Orbital tube welding delivers consistency, quality

Orbital tube welding produces repeatable, high-quality and consistent welds on stainless steel tubing. At Axenics, our orbital welding process utilizes an orbital welding machine with an enclosure that protects the weld through completion. A belt- or gear-driven circular motion drive welds around the tube automatically.

Our in-house welding machines accommodate different angles or thickness of tube. Because orbital weld machines are partially automated, it doesn’t take a journeyman welder to run the machine, but we do rely on journeyman welders to program the welds into the machine. We also inspect the welds once completed.

Our welders are D17 certified by the American Welding Society. Our orbital TIG welding process occurs on stainless steel tubes, an ultra-clean procedure that produces a higher-quality weld than most other types of welding.

Industries that demand high-quality weldments rely on the orbital welding process to keep production running smoothly. Some of the the top reasons you may want to introduce orbital welding into your next component production include:

Orbital produces some of the cleanest welds

It is essential to keep contaminants away from stainless steel tubing before, during and after the welding process, as impurities trapped inside tubing are a detriment to the entire process, often resulting in significant wastes of time and money. Therefore, orbital welding generally happens in a cleanroom setting, where weldments on tubes and fittings occur  in a high-purity, contaminant-free environment. The majority of orbital welds happen in our on-site Class 100 cleanroom.

Orbital tube welding is an efficient process

Orbital is an economical choice for welding components because the welds created are consistent and clean, meaning re-dos and weld repairs are nearly nonexistent. Orbital welding becomes “smarter” every day with more computerized attributes allowing for automating welds and analyzing welds, making the process even more efficient concerning time and overall costs.

Orbital welding is a productive option

Orbital welding involves the machinery doing the majority of the work, leaving your technicians’ time open for other tasks. Sure, there are upfront costs required for purchasing the appropriate equipment, but the automated processes within orbital cuts down on labor needs and lead time over time. Plus, utilizing a contract manufacturer such as Axenics means you don’t have to worry about investing in orbital welding machinery, as they already own it.

Orbital weldments are top quality

Our manual welders regularly create high-quality weldments when it makes sense (such as on stainless steel tubing that is too large to fit inside a machine). Generally, we rely on orbital welding because once the machine is programmed, the results are better-quality welds with no human error. Weldments with zero defaults are crucial in applications within the semiconductor and medical industries that have strict requirements.

Orbital tube welding is tops in consistency

While manual welds performed by a skilled technician can be accurate, orbital welding always produces more consistent welds. Orbital welding equipment is specifically programmed to repeat the exact same welds over and over again without error or orbital welding defects. With manual welding, by nature, there’s some variability and inconsistency between welds.

Orbital solves unique challenges

Orbital welding is great for manufacturing situations where it is not feasible or practical to rotate a piece of stainless steel tubing. Orbital is also helpful in situations where welding must be completed in tight spaces that may not be possible with manual welding.

Orbital tube welding is ideal for big projects

When multiple identical welds occur via an orbital welding machine, one sample weld is sufficient for testing because every single weld holds the same integrity, due to the repeatability of the machine.

Orbital tube welding results in lower overhead costs, the highest-quality welds and shorter lead times. If your project requires multiple weldments of the exact same consistency, orbital is likely your best bet.

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