Rotary Engraving

Rotary Engraving and Laser Engraving – What Is the Difference?

Personalized engraved gifts are one of the most considerate and welcome ways to demonstrate appreciation. These gifts can be corporate awards or executive gifts for co-workers or bosses, or something more personal for relatives or other loved ones.

Custom engraving is also very popular for personalizing recognition awards for team sports and workplace accomplishments. With today’s technology, you can engrave almost any material, and there are various ways to accomplish this.

Régimbal Group executes all of our own engraving production in-house. Our 1,500 square foot showroom has a comprehensive selection of items ready for custom engraving, and our bilingual staff is delighted to assist with any questions about personalized engraving services.

Régimbal Group is an expert personalized engraving company with over 90 years of experience.

Rotary Engraving is the Original Mechanical Engraving Process

Traditional rotary engraving is still popular today.

There are two major types of engraving methods for large-scale commercial and industrial engraving ­– rotary engraving and laser engraving. With laser engraving, there are also the subsets of laser marking and laser etching.

Rotary engraving, or mechanical engraving, was the industry standard until laser engraving was developed commercially. Rotary engraving involves physically removing material with an engraving drill. The drill has a motorized spinning cutter that can engrave through the surface, or substrate, of almost any material.

Rotary engraving was originally accomplished by hand, but now there are software-assisted machines that can repeatedly produce the extraordinary detail and precision of this technique. Rotary engraving can deliver deeply etched, tamper-free characters and designs that are long-lasting and aesthetic.

Differences Between Laser Engraving, Etching, and Marking

Laser engraving can accomplish many of the same things that rotary engraving does, but with the difference ­that it does not make physical contact with the material. We can break down laser engraving into three discernable categories:
Laser Engraving
Laser engraving carves into a material with a high-powered laser beam and is one of the most effective, efficient, and versatile methods of engraving. We can apply laser engraving to metal, plastic, and ceramics, and it also works well with silver and gold.
Laser Etching
Laser etching actually melts the surface of the substrate, expanding it and creating a slightly raised mark. Etching does not carve as deeply as engraving, and generally only carves just below the surface, whereas engraving will cut much deeper.
Laser Marking
Laser marking does not physically carve into a surface – the laser beam heats under the surface to discolor a section of the substrate. It is most commonly used to produce bar codes, serial numbers, and identifying marks that assist in fraud prevention.

Some Advantages of Laser Engraving

Although many engravers still use rotary engraving, the speed, efficiency, and technological ease of laser engraving have made it a very popular choice.
Some advantages of laser engraving include:

  • Precision – laser engraving gives the engraver absolute control over every detail
  • No contact ­– this is beneficial for both the operator and the material
  • Versatility – laser engraving can be performed on many different types of materials

Engraved gifts have become a distinct feature of people’s lives, whether the custom engraving is performed by hand, by rotary drill, or by laser.
The bilingual staff at Régimbal Group can guide you through items from our showroom that are perfect for personalized engraving by our in-house production team.
Contact Régimbal Group for information about our many engraving services.

You can count on Régimbal for:

Quality

Our partners are as concerned with exceptional quality as we are

Bilingual Personalized Services

Our staff can assist in both French and English

Timely Production

We will work with you to provide the fastest production possible due to our in-house production capabilities

Family Owned & Operated

The Régimbal group is a 4th generation family-owned and operated company that has been serving Ottawa for over 95 years.

Production on location

Our Ottawa facility is over 8,000 sq. ft. and is equipped with embroidery machines, screen printing and digital printing equipment, as well as engraving equipment.

Design Department

Controlling turn around times and quality is a key part to our values, our in house designers can make all your dreams come true.