Norton i-HD technology | Norton Abrasivos

Norton i-HD - Press Release

Norton i-HD technology revolutionizes diamond tool manufacture

 

In the early 80's, Norton changed the diamond blade market by developing the process of laser welding diamond segments to a steel center. This allowed, for the first time, laser-welded diamond products to be used without water on a wide range of masonry and construction materials, while maintaining speed of cut and product life compared with conventional abrasive blades.
 
Today, Norton has developed Infiltrated High Density Technology (i-HD) which, combined with the patented laser welding process is a significant breakthrough in diamond tool technology. Research and development of i-HD™ has led to further improvements in blade performance, safer products, lower energy manufacturing needs and a wider availability of segment design.
 
Igor Giglio, World Director of Product Management and Strategy for Norton Construction Products claims ”the infiltration process applied to segment manufacturing is already known but we have applied an innovative manufacturiing process that allows us to laser weld these special shaped segments on to the steel centre. We reach a much faster tool cutting speed, improved by +30% on average, with a very high and very uniform density across the whole segment that makes the product last at least 20% longer than those made by the standard process’’.
 
i-HD technology works by providing a uniform density across each whole segment without applying high pressure (as seen in the standard process). A special bond impregnates the core structure and binds the diamond grit into the segment. The diamond grit is an integral part of the segment structure. “This allows a higher resistance to bending, resulting in 60% higher torque resistance for laser welded segments’’ states Vincent Hays, World Director of R&D at Norton Construction Products.