highly-reflective metal parts, and allows the LaserTower Professional CM to mark and engrave metal at a speed more than three times that of CO2 lasers of equal wattage. Power consumption by the advanced laser is less than one quarter the consumption of a comparable C02 marking system, and the advanced laser is maintenance-free and requires no consumables.
Industries which process highly-reflective metals, including manufacturers of construction equipment, aluminum vehicles, kitchenware, copper and brass gaskets, food processing equipment of any kind, and materials used in the aerospace and defense industries can now avail of advanced laser marking capabilities.
Currently used for direct parts marking in a wide variety of industries, the LaserTower Professional CM is ideal for marking pipes, baseball bats, tubes, automobile shocks and other parts, metal bars, backlit buttons, and medical devices. The system is capable of marking the most delicate, sensitive components without disrupting the surface finish or changing dimensions, and the resulting mark is not affected by metal finishing processes that may be performed after marking.
The updated system includes a removable rotary motor to mark raster images on cylindrical parts as large as 19” x 19” x 8.” Operators can take advantage of the large chamber size by removing the rotary indexer, and mark flat parts as large as 31” x 19” x 10.” Additional custom sizes are available, and systems can be built to address specialized applications.
“Customer communication and input are two of the driving forces behind innovation at Fonon,” said Ben English, Chief Marketing Officer of Fonon. “High speed, high quality, and permanent marking solutions continue to replace slower and less-reliable technologies such as dot-pin stamping or inkjet marking. Fonon has developed a value-priced, durable laser processing platform that incorporates high performance and ease of use. We’re proud to introduce such a complete solution to the marketplace. The LaserTower Professional CM is truly a no-compromise solution for our customers.”
The LaserTower Professional CM Series is currently in production. Contact Fonon for more details.
About Fonon Corporation
Fonon designs laser-based material processing technologies for advanced industrial manufacturing and manufactures state of the art equipment utilizing those technologies. The company products empower manufacturers in the areas of application-specific 3D metal printing (additive manufacturing), and 2D and 3D laser cutting, marking and engraving applications (subtractive manufacturing). Our products and technologies are used today in every sector of any manufacturing industry from food and beverage to medical, aerospace and semiconductor. For more information, visit www.fonon.us.
Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 involving risks and uncertainties. Results, events and performances could vary from those contemplated. These statements involve risks and uncertainties which may cause results, expressed or implied, to differ from predicted outcomes. Risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to product demand, market competition and the company’s ability to meet current and future plans. Investors should study and understand all risks before making an investment decision. Readers are recommended not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. Fonon is not obligated to publicly release revisions to any forward-looking statement, to reflect events or circumstances afterward, or to disclose unanticipated occurrences except as required under applicable law.
Media Contact:
Ben English
Chief Marketing Officer
benglish@fonon.us
SOURCE: Fonon Corporation
Fonon Corporation Announces Laser Marking Systems for Ballistics Identification Applications
April 4, 2016
Controversial microstamping identification requirements now achievable via advanced laser marking and engraving systems
LAKE MARY, FL, April 3, 2016 – Fonon Corporation (OTC: FNON) today announced application-specific advancements in the controversial area of microstamping, a method of tracing bullet casings and cartridges back to the weapons from which they were fired. The application involves using the advanced laser technology found in Laser Photonics systems to engrave microscopic markings onto the tip of a firing pin or onto the breech face of a firearm; individually-identifiable markings are transferred to the cartridge by the pressure created when a round is fired.
Variants of the controversial law, first signed in 2007 in California by then-Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and currently under consideration in seven other states, mandate that certain types of firearms be fitted with at least two mechanisms inside the internal workings of the gun which imprint microscopic serial numbers onto the cartridge. Under these laws, each serial number must be unique to the gun from which it was fired.
Expenses associated with compliance have proven prohibitive. Citing increased costs of manufacturing, the two largest handgun manufacturers in the U.S., Smith & Wesson and Sturm, Ruger & Co., announced in 2014 their intent to stop selling new semi-automatic handguns in California.
Previous methods for physically creating a reliable microstamp on the highly-reflective metal parts used in firearm construction, including dot peen marking, have proven ineffective, creating microstamps which lose definition and clarity as the weapon is repeatedly fired. Conventional laser marking methods, involving CO2 lasers, are not effective or efficient at marking highly-reflective metal parts.
Fonon’s advanced laser technology supports a variety of microstamping applications for firearms, and is particularly effective at marking and engraving highly-reflective metal surfaces, including all metals used in firearm construction. When compared to contemporary CO2 laser technology of equal wattage, Fonon laser technology is three times faster when processing steel.
Power consumption by Fonon laser equipment is less than five percent the consumption of a comparable C02 system, and the lifespan of Fonon equipment is rated at a five to ten times longer. Additionally, the Fonon laser is maintenance-free and requires no consumables.
Laser marking, engraving, and cutting systems in the Laser Photonics product family have been selling into the gun manufacturing industry for several years, used to engrave designs, unique identifiers, and inventory numbers on such items as barrels, handles, and hammer pins.
“The Laser Photonics MegaCenter, the Canyon deep engraving system, and several of our specialized systems have proven quite popular in the gun manufacturing and weapons accessory industries,” said Jay Schlegel, vice president of Fonon Corporation. “The microstamping requirement is controversial and potentially costly for firearm manufacturers and consumers, but the capability of our systems to rapidly and accurately engrave highly-reflective metal surfaces will certainly shoulder the burden of satisfying the requirement, and in the long run reduce costs.”
Laser marking, engraving, and cutting systems from Fonon are now available for microstamping and other weapons marking and manufacturing applications.
For more information on ammunition microstamping, see the Fonon blog articles on “Laser Marking for Microstamping and Ballistics Identification,” by following this link, and “Best Practices in Weapons Marking, Etching, and Engraving,” by following this link, or contact Fonon for additional details.
About Fonon Corporation
Fonon designs laser-based material processing technologies for advanced industrial manufacturing and manufactures state of the art equipment utilizing those technologies. The company products empower manufacturers in the areas of application-specific 3D metal printing (additive manufacturing), and 2D and 3D laser cutting, marking and engraving applications (subtractive manufacturing). Our products and technologies are used today in every sector of any manufacturing industry from food and beverage to medical, aerospace and semiconductor. For more information, visit www.fonon.us.
Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 involving risks and uncertainties. Results, events and performances could vary from those contemplated. These statements involve risks and uncertainties which may cause results, expressed or implied, to differ from predicted outcomes. Risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to product demand, market competition and the company’s ability to meet current and future plans. Investors should study and understand all risks before making an investment decision. Readers are recommended not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. Fonon is not obligated to publicly release revisions to any forward-looking statement, to reflect events or circumstances afterward, or to disclose unanticipated occurrences except as required under applicable law.
Media Contact:
Ben English
Chief Marketing Officer
benglish@fonon.us
SOURCE: Fonon Corporation
Links:
Laser Marking for Microstamping and Ballistics Identification
Best Practices in Weapons Marking, Etching, and Engraving