Addman Engineering employs Velo3D’s Sapphire System for aerospace
May 6, 2021
A new Sapphire System from Velo3D Inc, Campbell, California, USA, has been selected by Additive Manufacturing solutions provider Addman Engineering, headquartered in Bonita Springs, Florida, to meet growing demand from its customers in the energy and aerospace sectors. To be installed in the company’s Indianapolis, Indiana, facility, the new machine will be dedicated to running Inconel 718.
“The full-stack Laser Powder Bed Fusion 3D printing solution from Velo3D gives our customers the freedom they need to design the next generation of spacecraft and turbomachinery without compromising their designs for the sake of manufacturability,” stated Mark Saberton, CTO and founder, Addman. “The Velo3D process saves time and avoids waste by removing unnecessary steps, and reduces time to test or go to market, while also ensuring production-ready quality in every build.”
In addition to owning and operating the first Velo3D metal AM solution in the Indianapolis area, Addman has a reservation for two Velo3D Sapphire XC large-format metal AM machines, scheduled for 2022. Each Sapphire XC system will reportedly provide up to four times the productivity of Addman’s current Sapphire System, positioning the company to keep up with increasing demand for complex, high-performance parts in the booming commercial space industry.
“We have a vision and are looking toward the future not just for our company, but for the entire aerospace industry, where demand for intricate, high-value parts is growing fast,” added Saberton. “While the Sapphire system brought net-new capabilities to Addman, we’re excited about the Sapphire XCs because they open up a new category of parts, while making impressive increases to capacity and efficiency.”
Addman delivers large capacity AM for aerospace, defence, energy and manufacturing. The company is ITAR registered and compliant with ISO9001:2015 and AS9100D, meeting FAA, DoD and NASA quality requirements for aviation, defence and space organisations.
Addman acquired 3rd Dimension Industrial 3D Printing in March 2021, and has since hired additional staff to support the growing relationships with existing aerospace clients. Additional machining, quality, and capacity expansions are also being realised; already AS9100 certified, the quality department is being bolstered through the addition of a 3D measurement scanner – Creaform EXAscan Black – and a high-end CMM. Planning for NADCAP accreditation is also in progress.
