Precision gear manufacturer sees future of business in Additive Manufacturing
September 8, 2015
Indiana Technology and Manufacturing Companies (ITAMCO), based in Plymouth, Indiana, USA, specialises in precision gear manufacturing, with capabilities ranging from mining gearing to production runs of CBN-ground transmission gears. The company, which this year celebrated its 60th anniversary, is a member of a team researching optimised support structures for metal Additive Manufacturing and recently received a funding award from America Makes.
The newly funded research project “Parametric Design of Functional Support Structures for Metal Alloy Feedstocks” is led by the University of Pittsburgh in conjunction with Johnson & Johnson, ITAMCO, and the University of Notre Dame. The aim is to develop parametric designs of functional support structures for metal alloy feedstocks. Specifically, the project team aims to codify the design rules for support structures used in Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS) to inform and then automatically recommend the optimal part orientation and the designs for optimised supports.
While acknowledging the company will always offer subtractive manufacturing like gear grinding, ITAMCO believes that Additive Manufacturing is the future of their business. Prior to receiving the America Works funding award, the company was pursuing the development of Additive Manufacturing through its “Strategic Technology Initiative for Additive Manufacturing.”
ITAMCO delivers precision-machined components to OEMs worldwide in mining, off-highway vehicles, marine, and aviation. “I believe the success of ITAMCO is due to uncommon perseverance and a true spirit of innovation. Embracing technology while holding to solid and proven principles has given us an atmosphere that is creative, yet built upon a foundation that can be relied upon,” stated Gary Neidig, ITAMCO’s President.
“The R&D award and subsequent results will go a long way to bringing Additive Manufacturing into our offerings,” stated Joel Neidig, Engineer and lead IT developer at ITAMCO. “As a gear manufacturer, we will always do subtractive manufacturing, but we recognise that Additive Manufacturing is the future of our business.”
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