In recent years, under the impetus of relevant policies, China's research level in the field of lasers has soared and commercialisation has developed rapidly. China has become the world's largest and fastest-growing laser market, and the total sales of China's fibre laser market in 2022 will exceed 12.26 billion yuan.

Under the continuous efforts of major laser manufacturers, especially in the field of fibre lasers, the country has completed the local substitution of most of the low and medium-power lasers, and the process of local substitution of high-power lasers is also accelerating. With the continuous expansion of the fibre laser market scale, the laser industry chain is becoming more and more mature, and the localisation rate of the core components of lasers has also increased, a large number of excellent domestic laser manufacturers have achieved key breakthroughs in their respective fields, and have made a big splash in the industry.

Recently, GW Laser was invited to participate in an exclusive interview with Laser House, and Lu Xiangzhi, marketing director of GW Laser, shared his views on how to cope with the fast-changing market and how to build a globalised laser technology leader around customer value, among other topics.

Founded in 2015, GW Laser is a global leader in high-brightness fibre lasers with fibre lasers and their supporting solutions as its main business. GW Laser is committed to the industrialisation of high-brightness laser technology based on bi-directional 976nm pumping technology in China, and has achieved a global leading share in the market of high-brightness laser welding, laser cutting, laser cladding, laser cleaning, etc., and is a "new unicorn" enterprise in the laser processing industry.

Locking 976nm technology solutions to promote the localisation of alternative landing

As a high-tech enterprise born in the U.S., GW Laser initially focused on laser modules and optical modules, the founder, Dr Ding Jianwu, saw that China's laser industry is still in its infancy, and returned to China to establish OptoWise Laser in 2015, which is committed to developing China's fibre lasers, and is on a par with the developed countries.

At the beginning of its establishment, GW Laser has locked its eyes on 976nm technology solutions, and under the team's efforts, it has really localised 976nm bidirectional pumping technology in China. Compared with the commonly used 915nm pumping technology, 976 nm technology route can make the laser light - optical conversion efficiency, electrical - optical conversion efficiency increased by 10%; at the same time has a stronger suppression of non-linear effect, effectively improve the stability of the laser's output power and working life. At present, the 976nm high-efficiency conversion technology programme is not only the core programme of GW Laser, but also the leader in this area in China.

GW Laser launched active air-conditioning direct-cooled continuous fibre laser this year, different from the traditional use of water coolers for cooling, air-cooled lasers using GW Laser's pioneering "AAC active air-conditioning direct-cooling technology", the laser cooling system can be supplied on demand, independently adjustable supply of cold to achieve real-time temperature control. With the mature cooling technology, the laser does not need a water cooler or an intermediate heat exchanger to keep the laser at the optimal temperature for efficient and stable output, which greatly reduces the user's cost of use and the maintenance cost of the equipment. This is not only the transformation of 976nm technology solutions from water cooling to air cooling, but also the scale of 976nm technology solutions, GW Laser to achieve the real "let the laser become a universal tool for universal benefit" mission.

In the first half of 2023, the company launched the world's shocking active air-conditioned direct-cooled 12kW laser, which has won a number of awards, including the "Best Fibre Laser Technology Innovation Award", and released the active air-conditioned direct-cooled 12kW fibre laser to the world at the Photonics Show in Munich, Germany, and FABTECH in the United States in 2023, bringing the heat dissipation of the fibre laser to a whole new level. The product will bring the heat dissipation technology of fibre laser to a new level!

Formation of "1+2+n" model to reshape user experience

"Customer-centred, help customers succeed" has always been the values followed by the GW Laser, 2023 GW Laser set up a "1 + 2 + n" service model, namely: a Shanghai R & D service headquarters, Zibo, Nantong, two automated factories, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Russia, the United States and other countries. Hong Kong, Vietnam, Russia, the United States and other n overseas service centres continue to provide global customers with more professional fiber laser products and technical services. From the sales side, product side, delivery side, application side, multiple channels to dock with customers, to ensure that customers from delivery to the use of the process, can get timely response and service.

At the same time, in order to give full play to the advantages of China's large-scale production, in 2023 the light of the laser and industry associations to work together, in the new energy, hand-held welding laser safety levels, energy consumption levels, etc. will be the internal standards, industry standards, association standards sorted out for the next step in the large-scale production of play a role in escorting.

Focus on customer value to create a global laser technology leader

In recent years, the domestic laser industry has become more and more intense competition, serious involution, in order to increase their competitiveness, GW Laser in 2023 launched a full range of economic products, for the price-performance requirements of the ultimate user groups, high quality and low prices are taken into account to meet the user's daily production, the product performance is still very high, not only to provide the basic product capabilities, but also to meet the needs of customers' economy. At the same time, GW Laser also starts from the total laser solution, spends a lot of time to research and develop the complete set of solutions, test the product performance, and grind with the upstream and downstream suppliers. Especially on the CS series, CS3300 and CS6600, the thin plate cutting gods, have been launched, which bring the features of high beam quality and high brightness of GW Laser PLUS series to the extreme, and the overall cutting speed has been increased by at least 50%-100%, with better cutting effect, which greatly helps users to improve efficiency.

In terms of technology development, GW Laser has continuously increased investment in R & D. As of the first half of 2023, it has applied for more than 170 national patents, including: high-brightness, high-power laser technology, mode control technology, 10,000-watt air-cooled laser technology, etc., and has promoted more than 50 major projects in co-operation with SCOLAR, national laboratories, and various institutions and schools. GW Laser always believes that only by carrying forward the spirit of daring to be the first in the world, can we become a real pioneer in the industry.

As a latecomer in the fibre laser industry, GW Laser has gained attention and recognition from all walks of life since its establishment. GW Laser will always adhere to technological innovation, technology as the cornerstone, to create the most cost-effective and reliable laser equipment and solutions, and continue to promote the process of laser tooling, for the progress and upgrading of China's laser industry, to contribute to the modest contribution.