On Aug. 20 OMAX Corp., Kent, Wash., celebrated 20 years
as a provider of waterjet cutting technology. The celebration, an all-day event at the company’s expansive facility,
was capped off by a dinner at the Museum of Flight, which
incorporates Boeing’s Red Barn, one of the few structures
left from Boeing’s original manufacturing campus.
Visitors and members of the press were taken on a
tour of the facility that began with an introductory video
featuring OMAX founders Dr. John Olsen and Dr. John
Cheung. One of the original developers of high-pressure
jet technology, Olsen said that one of the initial goals was
to make the technology useful for machine and job shops.
In 1994 OMAX introduced and patented in-motion con-
trol, which made this goal reality.
During the tour participants saw the latest software and
hardware developments, including a new version of the
Intelli-MAX® software suite, Intelli-
MAX 20. Among the software’s many
enhancements is an automatic tool
path planning engine that improves
the artificial intelligence of OMAX
waterjets, creating less need for op-
erator involvement. The software
advancements also have resulted in
improved collision avoidance func-
tionality and more efficient traversing
of the cutting head between parts.
Another highlight was the new Mic-roMAX™ JetMachining® Center, which
makes waterjet technology suitable
for cutting parts or part features
smaller than 300 microns. The water-jet technology can be used on many
materials, including exotic metals, advanced composites, polymer thermoplastics, and glass. It was designed for
use in both prototype development
and production environments.
All OMAX machines are made in
the U.S., as are most of the components that go into the machines. Olsen and Cheung both stressed that
the company has every intention of
keeping production in the U.S.
Long involved with software development, Olsen said he has expanded
his programming expertise beyond
the waterjet, creating the company’s Kindle®-based ERP system from
scratch. Company officials have said
that the system has been instrumental
in allowing a two-week turnaround of
orders for OMAX machines.
The event also included presentations by fabricators that use the
company’s machines. Most notable
was a young Marine, Matthew Wolfe,
who had used one of the machines
in Afghanistan to repair vehicles and
equipment and, in some cases, create
new tools to be used by the military.
Wolfe said the waterjet was able to
operate in extreme conditions and
stand up to constant movement of
operations, yet still deliver high-toler-ance cutting results.
—Vicki Bell, Web Content Manager
OMAX celebrates 20-year anniversary
(From left to right) Carl Olsen, software engineering manager; Jim O’Connor, chief financial officer; Dr. John Cheung, chairman
and CEO; and Dr. John Olsen, vice president
of operations, welcome visitors to OMAX’s
20th anniversary celebration.
Call us at 800-782-2110 for a free quote on your
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