You need a permanent serial number on a metal part. A search gives you ten company names, and every website says “precision” and “durability”. None of that helps you choose.
The main metal marking machine manufacturers are Gravotech, Telesis, Pryor, SIC Marking, MECCO, Technomark, Markator, Columbia Marking Tools, Automator and Borries. Most sell dot peen, scribe and laser machines. Few publish prices. HeatSign, which wrote this guide, lists its prices online. Choose the marking method by what happens to your part next, then ask each maker for proof.
This page gives you two tables (who they are and what they make), the public prices we could find, a method guide by downstream process, and a five-point check before you pay.
Already have a part to mark? Send us the part details and get a delivered quote to compare with the makers below.
A note on bias: I work for HeatSign, a Chinese maker of dot peen and laser marking machines. Everything below about other makers comes from their own websites or public dealer listings. If a fact is not public, the table says so.
Which metal marking machine manufacturers should you compare?
Compare makers that build part-marking machines as their main business: Gravotech, Telesis, Pryor, SIC Marking, MECCO, Technomark, Markator, Columbia, Automator and Borries. Check who owns them now. Gravotech and MECCO belong to Brady Corporation, and Telesis belongs to Hitachi.
Manufacturer | Based in, since | Owned by | How they sell |
|---|---|---|---|
Gravotech (incl. Technifor) | France · Technifor brand since 1981 | Brady Corporation | 170+ distributors in 70+ countries |
Telesis Technologies | Ohio, USA · since 1971 | Hitachi Industrial Equipment Systems | Direct in the US; Europe through Hitachi |
Pryor Marking Technology | Sheffield, UK · since 1849 | A charitable trust | Own offices in the UK, US and France; dealers elsewhere |
SIC Marking | Near Lyon, France · since 1986 | Independent group | 10 subsidiaries; dealers in 50 countries |
MECCO | Pennsylvania, USA · since 1889 | Brady Corporation | Direct, often as custom systems |
Technomark | Near Saint-Étienne, France · since 2000 | Independent | Subsidiaries in the US, China and France; 57 dealers |
Markator | Ludwigsburg, Germany · since 1984 | Independent | Agents by country |
Columbia Marking Tools | Michigan, USA · since 1960 | No parent listed | Direct, with an online store |
Automator Marking Systems | Milan, Italy · since 1940 | Family-owned | 10 subsidiaries plus dealers |
Borries Markier-Systeme | Pliezhausen, Germany · since 1952 | No parent listed | Subsidiaries, including the US, plus agents |
Ownership matters more than it looks. Brady bought Gravotech in 2024 and MECCO in 2025. Hitachi bought Telesis in 2022. After a takeover, ask who will service your machine, and whether its software and spare parts will stay in the range.
Also worth a look in the US: Kwik Mark (Illinois), which makes pneumatic dot peen machines only, with no laser range.
What does each manufacturer actually make?
All ten sell dot peen and laser, and nine also sell scribe. Only Pryor, Columbia, Automator and Borries still sell stamping or roll marking. So the technology mix narrows your list faster than the brand does.
Four words used on this page
- Dot peen
- A hard pin hits the metal many times to form dots.
- Scribe
- The pin stays down and drags a continuous line. Quieter than dot peen.
- Laser marking
- A beam removes or darkens a thin layer of the surface. Nothing touches the part.
- Data Matrix code
- A small square barcode, a bit like a QR code, used to track parts.
Manufacturer | Dot peen and scribe | Laser | Stamping, roll or press |
|---|---|---|---|
Gravotech | Both | CO2, fiber, MOPA, green | — |
Telesis | Both | Fiber, UV, green, CO2 | — |
Pryor | Both | Yes | Hand stamps |
SIC Marking | Both | Yes | — |
MECCO | Both, incl. deep dot peen | Fiber, MOPA, CO2, green, UV | — |
Technomark | Dot peen only | Fiber, CO2 | — |
Markator | Both | Mobile fiber | — |
Columbia | Both | Yes | Impact, roll, press |
Automator | Both | Fiber, CO2 | Roll, press, electrolytic |
Borries | Both | Yes | Stamping, character wheel |
Why Videojet, Trotec and Amada Weld Tech are not on this list. They make good machines, but metal part marking is not their main line. Videojet focuses on coding and printing for packaging. Trotec focuses on laser engraving and cutting. Amada Weld Tech focuses on welding. None of the three sells dot peen. If your part needs a deep mark, they cannot quote it.
Need dot peen and laser from one supplier?
We build both, from handheld dot peen markers to desktop fiber laser marking machines. Or browse all fiber laser marking machines.
How much do metal marking machines cost from these makers?
Most western makers quote on request. Public dealer prices put a battery dot peen marker at CHF 5,122–7,007 before tax, and portable dot peen units at AUD 6,900–12,500. Fiber laser markers from one US brand list at $8,999–32,999.
Machine | Public price we found | Where the price comes from |
|---|---|---|
Battery handheld dot peen (Markator FlyMarker) | CHF 5,122–7,007, before tax | A Swiss distributor’s online catalog |
Portable or handheld dot peen (Technomark) | AUD 6,900–12,500 | An Australian industrial marketplace |
Dot peen machines, all brands | AUD 5,000–15,000 | Category range on the same marketplace |
Fiber laser marking machine (Laguna, US) | $8,999–32,999 | The brand’s own price list |
Pneumatic impact hammer (Columbia) | About $590–615 | Columbia’s online store; a hand tool, not a CNC (computer-controlled) marker |
For reference: our machines (HeatSign) | Pneumatic dot peen $1,500–2,800 · handheld dot peen $1,600–2,850 · desktop fiber laser marking machine $1,950–5,000 | Our public product pages |
Why so few public prices? The same model can ship with a different marking window (the area it can mark), a rotary axis, an enclosure or a line interface. And most western makers sell through dealers, who set their own price.
When you compare quotes, compare the price delivered to your door, not the machine price. Buyers on forums often report quotes that left out shipping, training or a software activation fee. A fair quote lists:
- The machine, with the marking window and options you asked for
- Freight and import duty to your site
- The software license
- Installation and training, on site or remote
- First spare parts: pins for dot peen, a protective lens for laser
Comparing quotes?
Send us the same spec you sent the others. We will reply with a price delivered to your door, so you can compare like for like.
Which marking method should you settle before you compare makers?
Settle the method first, because most makers are strong in one. If your parts go into a zinc bath, a blast cabinet or a thick paint line, shortlist makers of pneumatic dot peen or stamping. If the parts are finished when you mark them, shortlist fiber laser makers. Many plants end up with both.
A brand cannot save a laser mark that the zinc bath removes. How deep each coating needs you to go is worked out in whether a mark stays readable after painting or galvanizing. Here, the question is what to ask each maker.
If your parts… | Shortlist makers that sell | Ask each maker for |
|---|---|---|
Go into a hot-dip galvanizing bath | Pneumatic dot peen or press stamping | A sample marked deep, galvanized by your coater, then photographed |
Get shot or grit blasted | Deep dot peen, or a laser that engraves in many passes | The read grade of a Data Matrix code after your blast |
Get powder coated, painted or e-coated | Lasers that mark after coating, or dot peen before it | Whether the mark still reads after your curing oven |
Get heat treated | Laser engraving (metal removed) or dot peen | A test at your furnace temperature. Laser color marks fade above about 200 °C |
Get machined or bent later | Any method | Where to place the mark. In our experience, keep it 15 mm or more from a bend or cut |
Are finished when you mark them | Fiber laser marking machine | Cycle time for your full mark, and the code grade on your real surface |
A maker that will not mark your sample through your own process is guessing. The ones worth shortlisting send back photos or the marked part. Ask for the barcode as well as the text: when paint or zinc fills the dots, letters can still be read from their shadows, but a barcode reader fails.
Not sure which row your part is in?
Tell us what happens to the part after marking. We will reply with a method and a depth.
Which makers handle deep marking, cast iron and custom automation?
For deep marks, use pneumatic dot peen: 0.3–0.8 mm per pass, and about 1 mm in our tests. On cast iron, make Data Matrix cells 0.4 mm or larger. For automation, ask about inputs and outputs, the PLC (line controller) protocol, fixtures and cycle time.
Deep marking
Method | Depth per pass | Deepest in practice |
|---|---|---|
Fiber laser marking machine | 0.01–0.02 mm | Deep only with many passes and time |
Electromagnetic dot peen | 0.05–0.3 mm | Good for nameplates, not for galvanizing depth |
Pneumatic dot peen | 0.3–0.8 mm | About 1 mm on standard machines; about 2 mm on custom builds in softer metals |
Depths are from our own machines and customer work, not a lab study. Harder steel gives less depth.
MECCO sells a deep dot peen line, and Columbia sells presses and roll markers for deep impact marks. For a side-by-side of the three deep methods, see deep metal marking: laser vs dot peen vs stamping.
Cast iron
Cast iron is rough and porous, so small dots and fine laser lines get lost. Use pneumatic dot peen or a higher-power fiber laser marking machine. In our experience, Data Matrix cells need to be 0.4 mm or larger to read well on a rough casting.
Custom automation
All the larger makers sell custom systems. Before you ask for a quote, have answers to five questions:
- How does the marker connect to your line: simple inputs and outputs, or a PLC network?
- Who builds the fixture that holds the part?
- What cycle time per part do you need?
- Must a camera read and grade each barcode after marking?
- Who services the cell, and how fast?
How do you verify a marking machine manufacturer before you order?
Ask for five things. A power reading taken after it settles. A burn-in record tied to the serial number. Marks on your own part, with a barcode grade. A spare parts list with shipping times. And a quote to your door with freight, duty and training.
- A settled power reading. A fiber laser source’s output climbs for a few minutes after it starts. Ask for the number after warm-up, read on a power meter, on video.
- A burn-in record with the serial number. We run every machine for 48–72 hours before it ships. Many factories say the same. Ask for the record: serial number, date, power reading, start and end time.
- Marks on your own part. If your customer scans the barcode, ask for a grade from A to F, measured with a verifier (ISO/IEC TR 29158).
- A spare parts list. Dot peen pins wear out. In our experience, a pin lasts 3–6 months in daily use, and the spare pins we ship with a machine last 1–2 years. Our main circuit boards ship in 1–2 days.
- A quote to your door. Freight, duty, software and training on one page.
Buying from China? Add two questions. Which laser source is inside, by brand and model, such as a 30 W JPT source? And is the marking software licensed?
Want to see these five proofs for your machine?
Tell us the part, the mark and the method you have in mind. We will send a quote to your door, with the power and burn-in records for the machine we ship.
When does a lower-cost manufacturer make sense?
A lower-cost maker makes sense when your budget is about $3,000–5,000 delivered and your team can handle basic upkeep with remote help. Stay with a local western maker when you need a technician on site within a day, or your customer names an approved supplier. HeatSign is a maker of the first kind: remote support, no local site visits.
A lower-cost import fits if… | A local western maker fits if… |
|---|---|
Your budget is $3,000–5,000 delivered | Your budget covers $10,000 or more per machine |
Your team can change a pin or a lens with video help | You need a technician on site within a day |
One or two machines, one or two shifts | A whole line, running 24 hours |
You choose your own supplier | Your customer names the approved supplier |
What buying from us looks like
- We sell factory-direct, so the price ranges on our product pages are what you pay before shipping.
- A stock pneumatic dot peen machine ships in 3–5 working days.
- A fiber laser marking machine takes about 5 working days to build, then 4–6 days by air.
- Help comes by video call, WhatsApp or remote desktop; there is no local service van.
For the machines most buyers on this page ask about, start here. Compare the methods first in laser marking vs dot peen marking.
Deep marks before galvanizing: pneumatic dot peenAbout 1 mm deep on standard machines. Rotary axis available. $1,500–2,800.See the pneumatic marker → 
Large or fixed parts: handheld dot peenNo air supply needed. Battery or mains power. $1,600–2,850.See the handheld marker → 
Finished parts and Data Matrix: fiber laser marking machine20–60 W desktop machines with marking windows from 110×110 mm to 300×300 mm. $1,950–5,000.See fiber laser marking machines →Metal Marking Machine Manufacturers FAQ
Who makes metal marking machines in the USA?
Telesis (Ohio, now part of Hitachi), MECCO (Pennsylvania, now part of Brady), Columbia Marking Tools (Michigan) and Kwik Mark (Illinois) design and build dot peen and other part-marking machines in the US. Gravotech, SIC Marking and Technomark also have US subsidiaries.
Is dot peen or laser better for marking metal?
Dot peen is better when the mark must survive galvanizing, blasting or thick paint, because it goes 0.3–1 mm deep. A fiber laser marking machine is better for finished parts, small Data Matrix codes and speed. Many plants use both.
How deep should a mark on a metal part be?
Deep enough to outlast whatever covers or wears the surface. Galvanized, blasted and thickly painted parts need the deepest marks, so ask for pneumatic dot peen or stamping and test a sample through your coating. Bare finished parts are read by contrast, so barcode grade matters more than depth. Coating-by-coating depths are in our painting and galvanizing guide.
Why don’t most manufacturers publish prices?
The same model ships in many setups: marking window, rotary axis, enclosure, line interface. Most western makers also sell through dealers who set their own price. Ask every supplier for a quote delivered to your door.
How long does delivery take?
Western makers do not publish lead times. Dealer listings for portable dot peen markers often say 2–3 weeks. HeatSign stock pneumatic dot peen machines ship in 3–5 working days, and fiber laser marking machines take about 5 working days plus 4–6 days by air.
Can a manufacturer build a custom metal marking machine?
Yes. Most makers on this list build custom systems. Send the part, the mark, the cycle time and how the machine must connect to your line. HeatSign builds rotary-axis, deep-marking and line-integrated versions of its machines.
The most expensive mistake on this page is picking a brand before picking a method. A well-known name cannot fix a laser mark that disappears in the zinc bath, or a dot peen Data Matrix code too coarse for your customer’s reader. Decide what happens to the part next, shortlist the makers that sell that method, and then ask each one for the five proofs above.
Sources
- ISO/IEC TR 29158, Direct part mark quality guideline
- Company facts: each manufacturer’s own website and public news releases. Prices: public distributor and marketplace listings.
