Abstract: An experimental investigation is outlined for the CO 2 laser cutting process of metallic coated sheet steels, GALVABOND. It shows that by proper control of the cutting parameters, good quality cuts are possible at high cutting rate. Visual examination indicates that when increasing the cutting rate to as high as 5000 mm/min (about 100 times that suggested previously), kerfs of better quality can be achieved. Some kerf characteristics such as the width, heat affected zone and dross in terms of the process parameters are also discussed. A statistical analysis has arrived at a recommendatio on the optimum cutting parameters forprocessing GALVABOND.

Key words: laser cutting, sheet metal processing, metallic coated sheet steels