Fomas and Inteco to manufacture metal powders for Additive Manufacturing
Fomas will distribute its metal AM powders under the brand name Mimete, beginning 2018 (Courtesy Fomas)
Fomas Group, Osnago, Italy, has formed a joint development agreement with Austria’s Inteco Group to produce metal powders for Additive Manufacturing. Metal powder production will begin at Fomas’s plant near Osnago and Inteco group member Thermal Technology’s plant in Santa Rosa, California, USA.
Both sites incorporate Inteco’s ‘next generation’ powder production plant, which it states enables new possibilities in terms of powder production compared to existing technology. The partners state that their plants will ensure the constant availability of backup; a shared and qualified sourcing point; advanced technologies for process and product control; reduced batch sizes to guarantee process stability and, accordingly, constant powder quality and predictable part properties; and the capacity to develop tailored alloys and supply different batch sizes offering a complete flexibility to customers.
Besides the production of already established powder grades, the main focus of the new plants will be on highly specialised powders, customised and developed in close cooperation with the customer.
Dr Jacopo Guzzoni, VP & CEO of Fomas Group, stated, “This agreement will be instrumental in entering the Additive Manufacturing markets. It will exploit synergies between our two companies and bring to the market a worldwide offer, it will be a structured process, powered by the achievements shared between us. We are pleased to join forces with Inteco Group (to us a very valuable and reliable partner since 2007) in our mutual vision to develop a new market”.
Fomas will distribute its metal AM powders under the brand name Mimete, beginning 2018. The new brand will target various markets, primarily biomedical, power generation, aerospace and racing.
