Cutting ultra-thick glass is a brutal job. If you try to score that kind of material cold, your cutting wheels take a massive beating. They just don’t last. To fix this, we use infrared (IR) heating lamps to soften the path right before the wheel ever hits the glass. Here is the trick: thick glass is like a sponge for heat. Standard heaters just warm up the surface and call it a day, which doesn’t help us. We use shortwave IR lamps because they actually sink deep into the glass. It lowers the material’s resistance, so instead of fighting the glass, the wheel just glides through it. It’s all about finding that sweet spot. Go too hot, and you’ll deal with thermal shock and random cracks. Too cold, and you’re back to burning through wheels every few hours. But when you get the temperature just right, the friction disappears. You’ll notice your wheels lasting way longer—we’re talking a huge jump in how many meters you can cut before you have to swap them out. Now, this isn’t just “plug and play.” You have to mount these lamps right up against the cutting head so the heat doesn’t vanish into thin air. Because they’re so close, your wiring and housing have to be tough enough to handle the heat. If your cooling isn’t up to the task, that heat will eventually seep into your electronics and fry them. It’s a bit of a balancing act—keeping the glass soft while making sure your machine doesn’t melt down. But once it’s dialed in, it’s a completely different experience.