MANUFACTURING CAPABILITIES

The shop behind the champions.

Every Team Whyachi robot is designed, cut, machined, and welded under one roof at Westar Manufacturing. That same shop builds parts for other people — from one-off prototypes to production runs, in metal, plastic, stone, and glass.

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Abrasive waterjet cutting head in operation

ABRASIVE WATERJET

Precision cutting, zero heat.

87,000
PSI

Ultra-high-pressure abrasive cutting stream

±0.002"
Tolerance

Achievable precision on a single setup

6"
Thickness

Maximum material we can cut clean through

Zero
Heat-affected zone

Cold cutting — no warping, no hardening

What waterjet does best

An 87,000-psi stream of water and garnet abrasive slices through almost any material without heat. There is no heat-affected zone, no slag, and no hardened edge — so parts come off the table dimensionally stable and ready for the next operation. One machine cuts virtually any 2D profile, which makes it ideal for prototypes, fixtures, and the kind of short, precise runs that keep our own robots competitive.

We've cut robot armor and weapon rings since bringing waterjet in-house in 2008 — and we cut the same way for our customers.

Materials we cut

Stainless steelCarbon & alloy steelAluminumTitaniumBrass & copperHardened tool steelPlastics & compositesRubber & foamStone & tileGlass & ceramic
Precision-cut part surface finish

DESIGN FOR WATERJET

Getting the most out of the cut

No heat distortion

Because the stream cuts cold, parts come off the table ready to use — no heat-affected zone, no warping, and no hardening along the edge to machine away later.

Tolerances

Plan for ±0.005" on most work and ±0.002" on thinner material. The cutting stream is about 0.030" wide, so add a small radius to inside corners rather than a sharp point.

Holes & detail

Minimum practical hole diameter is roughly equal to material thickness. Fine lettering, logos, and intricate profiles cut as easily as straight lines — there is no tooling to change.

Material savings

Any flat profile can be nested tightly on a single sheet, so prototypes and short runs are fast and economical with very little scrap.

MACHINING & FABRICATION

More than a cutting table.

Waterjet is where most parts start. From there we machine, weld, and assemble complete components in-house — the full path from raw stock to finished product.

CNC machining

Tight-tolerance milling and turning to finish waterjet blanks or machine parts from solid.

Welding & fabrication

Structural and precision welding, chassis, frames, and weldments built to spec.

Assembly & finishing

Sub-assemblies, hardware, and finishing — parts arrive ready to install.

Waterjet-cut robot baseplate
Waterjet-cut robot baseplate
Machined weapon ring for a spinner
Machined weapon ring for a spinner
Welded and fabricated chassis
Welded and fabricated chassis
Custom precision bracket
Custom precision bracket
Assortment of finished custom parts
Assortment of finished custom parts
Precision surface finish detail
Precision surface finish detail

DEFENSE & REMOTE VEHICLE SYSTEMS

Combat-proven engineering, off the arena floor.

The same instincts that make a robot survive in the BattleBots arena — rugged drivetrains, reliable remote control, parts that don't fail under abuse — translate directly to the field. We've designed and built remote-control vehicle systems for the U.S. military, including remote-steering conversions for HMMWVs and a purpose-built remote buggy, with on-site installation and support at Fort Campbell.

Remote-control vehicle platform
Remote-control vehicle platform
HMMWV remote-steering system
HMMWV remote-steering system
On-site installation, Fort Campbell
On-site installation, Fort Campbell
Completed remote vehicle systems
Completed remote vehicle systems

Have a part you need made?

Send us a drawing, a sketch, or just a description. The team that builds champions will tell you how to make it — and cut it. Deep industrial and B2B work runs through our sister company, Westar Manufacturing.