World-leading laser processing
Make it happen with MTC.
A trusted partner
Pioneering innovation. Powering progress.
As a manufacturer, are you looking to enhance the performance and quality of your components, bring a new product to market that can’t be made via conventional methods, or introduce new manufacturing processes to keep pace with production rates?
At MTC we work with organisations looking to get more from their laser processes or expand their laser processing knowledge, unlocking efficiencies and accelerating growth.
As the UK’s Laser Processing Centre of Excellence, we are home to the widest range of laser expertise and state-of-the-art equipment in the country, making us uniquely placed to take on your manufacturing project, regardless of how challenging it may be.
Working with organisations of all sizes, from SMEs to large multinationals, across industries including aerospace, automotive and electric vehicles, defence, and power and energy, our trusted and independent experts can recommend supplier agnostic-solutions to a wide range of manufacturing challenges.
With advantages including enhanced product performance, joining of difficult-to-join materials, the latest in laser safety, in-process monitoring and beam control, and increased traceability of mission-critical parts, laser processing can deliver a range of business benefits. Laser processing can also improve environmental outcomes compared to conventional methods, by replacing harmful chemicals and reducing material waste.
We have significant proven experience of supporting businesses in the development and adoption of laser technology. We’re ready to support your organisation too.
World-leading capability
Sharing expertise. Advancing industries.
World-leading capability across the laser processing spectrum.
Advanced machining
Breaking new ground in cutting, drilling and micro-machining across a range of materials and thicknesses, making impossible parts possible.
Material joining
Driving commercialisation of laser welding in highly regulated industries for large and complex parts, whilst solving joining challenges for dissimilar and difficult-to-weld materials, as well as pioneering new techniques such as welding in a vacuum, reducing manufacturing time and saving costs compared to conventional methods.
Surface engineering
Pushing the boundaries of precision and performance by modifying the surface of a material to create beneficial properties such as water repellence or anti-corrosion, replacing harmful chemicals in cleaning processes and enhancing component longevity.
Collaborative solutions
End-to-end partnerships. Made for impact.
Our dedicated laser processing team, supported by our industry experts who work across multiple sectors and technologies, can support you at each stage of your project with advice on everything from technology selection through to advanced manufacturing processes, from implementation to staff training, reducing the financial risks and ensuring your project is a success.
- Technology down-selection
- Process development
- Test facilities
- Factory implementation
- Staff training
- Building business cases for adoption
Technology down-selection
We’ll help you identify exactly what you need and then find the right technology suppliers to match your requirements.
Enabling industry
Pioneering innovation. Accelerating growth.
We have significant, proven experience of delivering impact to industry.
Enhancing product performance through surface texturing
The battery industry has long relied on hexavalent chromium treatments to ensure strong polymer-to-metal bonds—despite environmental restrictions. MTC developed a laser surface treatment process providing a sustainable, chemical-free alternative, delivering superior adhesion and corrosion resistance while cutting manufacturing costs by up to 10x. This breakthrough allows Avocet Battery Materials to onshore production to the UK, reducing reliance on overseas suppliers and enhancing competitiveness.
Breaking barriers with vacuum laser welding
MTC has developed a vacuum laser beam welding process that significantly reduces manufacturing time and costs compared to conventional electron beam welding. This innovative capability overcomes traditional welding limitations, expands applications previously unsuitable for laser technology, and delivers high integrity, deep penetration welds, offering substantial cost savings for industries such as aerospace and defence.
Advancing battery innovation with laser welding
Joining copper foils in battery manufacturing is complex due to copper’s high reflectivity and thermal conductivity. Traditional methods limit design flexibility, while existing laser welding solutions can be unreliable. MTC worked with Celltris to develop a robust, repeatable laser welding process, enabling greater design freedom and improved performance. This breakthrough equips Celltris with the knowledge to specify future production equipment and accelerate innovation.
Innovation excellence
Redefining standards. Pushing boundaries.
At MTC we are home to the latest and most advanced laser processing equipment in the UK. Designed to push the boundaries of what is possible in the world of lasers, much of this equipment is unique to MTC, opening up possibilities for faster manufacturing of higher quality and more complex parts. Take a look at just some of this cutting-edge capability below.
50kW laser cell
High power laser welding cell capable of processing large-scale parts up to 4m in length such as whole car bodies, aero-engine casings and large nuclear reactor components.
50kW IPG Adjustable Mode Beam (AMB) laser source gives MTC the highest power, production-standard laser of its wavelength that is available for industrial projects in the UK – allowing thicker section laser welding in production set-up than currently possible anywhere in UK and higher power material testing/destructive tests.
This cell can be used for a variety of applications including thick-section laser welding, laser cladding and repair, materials testing and complex welding solutions such as hybrid welding.
8kW laser cell
A flexible laser cell with a high brightness industrial 8kW Trumpf BrightLine adjustable ring mode laser source, equipped with multiple processing heads (with rapid tool-change), wire-feed and the latest in-line vision systems and in-process monitoring. This allows the cell to be used for directed energy deposition (DED) and welding of difficult-to-join materials, high speed welding of large parts and a variety of electrification applications, including live battery tab welding.
Large area texturing
High precision micro-machining laser cell with a range of different ultra-short pulse sources including a nanosecond infrared and green laser as well as a high power 600W nanosecond infrared laser allowing large-format surface texturing and cleaning for parts up to 2m. Can be temperature controlled as necessary for enhanced accuracy applications – such as semi-conductor, medical sensors and electronic chip processing.
The large size of the cell and range of lasers allows wider range of applications to be trialled such as multiple different materials and applications from tiny semi-conductors to larger aerospace components or even parts for food manufacturing lines.
Uniquely this machine offers roll-to-roll processing with lasers for process such as texturing, cleaning and drilling.