In the oil and gas industry, gaskets are typical high-frequency consumables, widely used in pipeline connections, flange seals, valve systems, pressure vessels, and refining equipment. As the industry’s requirements for safety standards and sealing reliability continue to rise, traditional manual or die stamping methods are increasingly unable to meet the demands for precision, efficiency, and material utilization.
Therefore, CNC gasket cutting machines have become important production equipment for gasket processing enterprises in the oil and gas sector. Just last week, we received an email from a Canadian customer. He clearly stated that he needed a CNC gasket cutting machine for cutting gaskets made of Viton rubber, expanded PTFE, and Garlock materials, which would be used for the doors of oil and gas storage tanks. He also asked about the required blades, machine size, and nesting software.
Based on the customer’s needs, we provided a complete set of solutions covering four aspects: machine type, machine size, blade type, and nesting software. He was very satisfied and plans to visit our factory and machines in China. In the following article, we will detail the entire solution we provided for him.
Why Does the Oil and Gas Industry Need CNC Gasket Cutting Machines?
The sealing needs of the oil and gas industry are not only diverse but also involve extreme working environments (high temperature, high pressure, strong corrosion). Therefore, the gasket materials that need to be cut in the industry are often hard and expensive. Traditional cutting methods simply cannot meet the requirements for precision and efficiency, nor can they maximize material utilization. They are prone to wasting expensive materials, leading to high material costs.
Application Scenarios of Gaskets in the Oil and Gas Industry
Gaskets are widely used in flange connections of drilling platforms, refineries, natural gas transmission pipelines, pump and valve seals, and heat exchangers. These equipment vary in size, often requiring non-standard customized special-shaped gaskets, and have extremely high requirements for the concentricity of inner and outer diameters and edge perpendicularity.
Flange Sealing Systems
Flange connections are the most common structure in oil and gas pipelines and storage and transportation systems.
Gaskets usually need to withstand:
- High pressure (10–150 bar)
- High temperature (above 200℃)
- Corrosive media
- Long-term operation
According to ASME B16.20 and API 6A standards, gasket size and precision requirements are very strict, with errors usually needing to be controlled within ± 0.1mm.
Standard sources：
This means: Traditional manual cutting can hardly stably meet industrial-grade precision requirements.
Valve and Pressure Vessel Sealing
In refineries and natural gas processing plants, a large number of:
- Heat exchangers
- Pressure vessels
- Valve systems
- Pump systems
Gasket demand characteristics:
- Small batches
- Many specifications
- Frequent size changes
For example:
May need DN100 today
DN350 tomorrow
Special-shaped gaskets the day after tomorrowTraditional stamping dies require frequent replacement, resulting in high costs. A CNC gasket cutting machine can directly read CAD drawings for production without the need for dies.
Limitations of Traditional Cutting Methods
Manual Cutting
Small factories often adopt this manual cutting method, but its drawbacks are obvious: unstable precision, burrs on cuts, low efficiency, and dependence on skilled workers.
According to the Manufacturing Institute 2023 Industrial Report: The error of manual cutting materials is usually more than ±0.5mm. Source: https://www.themanufacturinginstitute.org
In high-pressure sealing applications, such finished products are completely unqualified.
Die Stamping
Although die stamping is suitable for mass production, it has problems such as high die costs, slow replacement, incompatibility with small batches, and inability to produce special-shaped gaskets. The cost of a set of gasket stamping dies is usually between 2,000 – 8,000 US dollars, and the specifications in the oil and gas industry change frequently. The long-term use of dies will result in very high costs.
Laser Cutting
Laser cutting is thermal cutting. If used for cutting gaskets, it will cause PTFE to easily burn, rubber to melt, asbestos materials to generate dust, and obvious heat-affected zones. According to research in the Journal of Materials Processing Technology: Thermal cutting will change the material edge structure, thereby affecting sealing performance. Source: https://www.sciencedirect.com
Therefore, using the cold cutting method of a CNC oscillating knife cutting machine is the best choice for cutting gaskets.
Advantages of CNC Oscillating Knife Cutting Machines
A CNC oscillating knife cutter does not require any die production. Unlike laser cutting, it does not produce heat-affected zones, burn edges, deform, or generate a molten layer. It is especially suitable for cutting PTFE, rubber, asbestos, and composite materials.
After a large number of actual cutting tests, the cutting precision of a CNC oscillating knife cutting machine can reach ±0.1mm, fully complying with oil and gas industry standards. The Trustercnc control system supports the import of various files (AI, PLT, DXF, DST, DSB, EPS, DATNC, V CUT), can automatically nest, process various special-shaped parts, and truly realize on-demand production.
The Complete Solution Provided by Trustercnc for the Canadian Customer
“Hi, I am looking to receive a quote for a gasket cutting machine. I work in the oil and gas industry in Canada, and I want to be able to cut my own viton rubber and PTFE gaskets. I am unsure of what size of working table will be best suited for me and am wondering about some of your options. Thank you.
I am looking to purchase a cnc cutting machine. I will be cutting gaskets made from Viton rubber, expanded PTFE and Garlock. I think the fixed table cutting machine will best suit my applications, I am wondering if your fixed table machine includes the nesting software as well? I am also wondering the different working table sizes compared to the overal sizes of each model to best determine what machine to purchase.”
The above is the content of an email sent to us by a customer named Mark from Canada. Based on the needs mentioned in his email, we provided the following solutions:
Regarding Machine Type
We recommended our fixed-table CNC oscillating knife cutter to him. This is a standard-specification CNC gasket cutting machine. The fixed workbench is particularly suitable for cutting plates and sheets. Although an automatic feeding table can also cut gaskets, it is completely unnecessary: first, its price is higher than that of a fixed-table CNC cutting machine; second, it is mainly used for cutting rolled materials.
Machine Bed
The machine bed is integrally formed with 5mm thick, 80 × 80mm square heavy-duty steel plates that have undergone annealing treatment, and then milled with a 4,300-ton press to reach T6 hardness. It can withstand huge impact resistance, with extremely strong stability. Its service life can be as long as 15 years.
Operating System
X-axis: Adopts a 25mm thick steel plate base, equipped with dual 400W Panasonic servo motors and precision reducers. The dual motors ensure balanced and synchronous operation of both ends of the X-axis. It also uses helical racks to achieve progressive meshing, minimizing impact and vibration, and reducing the error range to the minimum.
Y-axis: The crossbeam is extruded from 6065-T5 aviation aluminum alloy, with a width of 230mm and a wall thickness of 10mm, ensuring the stability of the machine during operation. It adopts dual Taiwan Hiwin precision linear guide rails and lead screws, equipped with a 400W Japanese Panasonic servo motor and precision reducer, ensuring the stability and cutting precision of the cutting head during rapid movement.
Z-axis: Still uses a 400W Panasonic high-power servo motor to ensure strong and powerful vertical cutting.
Workbench
Adopts a 41.8mm aviation honeycomb aluminum plate, which has both the functions of adjusting flatness and uniform adsorption. Ensures unobstructed adsorption channels.
Zoned Vacuum Adsorption System
Equipped with a 9KW high-power vacuum pump, dividing the adsorption area into 8 zones. When cutting gaskets, a certain zone can be opened independently to concentrate suction, ensuring the material is firmly fixed and will not move or slide during cutting.
Felt
Uses Australian imported felt, which is soft and elastic. It can not only prevent the tool from scratching the workbench but also absorb the vibration and impact generated during cutting, thereby achieving smoother and more precise cutting.
Regarding Machine Size
Based on the customer’s workshop area, we recommended 1600×2500mm:
Machine workbench size: 1600×2500mm
Overall machine length: 3532.50mm
Overall machine bed length: 3230mm
Overall machine bed width: 1984mm
X-axis width: 2473mm
Height from tool head to the ground: 1270.50mm
Regarding Tool System
The maximum thickness of the material the customer needs to cut is 6.35mm. We recommended a detachable 400W high-power servo tool with a cutting frequency of over 12,000 times per minute, while the vibration frequency of ordinary oscillating knives is only 8,000 times per minute. We suggested he choose a modular tool head system, which can be equipped with both a pneumatic knife (for cutting) and a milling tool (for drilling) at the same time.
Regarding Blades
We recommended cemented carbide tungsten steel blades with a thickness of 1.5mm and sharp cutting edges. These blades are integrally formed, with extremely high hardness, toughness, breakage resistance, and good wear resistance.
Regarding Nesting Software
This is also a configuration that the customer is most concerned about. We matched it with our independently developed TRUSTER CNC nesting software. Our nesting software supports “Common-line Cutting”, that is, the outer circles of two gaskets are closely attached to share one cutting line, directly eliminating gap waste.
It can also realize “nesting in holes”: when cutting a large flange with an outer diameter of 1 meter, a waste circular plate with a diameter of 0.8 meters will be left in the middle. The software will automatically insert smaller gaskets in the order (such as those with a diameter of 0.2 meters) into the center of this waste for continuous cutting. It greatly improves material utilization and avoids the waste of expensive materials.
The above is the complete gasket cutting solution we provided for this Canadian customer based on the gasket materials he needs to cut. He is very satisfied with our solution.
For knowledge points about gasket cutting used in the oil and gas industry, let’s continue (here we only introduce PTFE/expanded PTFE gaskets, Viton rubber gaskets, and Garlock gaskets mentioned by the Canadian customer in his email):
Common Gasket Materials and Cutting Difficulties in the Oil and Gas Industry
Gasket cutting in the oil and gas industry often involves a wide variety of materials, some of which are hard and some are soft, making them difficult to cut. However, the requirements for cutting precision are particularly high.
Cutting Difficulties of PTFE/Expanded PTFE Gaskets
PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) and expanded PTFE have strong chemical corrosion resistance and high-temperature resistance. The main characteristics of this material are extremely soft, elastic, smooth surface, and low friction coefficient. During cutting, it is easy to adhere to the blade and undergo tensile deformation (according to DuPont PTFE technical data: PTFE is prone to deformation during machining. Source: https://www.dupont.com).
After a large number of actual cutting tests by us, adjusting the cutting vibration frequency of the CNC oscillating knife to above 12,000 times per minute and the cutting speed to 800mm/s can prevent material adhesion and avoid tensile deformation, resulting in clean and smooth edges.
Processing Requirements for Viton Rubber Gaskets
Viton rubber is extremely expensive and has strong oil resistance, high-temperature resistance, and corrosion resistance. It has great toughness and resilience. If the high-frequency vibration of the tool is insufficient or the blade is not sharp enough, the cut surface will have “burrs” or “taper (wider at the top and narrower at the bottom)”, leading to uneven sealing force. It is necessary to use a 400W high-power servo tool + high-hardness tungsten steel sharp blade.
Cutting of Garlock Gasket Materials
Garlock material is a high-end sealing material. It is a composite material that combines the corrosion resistance of PTFE and special structural stability. The material is extremely dense and high-pressure resistant, requiring high wear resistance of the tool and torque of the motor. Trustercnc uses Japanese Panasonic motors with 27-bit ultra-high-resolution encoders, 4.0kHz speed response, 62.5 μs shortest communication cycle; low cogging torque, nano-level positioning, and stable, strong, and smooth torque.
| Material Type | Characteristics | Cutting Difficulties |
| Asbestos gaskets | High-temperature resistance, corrosion resistance | Hard, easy to wear blades |
| PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) | Strong chemical resistance, high-temperature resistance | Easy to adhere, low friction makes stable cutting difficult |
| Rubber | Elastic, good sealing performance | Large elastic deformation, easy to stretch |
| Steel wire reinforced asbestos | High strength, pressure resistance | High wear, shortened blade life |
| Metal reinforced asbestos | Extremely high strength | Extremely high requirements for blade wear resistance |
How to Choose Blades for CNC Gasket Cutting Machines in the Oil and Gas Industry
The hardness, toughness, and internal structure of the material determine the type of blade to choose. Different materials have different hardness, and the blade must match the material. Otherwise, it is easy to reduce blade service life, cutting precision, and increase costs.
Recommended Blades for PTFE Gaskets
Since PTFE is extremely prone to deformation, a high-frequency oscillating knife must be used with an extremely sharp toothless straight-edge tungsten steel blade. The vibration frequency should reach above 12,000 times per minute. The shorter the contact time between the blade and the material, the smaller the chance of extrusion deformation.
Blade Selection for Viton Rubber Gaskets
For cutting thick Viton rubber plates (such as 5-10mm thick), it is recommended to use a long-stroke pneumatic oscillating knife or a 400W high-power servo oscillating knife, combined with a thick-edge tungsten steel blade with a large angle (such as 45° / 60° / 90°). The long stroke can ensure chip removal when cutting thick materials, and the large-angle blade can ensure extremely high perpendicularity.
Blade Selection for Garlock Gasket Materials
When cutting Garlock gasket materials, the choice should be based on different material types. For example, choose a 25° tungsten steel straight knife for graphite/reinforced graphite, a 16° thin-edge tungsten steel knife for PTFE, and a 90° vertical edge for thick rubber. Matching with a DLC coating makes it more durable, ensuring flat cuts, no chipping, and no delamination.
Blade Service Life and Replacement Cycle
Proper use and maintenance of blades will greatly extend their service life, reduce the replacement cycle, and lower consumable costs.
Impact of Different Materials on Blade Wear
Cutting soft pure rubber, one tungsten steel oscillating blade can be used for 7-10 days (after actual cutting tests by Trustercnc); but when cutting special asbestos plates containing a lot of glass fibers or silicate minerals, the blade edge will quickly become dull, with a service life of only 3-5 days; if cutting metal-reinforced asbestos gaskets, it may need to be replaced every 1-2 days.
How to Extend Blade Service Life
Based on the principle that the blade must match the material, the material should be cemented carbide tungsten steel blades. Reasonably set the cutting depth: the blade tip only needs to just cut through the gasket and slightly pierce the air-permeable felt at the bottom by 0.1mm.
If pierced too deeply, not only the blade tip is easily worn but also the expensive felt workbench will be quickly cut through. In addition, the service life of the blade is also related to the operator’s operation. If operated improperly, the blade may break immediately when the machine is turned on.
To learn how to extend blade service life, Also read: How to Extend CNC Oscillating Knife Blade & Felt Life
Recommendations for Blade Replacement Frequency
The replacement frequency of blades is closely related to their usage frequency. For example, when the machine runs 8-10 hours a day to cut pure rubber or PTFE, the blade usually needs to be inspected and replaced about once a week. The cutting quality can be used as the replacement standard.
When the operator finds that burrs and fraying start to appear on the gasket edges, or the flange inner hole size becomes smaller, it indicates that the blade is dull and must be replaced immediately to prevent the production of defective products.
How to Choose Between Fixed Workbench and Automatic Feeding Workbench
Machine workbenches can be divided into fixed workbenches and automatic feeding workbenches. Fixed workbenches are suitable for cutting sheets and plates, while automatic feeding workbenches are suitable for cutting flexible rolled materials. The corresponding machine workbench should be selected according to the material to be cut. Do not blindly pursue high configurations to avoid unnecessary budget expenditures.
Characteristics and Advantages of Fixed Workbenches
The fixed workbench is supported by heavy steel beams with an aviation aluminum honeycomb panel, featuring extremely high flatness and strong stability. It is suitable for processing standard whole rectangular plates (Sheets, such as 1.5m × 1.5m or 2m × 3m).
Characteristics and Advantages of Automatic Feeding Workbenches
The automatic feeding workbench can automatically roll and transport materials. It has an annular rolling felt as the carrier for transporting materials, enabling automatic feeding and automatic cutting, and is suitable for rolled materials.
Which Is More Recommended for Gaskets in the Oil and Gas Industry
The oil and gas industry is more suitable for using fixed-table CNC gasket cutting machines. The oil and gas industry rarely uses rolled materials; most are thick, hard, heavy, and expensive plates. With its extremely strong stability, the fixed-table CNC gasket cutting machine can fully ensure the cutting consistency of gaskets. Moreover, it is convenient and fast — directly place the gasket material on the workbench for cutting.
How Does Nesting Software Improve Material Utilization
For expensive gasket materials, maximizing material utilization is very important. Nesting software can well solve this problem. According to actual cutting tests by Trustercnc, the material utilization rate can be increased by about 18%.
What Is Nesting Software
Nesting software is an automatic nesting system used to optimize materials. You can input graphic files of dozens of flange gaskets with different outer diameters into the computer. Through super algorithms, the software automatically arranges these circular and special-shaped graphics most compactly on the plate of a given size.
How Does Nesting Software Save Materials
For example, if you want to cut gaskets with different hole diameters on a 1-meter PTFE material, the nesting software will automatically nest smaller diameter gaskets (such as 0.5 meters and 0.2 meters) into the center of the 0.8-meter waste material. The nesting software independently developed by Trustercnc has this function of nesting in holes.
How Automatic Nesting Reduces Costs
Manual nesting is time-consuming and labor-intensive, and it is impossible to maximize material utilization. However, nesting software can rely on super algorithms to maximize the utilization of each piece of expensive material. We have calculated an account: the leftover materials saved only by the nesting software are enough to buy a new ordinary CNC oscillating knife cutter within a few months.
How to Choose the Right Workbench Size
When choosing the machine workbench size, first consider your workshop space, and second, the area of the material to be cut. To avoid buying a machine that is too large and wastes space, or too small to cut large gaskets.
Common Workbench Size Specifications
Taking common machine sizes of Trustercnc as examples:
| Workbench Size | Applicable Material Size | Applicable Scenarios |
| 1600 × 2500 mm | Small and medium batches, limited indoor space | OEM R&D, small batches |
| 2000 × 3000 mm | Medium batches, adapting to various large-size gaskets | Medium-sized processing |
| 2500 × 3000 mm | Customization of large-size gaskets | Mass production |
| 3200 × 4000 mm | Large-scale production of extra-large gaskets/flexible plates | High production lines |
Material Size Matching Principle
First, measure the size of the raw material plates you usually purchase (such as standard 1m × 1m compressed asbestos plates). Second, consider the maximum flange gasket outer diameter you receive. If the outer diameter of most of your gaskets does not exceed 50 inches (127cm), then buying a 1300mm × 1300mm model is sufficient to meet the cutting needs.
Trustercnc has specially designed and produced a 1300mm × 1300mm model for customers, which is very practical. Do not buy an expensive and space-consuming extra-large model for the extra-large gaskets that are only needed once a year (such as heat exchanger panels) (extra-large gaskets can be cut by segmental splicing with dovetail joint structure designed by software).
Workshop Space Requirements
Remember: The effective workbench size is by no means equal to the machine floor space! The overhang of the machine’s X/Y axis crossbeam, the rear independent control cabinet, and the large vacuum pump usually make the overall length and width of the machine 0.8 meters to 1.2 meters larger than the workbench surface.
Before purchasing, be sure to ask the manufacturer to provide the prototype design drawing of the machine (Trustercnc can provide the size design prototype drawings of all machines), and reserve a safety channel of at least 1 meter around the machine to facilitate forklifts or workers to transport heavy plates.
How to Choose a Reliable CNC Gasket Cutting Machine Supplier
Each machine is very expensive, so choosing a reliable CNC gasket cutting machine is very important. This is related to a series of issues such as machine quality and after-sales service. You can evaluate a manufacturer from the following three aspects:
Industry Experience
Whether the manufacturer:
- Has more than ten years of industry production experience
- Has its own R&D and manufacturing team
- Has its own patented technology
- Can regularly upgrade the software system
Case Support
You can ask the supplier to provide cutting videos of various gasket materials, or mail the gaskets you need to cut to the supplier, asking them to perform test cuts and provide you with detailed cutting videos and final cutting results.
After-Sales Service
- Whether it can provide online video remote guidance for installation
- Whether it can provide free technical support (online guidance to troubleshoot machine failures)
- Whether it provides free technical documents and tutorial videos
- Whether the machine has a warranty period of more than three years
- Whether it can provide 24-hour online customer service to answer questions
FAQs
The gaskets of oil and gas heat exchangers are often very large. If the gasket outer diameter exceeds the machine’s workbench size, can it still be cut?
Absolutely.
You don’t need to buy an extremely space-consuming and expensive extra-large machine for a few extra-large flanges. Through our independently developed nesting software, you can use the “Dovetail / Puzzle Joint Splitting” function.
The software will automatically and accurately split the CAD drawing of the extra-large gasket into several small pieces, and automatically generate perfect dovetail grooves or interlocking joints at the connections. After cutting, workers can assemble them on-site. This not only perfectly solves the equipment format limitation but also greatly saves the waste in the central area of the plate.
When cutting asbestos plates or glass fiber reinforced materials, harmful dust will be generated. How does the machine ensure workshop safety and environmental protection?
When using high-power servo tools to cut asbestos, glass fiber, or composite materials containing metal wires, dust and debris will indeed be generated.
Therefore, for such applications, the CNC gasket cutting machine of Trustercnc is equipped with a high-power industrial-grade Dust Extraction System as standard in the design. The dust hood will closely surround the cutting tool head, and strongly suck the dust into the dust removal box with a HEPA filter at the moment it is raised.
In addition, the powerful vacuum adsorption workbench at the bottom of the machine will also adsorb part of the dust downward, ensuring that the workshop air quality meets the extremely strict occupational health (such as OSHA) standards.
Compared with laser cutters or waterjets, what unique advantages does a CNC oscillating knife gasket cutting machine have?
Compared with laser: Laser is thermal cutting. Cutting Viton rubber or PTFE will generate highly toxic corrosive gases, which are not only harmful to health but also quickly corrode the machine tool; and cutting thick rubber will produce serious burnt edges and taper (beveled edges). The oscillating knife is pure physical cold cutting, 100% environmentally friendly, and the edges are absolutely vertical.
Compared with waterjet: Waterjet can indeed cut metal-reinforced gaskets, but the equipment is extremely expensive, occupies a large space, and water splashes during cutting, which will wet and dirty some non-metallic compressed plates sensitive to moisture. The combination of CNC oscillating knife + milling knife (Dry Cutting) is cleaner and more efficient, and the comprehensive cost of machine purchase and daily maintenance (only need to replace blades and felt) is much lower than that of waterjet.
References and Information Sources
Springer. (2021). Fast and high precision control approach for CNC machine tools.
https://link.springer.com
ASME. (2023). B16.20 Metallic Gaskets Standard.
https://www.asme.org
API. (2023). API 6A Specification for Wellhead Equipment.
https://www.api.org
DuPont. (2022). PTFE Material Technical Guide.
https://www.dupont.com
Autodesk. (2022). Nesting and Material Optimization Report.
https://www.autodesk.com
MarketsandMarkets. (2022). Gasket Manufacturing Industry Report.
https://www.marketsandmarkets.com
Manufacturing Institute. (2023). Industrial Production Efficiency Report.
https://www.themanufacturinginstitute.org
