There is a slight time problem at Cal State Long Beach (CSULB)’s College of engineering. And it has nothing to do with turning in papers promptly or professors showing up late.

It’s the laborious task of cutting metal. As of now, in order for students and faculty alike to create intricate parts, they are relegated to antiquated tools: a saw, a lathe and a drilling machine.

Thanks to a nearly $50,000 donation via the DENSO North American Foundation, however, plasma cutting will be officially introduced to CSULB after the same foundation introduced a sophisticated 3D printer to the college.

The computer-supported system—expected to trim cutting activity tenfold—uses a plasma torch to cut through various metals, particularly steel, of varying thicknesses. In the case of what CSULB will be receiving, they will be able to cut through six-inch thick steel plates.

To achieve a plasma ray, inert gas is blown out of a nozzle at high speed while being simultaneously introduced to an electrical charge, thereby turning some of that gas to plasma. The cutter then has a two-fold benefit: the heat of the plasm is hot enough to melt the metal while the torch itself blows the plasma at such an efficient speed that molten metal is blown away from the cut for a clean, smooth, and precise cutting system.

“DENSO has been an important partner in many of the new initiatives in the CSULB College of Engineering with significant impact on student success,” said Forouzan Golshani, dean of the CSULB College of Engineering, in a press release. “Their greatest impact can be seen in the areas of design, manufacturing and testing, where their continued support over the past five years has resulted in the creation of a state of the art laboratory with most modern equipment. We value DENSO’s involvement in improving our educational programs and the foundation’s generous financial contributions.”