What is the difference between laser cutting, scoring, engraving, and marking?

Laser Cutting: uses the laser beam to cut completely through a material. Artwork Preparation: Requires data as a mathematically defined path, so designs must be provided or converted to a vector format such as various CAD applications, SVG, EPS, Adobe Illustrator .AI, PDF, etc. Indicate cutting with red lines (0.25 pt thick).
Laser Scoring: like cutting but uses the laser beam on lower power to score the material often in preparation for bending. Art Preparation: Requires data in the form of a mathematically defined path, so designs must be provided or converted to a vector format such as various CAD applications, SVG, EPS, Adobe Illustrator AI, PDF, etc. Indicate scoring with black lines (0.25 pt thick).
Laser Engraving: uses the laser beam to vaporize the surface of a material, thereby permanently engraving it with a design or image. White areas of the image are not engraved at all; black areas are hit with the maximum force of the laser at the current power setting; gray values fall in between; the total effect mimics the look of traditional engraving. Artwork Preparation: This technique requires data in the form of a grayscale image, so designs have to be provided or converted to a raster format such as a jpg, png, tiff, PSD.
Laser Marking: this is a variation of laser engraving that uses aerosol coatings by CerMark to mark metals, glass, ceramics, and stone permanently with a black finish. Artwork Preparation: is the same as laser engraving.

For projects requiring multiple techniques, proper file preparation and clear communication are essential.

Cutting & Scoring: Use red lines for cutting black lines for scoring (0.25 pt thick).
Registration Marks: Use to ensure alignments between different layers for cutting/scoring and engraving. We can provide sample files or templates for common CAD or design programs as guides.