Waterjet Cutting Services for Thick & Dense Materials
Abrasive and pure-water waterjet cutting of 687+ engineered materials across 50 chemistries, with no hard tooling, no heat-affected zone, and tolerances to ±0.005″. The right process for thick BISCO® [TDS] silicone sponge, dense solid elastomers, gasket stock, laminates, and plate, and for prototypes and short runs where a die would not pay back. Cut to your drawing in Winsted, Connecticut.
Built for: thick die-cut-impractical gaskets, plate and laminate parts, prototypes and one-offs, and dense rubber sections where die compression would distort the part.
Waterjet cutting at H-O Products drives a high-pressure stream of water, or water carrying abrasive garnet, straight from the CAD file with no hard tooling and no heat-affected zone. That makes it the right process for prototypes, one-offs, and short runs, and for thick or dense materials where a flatbed die would compress the part: thick BISCO® silicone sponge, solid silicone, neoprene, and EPDM, gasket stock, G10/FR4 and other laminates, and plate.
H-O cuts roughly 0.030″ to 2.000″ thick to tolerances of about ±0.005″ to ±0.020″, from the same 687+ material inventory across 50 chemistries kept for die cutting, under an ISO 9001:2015 certified quality management system in Winsted, Connecticut. See the process strip for lead-time and ordering details.
- Thick gaskets & seals: thick BISCO® sponge, dense 70A EPDM and neoprene, cork-rubber, and compressed fiber
- Plate & laminate parts: G10/FR4 and G11 glass-epoxy, mica sheet, and UHMW PE with a clean, heat-free edge
- Prototypes & one-offs: first articles cut from the drawing with no die charge
- Dense rubber sections: thick solid silicone, neoprene, and EPDM blocks a die platen would compress
- Kiss-cut or adhesive-laminated parts at volume: flatbed or rotary die cutting instead
- Features below roughly 0.020″ on thin film: laser cutting instead
Waterjet cutting, run in-house
Waterjet cutting drives a fine, high-pressure stream of water through the material along the CAD path. For tough or thick stock, fine garnet abrasive is added to the stream; for soft materials and films, pure water alone is enough. Either way there is no shaped tool: the cut follows the drawing directly, so the part shape lives in the file, not in a die.
That single difference shapes everything about the process. There is nothing to build before the first part, nothing to amortize over a run, and a revision is a file edit rather than a new tool. Because the stream cuts cold, there is no heat-affected zone: no melting on thermoplastics, no charring on rubber, no scorched edges on laminate. And because the stream does not press the part flat the way a die platen does, it holds shape on thick, soft sponge that a die would crush.
Waterjet cutting is performed in Winsted, CT, on the same engineered-material inventory we keep for converting. For high volumes of thin, repeatable gaskets, flatbed die cutting is usually faster and lower in per-part cost; for very fine features on thin film, laser cutting can hold tighter detail. See the process comparison below.
Abrasive and pure-water cutting
Abrasive waterjet
Garnet abrasive is mixed into the stream to cut tough and thick stock: dense solid elastomers, G10/FR4 and other rigid laminates, plate, and thick gasket material. The abrasive does the cutting work the water alone cannot.
Pure-water cutting
Water alone, with no abrasive, cuts soft and easily marked materials: foams, sponge, films, and thin gasket stock. It gives a clean edge on soft material without embedding grit.
Through cutting from CAD
Both modes through-cut profiles directly from the DXF or DWG, including internal cutouts, holes, and complex outlines, with no die and without a tool-set minimum feature size.
Stacked and nested cutting
Multiple parts nest on one sheet to use material efficiently, and some soft sheet stock can be cut in shallow stacks, which helps short-run economics without any tooling.
Waterjet through-cuts; it does not kiss-cut. If your part needs adhesive backing with parts left on a release liner for peel-and-place, that is a die-cutting feature. We can still apply adhesive to waterjet-cut parts as a separate step, or recommend die cutting if kiss-cut liners are central to the design.
Notes that hold tolerance and edge quality
Designing for waterjet means working with a cutting stream rather than a shaped tool. A few notes keep tolerance and edge quality predictable; our engineering team reviews every part for manufacturability before cutting.
- Plan for the kerf and a slight taper
- The stream has width, so it removes a thin kerf along the path, and the kerf can taper slightly top to bottom on thick stock. We account for both in the cut path. Call out the dimensions that must be held so we compensate on the critical ones.
- Tolerance is geometry- and thickness-dependent
- Typical waterjet tolerance runs about ±0.005″ to ±0.020″, tighter on thin stock and looser as thickness increases. Specify tight tolerances only on functionally critical dimensions, the same discipline that keeps any cutting cost down.
- Internal features and small holes
- Internal cutouts, slots, and holes cut directly from the file, but very small holes relative to thickness are limited by the stream width. For the smallest features on thin film, laser cutting holds tighter detail. Tell us the smallest feature and the stock thickness and we will confirm what waterjet can hold.
- Soft, thick stock holds shape
- Because the stream does not compress the part, thick soft sponge and foam sections keep their profile, which is the main reason to choose waterjet over a die for those materials.
- Design file requirements
- DXF or DWG preferred for the cut path; PDF with dimensions for inspection criteria; STEP and IGES accepted for 3D reference. Include material callout and thickness, critical-dimension tolerances, edge-quality requirements, and quantity expectations.
| If your requirement is | Material family to start from | Stream and approach | Tolerance frame to confirm |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thick soft foam gasket, no heat | Open-cell or closed-cell foam | Pure waterjet | ±0.010″ to ±0.015″ |
| Thick rubber pad or sheet | EPDM, neoprene, or sponge rubber | Pure waterjet | ±0.010″ (review) |
| Hard plastic or composite panel | Polycarbonate, G-10, composite | Abrasive waterjet | ±0.005″ to ±0.010″ |
| Prototype with no tooling budget | Any waterjet-suitable stock | Pure or abrasive, no tool | Material/thickness dependent |
| Fine feature below the kerf | Thin film or intricate detail | Route to laser or die | Feature-size dependent |
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1Send drawing & materialShare a DXF, DWG, PDF, or STEP with the material callout, thickness, and critical tolerances. A sample part works too. No die file is needed.
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2Process & path reviewEngineering confirms waterjet is the right process, selects abrasive or pure-water mode, and sets the cut path against thickness, tolerance, and quantity.
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3PrototypeSamples typically 3-5 business days for common configurations, with no tooling to wait on. Standard production 2 weeks; special orders run custom lead times.
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4ProductionCut to drawing, with any finishing or adhesive applied as a separate step, and first-article inspection plus lot-code traceability carried through the run.
Send the part and get a process review
If your drawing has the material, thickness, and critical tolerances, send it over. Engineering confirms the process, sets the cut path, and comes back with a quote.
What we waterjet, and for whom
Thick gaskets, plate and laminate parts, and prototype components ship into medical, aerospace, defense, electronics, industrial, energy, and transportation programs.
- Thick gaskets & seals
- Flange, cabinet, and housing seals in thick BISCO® sponge, dense 70A EPDM and neoprene, cork-rubber, and compressed fiber, where section thickness or softness rules out a flatbed die. Profiles cut directly from the CAD file. From our catalog: BISCO® 7304 silicone sponge · kSil® US400.
- Plate & laminate parts
- G10/FR4 and G11 glass-epoxy panels, mica sheet, UHMW PE, and other rigid plate cut to profile with internal cutouts and holes, with a clean, heat-free edge for structural and dielectric parts.
- Prototypes & one-offs
- First-article gaskets, insulators, and pads cut from the drawing with no tooling, so design iterations move quickly and short runs carry no die charge. Common for early development and low-volume production.
- Dense rubber sections
- Thick solid silicone, neoprene, and EPDM blocks and sections that a die platen would compress, cut with abrasive to hold profile on dense, tall geometry.
Thick BISCO® HT-820 sponge environmental gaskets for an outdoor enclosure: 0.500″ section across 6 part numbers in prototype-to-low-volume quantities, pure-water cut to hold profile on soft, thick stock with no compression distortion and no tooling charge. Quality systems are built for medical, aerospace, and defense programs, with lot traceability typically retrievable in under 2 hours.
Waterjet cutting questions
Common questions from engineers speccing waterjet-cut parts.
What is the difference between abrasive and pure-water waterjet?
Abrasive waterjet mixes fine garnet into the stream to cut tough and thick stock such as dense solid elastomers, G10/FR4 laminate, and plate. Pure-water cutting uses water alone for soft and easily marked materials such as foams, sponge, and films, where it gives a clean edge without embedding grit. Both run on the same equipment; we pick the mode by material and thickness.
When should I choose waterjet instead of die cutting?
Choose waterjet for prototypes, one-offs, and short runs where there is no volume to amortize a die, for thick or dense material up to roughly 2.000″, and for soft, thick foam a die platen would compress. Choose die cutting for thin, repeatable gaskets at production volume, and whenever you need kiss cutting or in-line adhesive lamination. The crossover is typically 300 to 1,000 parts.
What thickness can waterjet cut?
Roughly 0.030″ to 2.000″, depending on the material. That range covers thick BISCO® sponge, solid elastomer blocks, gasket stock, rigid laminate, and plate, well past where a flatbed die can shear cleanly. Tell us the grade and thickness and we will confirm the cut.
What tolerances can waterjet achieve?
Typical tolerance runs about ±0.005″ to ±0.020″, tighter on thin stock and looser as thickness increases, because the kerf can taper slightly on thick material. Achievable tolerance is also geometry-dependent. Specify tight tolerances only on functionally critical dimensions so we can compensate the cut path where it matters.
Is there a heat-affected zone?
No. Waterjet cuts cold, so there is no melting on thermoplastics, no charring on rubber, and no heat-affected zone on laminate. That is one reason it suits dense elastomers and rigid G10/FR4, which come off the table with a clean, square edge.
Related converting capabilities
Waterjet sits inside a connected set of in-house converting capabilities. These pages cover the adjacent processes that often share the same drawing.
Capability overview
Converting & Fabrication
The parent hub: how die cutting, waterjet, laser, rotary, slitting, and profiling fit together, and which process suits which part, material, and volume.
Read the overview
Related capability
Precision Die Cutting
Flatbed die cutting for thin.
Read the page
Related capability
Slitting & Spooling
Precision slitting of roll stock to custom widths and rewinding onto cores.
Read the page
For an accurate quote, include the following with your drawing or sample:
- DXF
- DWG
- STEP
- Material callout
- Thickness
- Critical tolerances. A sample part works too. No die file is needed
Request a waterjet quote
Send a drawing, a sample part, or a description of the part. Engineering confirms the process, sets the cut path, and comes back with a quote. Prefer to start with a conversation? Contact our engineering team directly.
Material data & standards. Material properties, temperature ranges, tolerances, and cutting parameters referenced on this page are taken from the source manufacturers' technical data sheets and the cited industry references. H-O Products converts and cuts these materials; we do not independently re-certify them against the standards unless explicitly stated on the quote. Achievable tolerance is geometry-, material-, and thickness-dependent.
Verify against your application and the vendor TDS for your specific construction. Lot-specific documentation is available on request.
Capability scope. Abrasive and pure-water waterjet cutting are performed in-house in Winsted, CT. Lead times and minimums vary by material, thickness, and construction; expedited handling can be arranged.