Laser cutting (CO2/fiber)

Laser cutting in shipyards uses either a CO2 gas laser at 10.6 microns or a fiber laser near 1.06 microns to cut steel plate parts to profile with a narrow kerf and a near-square edge. Fiber lasers couple better into steel, run at higher wall-plug efficiency, deliver through a flexible fiber rather than mirrors, and cut reflective metals and thin plate faster, which has shifted new yard installations toward fiber. Both produce edges to ISO 9013 quality, often ready for welding without bevel grinding, and both integrate with CNC nesting that maximizes plate yield. Plate above roughly 25 mm still goes to plasma or oxy-fuel cutting.