When starting his business, Grizzle evaluated different cutting technologies needed for producing high-quality parts, but he knew that abrasive waterjet technology would be important to his operations. "I have relatives in Arkansas who own a company that manufactures aircraft parts, and a cousin who uses waterjets in his job shop," notes Grizzle, "so I knew the benefits that waterjet technology could provide my business."

Abrasive waterjets from Flow International Corp. allow Aerospace Fabricators of Georgia to efficiently cut parts for the aerospace industry.

Grizzle conducted thorough research on the market before purchasing a Flow International Corp. (Kent, WA) Flying Bridge waterjet cutting system with a 6 X 12' (1.8 X 3.7 m) worktable. "After evaluating waterjets from other manufacturers, we found that Flow's waterjet system would work the best for our business applications."

Abrasive waterjet cutting uses water pressurized to 60,000 psi (413.7 MPa) with a garnet abrasive entrained in the stream. The water is forced through a precision orifice 0.013'' (0.33 mm) in diameter, and the water and abrasive mixture can quickly and precisely cut materials with accuracies of ±0.005'' (0.13 mm).

A cold-cutting tool, an abrasive waterjet also leaves a surface free of a heat-affected zone (HAZ), thereby saving waterjet users time and money previously spent on secondary operations. Cutting without heat protects against metallurgical changes, leaving the internal part structure intact. In addition, waterjets can be a more cost-effective alternative time-wise, because jobs that may normally take several hours to complete can be cut in minutes.

Since opening AFG in 1993, Grizzle's job shop has built an impressive customer list that includes Boeing's military and commercial divisions, Lockheed Marietta, Gulfstream Aerospace, Lucas Aerospace, Aerocell Structures, and Chem Fab.

"We cut anything on a plane, from the nose to the tail," states Grizzle. "Most of our waterjet projects include cutting structural components such as electrical panels and wing parts. We use the waterjets to cut these intricate parts, and depending on the part, we sometimes use CNC mills for pocket milling."

"The waterjet gives us the capability to profile aircraft sheet and plate components made of materials ranging from rubber to Inconel with thicknesses ranging from 0.010'' to 2'' [0.254­50.8 mm]," Grizzle says. "The waterjets are invaluable for cutting titanium and Inconel. Other cutting methods cannot cut these materials nearly as well as the waterjets. For example, we can cut 0.032'' [0.81-mm] titanium at 60 ipm [1.5 m/min] with no heat-affected zone. And we've cut C-17 titanium tear strips measuring approximately 6 X 96'' [0.2­2.4 m] in about 3.5 minutes."

Producing parts for the aerospace industry requires cutting with a high level of precision, notes Grizzle, which requires being able to deliver parts that have a satin-smooth edge--the only level of quality acceptable to his aerospace customers.

"Sixty to 70% of our projects involve cutting titanium, which is very thin. We've found that you cannot cut titanium with a laser, since lasers heat the material and leave a heat-affected zone, and saws would fray the edges," Grizzle explains. "Rough, heat-affected edges are unacceptable in the aerospace industry. But the waterjets leave a perfect edge. That was probably one of the biggest selling points when we looked at purchasing the waterjet machine, and it has been a big advantage to us."

Since AFG opened its doors, the company has emerged from humble beginnings into a multimillion-dollar, 42-employee company with more than 15,000 ft² (1395 m²) of manufacturing space--no small feat for a 30-year-old entrepreneur. What's the key to Grizzle's success?  ²²