US-headquartered Hypertherm, a manufacturer of plasma arc metal cutting systems and related components, has highlighted the success of its recently launched Powermax30 air plasma system.

“It represents a significant advancement in manual plasma cutting, featuring a power supply that only weighs 9 kg, but which delivers significant cutting capability on either 120- or 220-volt single-phase power,” said Phillip Parker, Hypertherm marketing manager for Europe, Middle East and Africa. It can cut metals with thickness up to 12 mm.
“In our Europe, Middle-East and Africa region, annual sales of this system are nearly four-times those of the system it replaced,” he said.
In the past spring, the company, an exhibitor at the GI Fair, also introduced a new conventional mechanised oxygen plasma system, the HySpeed HSD130, which Parker said was “a great system for those upgrading to mechanised plasma cutting for the first time.”
The official added that the HySpeed HSD130 was carving out “a very solid new market for itself, based on its overall performance, reliability and ease-of-use.”
Hypertherm’s innovative spirit is strong. “In the next year, we expect to launch new manual and HyPerformance systems, however for market reasons it is premature to discuss these in any detail,” said Parker.
Hyopertherm’s core business is the development and sale of plasma-cutting systems, their associated consumables, spare parts and related components. The company says it has nearly doubled its revenues over the past three years, and this year it expects its worldwide growth to be in the 15 to 20 per cent range with growth coming from the Middle East and other high-growth markets substantially exceeding that.
Hypertherm produces two primary lines of plasma systems.  One is a family of relatively low-cost systems which are used primarily for manual cutting applications (although most of these systems can also be used for basic automated cutting as well) and sold through a global network of welding distributors.  Top selling products in this family are the Powermax30. Another is the Powermax600, which can cut metals up to 22 mm thick.  This unit just passed the 50,000th system sold worldwide, a major milestone.  At the high end of this line is the Powermax1650, a 100-amp output system with the power to cut metals up to 44 mm thick.
Hypertherm’s other primary line of cutting systems includes high-end, multi-gas systems designed to be mounted on sophisticated automated cutting systems for highly repeatable, high-production cutting. Among these systems, the HyPerformance HPR260 is a market leader.   This product is dominant in the marketplace and accounts for a significant portion of the company’s automated system turnover.  It is used in a wide variety of applications where high-precision cutting is required.  It offers a wide range of process capabilities, ranging from very thin metals to mild steel and stainless steel up to 32 mm thick and aluminum up to 25 mm thick.
The company does not sell directly to end users, instead relying on a global network of channel partners, including welding distributors, system integrators and original equipment manufacturers.  Hypertherm equipment is used in many industries, however, by globally recognised companies, some of which are Caterpillar, John Deere, Case New Holland, JCB,  Palfinger, Fincantieri, Aker Yards and Hyundai Heavy Industries. 
Hypertherm has a full-time technical service staff located in each of its global selling regions.  These people are available to provide in-house or on-site training, telephone-based service support and in-field service and troubleshooting, if needed.  In addition, it has established dedicated service networks and as part of the commitment to become one of its selling partners, a distributor or OEM must have a service support capability trained by Hypertherm.
Customers in the European, Russian, Middle East and African regions are currently serviced from three warehousing points:  most of Western Europe and Scandinavia is served from a warehousing facility located near Amsterdam, in the Netherlands; Germany and Eastern Europe is served from a facility located near Frankfurt, in Germany.  Some customers, including many of those in the Middle East, are served directly by the company’s home warehouse located in the United States.
Discussing growth strategy, Parker said: “Speaking as the marketing manager for the Hypertherm region covering Europe, Russia, the Middle East and Africa, I will focus on our strategy in those areas.
“First, we want to continue to take advantage of the very robust economies in our mature, well-developed Western European markets, while also growing there by increasing our market share in the plasma cutting market.  In newer markets for us, for example those in Eastern Europe, Russia, the Middle East and South Africa, we expect to invest significantly in enhanced sales and service infrastructure. Here, we hope to grow substantially not only by increasing our market share, but by building the overall market for plasma by converting those who are currently using other methods to cut metal to plasma.  Our primary focus here is to target oxyfuel and laser cutting.”
Touching on the company’s main achievements, Parker observed: “Hypertherm was founded in 1968 with a primary focus of driving improvements in plasma cutting technologies that would either increase the productivity or reduce the overall operating costs of our potential customer base – those who fabricate or otherwise need to cut metal in their operations. 
“Over the near 40-year history of the company, we have achieved a consistent string of innovation that has been consistent with this singular goal.  Some of these innovations have focused on performance gains – higher cutting speeds, improved cutting accuracy or extended consumable life – however, equally important has been the increased reliability and industrial robustness of our equipment through technological advance.   This continued 40-year focus on our customers and providing them with technological solutions to their cutting needs is one of Hypertherm’s major achievements.”
Hypertherm’s world headquarters:
Hypertherm, Inc, 21 Great Hollow Road, Hanover, New Hampshire  03755 USA. www.hypertherm.com
Its European headquarters, which has sales responsibility for Western and Eastern Europe, Russia, the Middle East, Turkey, and Africa, is based in the Netherlands.
 Hypertherm Europe - Vaartveld 9;  4704 SE Roosendaal, The Netherlands. Tel: +31 (0) 165 596 907. Fax: +31 (0) 165 596 901
Agent in Saudi Arabia:
Alruqee Industrial Marketing Co Ltd, PO Box 3657, AlKhobar 31952, Saudi Arabia Tel : +966 3 8576383. Fax : +966 3 8577494.Email : mailbox1@alruqee.com Web: www.alruqee.net.