6 Expert Tips to Speed Up Laser Engraving (Without Losing Quality)

The higher your DPI/LPI setting, the slower your laser may run. On a laser, any setting measured per inch means more work per inch—so slower speeds are a real possibility. That said, higher LPI/DPI might be exactly what’s needed to get the engraving quality just right!

Try it out

• 250–333 DPI for photos - If DPI is too high for detailed images, the dots can overlap and cause blurriness or muddiness. You have to dial in the DPI just right to get those crisp minute details.

• 400–500 DPI for text or logos - For word marks and logos this is your perfect range for a professionally finished mark.
  
  
• 1000 DPI or higher (when to use) -- you can usually use these higher settings on powder coated tumblers or anodized aluminum where if you over burn or overlap engravings it won't affect the graphic. If you do HIGH DPI on wood, it's better for simple engravings like your name, but if you go for details on wood, the higher DPI will cause overlap and you will not get the professional detail you want.

John's Take  Many people run 1000+ DPI unnecessarily. As you play with LPI/DPI, make sure it looks good with your naked eyes! Higher LPI/DPI causes overlapping engravings.  Understanding these settings and how to adjust them could save you up to 25% time on your engravings and ensure more professional results.

3. Use Air Assist Wisely (CO₂ + Diode Lasers)

If there's one thing you take away from this list to speed up your laser engraving - let it be this one!  This one's especially for C02 or diode laser operators.  Proper air flow and assist can reduce your laser engraving time by up to 50%, save you cleaning time and it's equally important for maintaining your laser's performance. 

Try it out

• Strong air assist can help clear debris faster - This allows for deeper cuts and less residue on your materials, requiring minimal to no cleanup! Engraving another pass to cut through, or having to sand will make your production longer and more expensive!
  
  
• Maintain your Laser - Get the specific care instructions and cleaning supplies you should (or shouldn't use) directly from your laser manufacturer. Each laser is built differently and will require specific instructions from your manufacturer.
  

John's Take  Clean lenses and strong air assist will help you reduce your project time by 50% when cutting and potentially save you 5-10 minutes of cleaning! You don’t want the dreaded half-way cut where the engraver does not go through the material and you have to cut again! If you have your air assist on and have a lot of flareups, either adjust settings or make sure your exhaust works well or air assist does not have issues. Some laser manufacturers have air assist as an option, make sure to add it every time!

4. Batch Your Layout Efficiently

Speed up your laser engraving by running multiple items at the same time by:

• Maximizing bed space
  
• Reducing empty spaces between engravings and cuts

Try it out. Let's say you're laser cutting a 2in x 2.25in ornament. If you have a 12in by 12in piece of wood, you can technically fit about 6 pieces wide and 5 pieces tall for a total of 30 ornaments! Make sure you are maximizing your bed size and material size accordingly!

John's Take Another way to save time is learning how to make your own jigs for times you have to engrave blanks! If you have a 2in x 2in keychain, you should learn how to make a wood jig that will fit the keychain so you can batch engrave the keychain by maximizing a jig that fits your bed size! 

5. Upgrade to a Galvo Laser (if applicable)

Want to talk about some serious laser engraving speed and productivity?  A Galvo laser can output one tumbler in approximately 30-45 seconds.

Where a Galvo laser becomes pivotal is when you are doing wood, even when doing one at a time.  On a CO2 laser with a bed size of 24" x 18", you may be able to engrave two cutting boards side by side, but that takes 10 minutes total. However, on a Galvo, this may only take 2 minutes - though you would have to do each board one at a time!

The speed is unreal, but Galvo lasers require some serious hand-holding, you can't just turn it on and go tend to other things, so it may not be for everyone.  But under the right circumstances, these lasers can seriously amp up your production output.  

When To Consider A Galvo Laser 

• You have the sales volume to justify the cost of the laser AND the cost of labor for someone to operate the equipment
  
  
• If you're doing small area engraving (logos, serials, text), consider a galvo fiber instead of a gantry-style (The lasers that go left and right and slowly move down).
  
  
• You need massively faster scan speeds (up to 7000mm/s vs 500mm/s)
  
  

John's Take  Having worked with Galvos, they are awesome and powerful machines that can increase engraving time by 50-80% or more vs a gantry. However if you are a small shop, Galvos are needy! They have a small bed size and need someone to sit by it and keep feeding it something to engrave! Although it speeds up engraving, make sure you have the volume of business to afford the added cost of labor. Just because you can do it faster, or can afford the GALVO does not mean you should get ANOTHER machine. If you are babysitting just the Galvo, how are you supposed to do other things?

6. Clean Your Optics Regularly

A clean machine is an efficient machine, and an efficient machine provides optimal performance, quality and speed!

• A dirty mirror/lens can reduce power output by 60-70%, forcing uncut or blurry projects. And yes, we're talking even the smallest dot or spec!
  
  
• Regular cleaning = full laser power = faster results. If you are cutting or engraving wood, make sure to clean your machine at a higher cadence!
  
  

John's Take  Even the smallest spec of dust on a lens can reduce power of the laser by 60-70%, which destroys the quality of work and adds more work to your plate! Make it a habit to clean your lenses at least once a week, preferably on Fridays, and if you only cut on your machine, get in the habit of doing it at least twice a week!

John's Final Take on Speeding Up Laser Engraving

Understanding each aspect of the steps provided above is integral to your success.

When we started laser engraving, we were engraving tumblers on a rotary!  We didn’t want our designs to be too wide, so we were engraving one at a time with each engraving about 2 - 2.5 inches wide. Then we decided to try engraving them flat on the laser bed by building a simple wood jig. We went from doing 1 tumbler on a rotary every 5 minutes to 12 tumblers on a jig in 20 minutes flat - this increased our production rate by 200%. Instead of making 1 tumbler every 5 minutes, we were now making 3 tumblers every 5 minutes.

Once we dialed in our settings on the laser for flat engraving – we were off to the races.  This made it easier to compete in the market. By using all of the tips shared above, we were able to greatly increase our output and our profit. Oh, and the reason we did not get a Galvo is our lack of labor and volume of orders.

Whether you are engraving, scoring or cutting, all these steps should be in the back of the mind of any engraver! Remember, if we know how our laser equipment works, we can engrave faster, with the best quality, increase our output, customers served and profit.