This paper details an investigation into various advancements in plasma arc machining process. Characterization of the temperature of the plasma has always been a great challenge in plasma arc machining. In most of the investigations, surface temperatures due to plasma heating are systematically characterized through numerical modeling and experimental investigations are done using newer techniques such as infrared radiation thermometry. Furthermore, the characteristics of plasma cutting for thick steel ship plate have been discussed. The experimental investigations have revealed that the gas cutting speed is significantly lower than plasma cutting speed. The flow of molten metal is a governing factor in the process. This flow was found to be influenced by the cutting conditions during plasma cutting through experiments. Another prominent factor is the impact of the quality of the cut, by the shape of the cut and heat affected zone depth. In addition to the quality considerations, cost is also important. The removal rate is therefore, to be accurately estimated for evaluating the cost of production. Considering the plasma cutting machine as a system, i) power of the system, and ii) system process variables require supplementary considerations while optimizing the process outputs.