Waterjet cutting solves cleanroom packaging failures and reduces scrap by 15%
9 June 2026
This company was using a crosslinked foam packaging solution with Velcro for a sensitive cleanroom application. While their design was sound, their previous supplier relied on die cutting, which created three critical points of failure:
- Foam integrity issues: The compression inherent in die cutting distorted the foam’s structure, leading to inconsistent performance.
- Contamination risks: The mechanical stress of the die cutting process released particulates, posing a major risk for cleanroom environments.
- Operational bottlenecks: Unreliable lead times and a 5–15% scrap and rework rate were driving up costs.
Solution
We identified that the root cause of the failure was the manufacturing method and not the design. Therefore, we kept the existing design but overhauled the production and cleaning process:
- Transition to waterjet cutting: By switching from die cutting to waterjet cutting, we eliminated the concavity and distortion caused by compression. This provided more precise cuts and removed the need for expensive, time-consuming tooling.
- Dedicated particulate control: To meet cleanroom standards, we implemented a specialized process using hot air to remove and control particulates after production.
- Predictable lead times: The flexibility of waterjet cutting allowed for faster setup and more reliable delivery schedules.
Result
By refining the “how” of manufacturing, the customer saw immediate improvements across their supply chain without the need for a long, expensive redesign phase.
- 15% reduction in scrap & rework: Improved consistency meant fewer parts were rejected during quality checks.
- Zero design changes: The client achieved their goals while maintaining their approved design specifications.
- Superior cleanroom performance: The combination of waterjet precision and hot-air particulate removal resulted in cleaner, safer parts for sensitive medical applications.
- Faster turnaround: Removing the tooling phase accelerated the total production timeline.
By switching from die cutting to waterjet cutting, we were able to deliver a far superior fabrication solution.