Siemens’ CATCH facility collaborates with Oak Ridge National Laboratory
June 13, 2022
Siemens has announced that it has engaged in early-stage research & development projects with multiple partners including National Laboratories which is part of the US Department of Energy (DOE). One of these laboratories is the Manufacturing Demonstration Facility (MDF) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, Tennessee, USA, which is an institution focusing on manufacturing analysis & simulation, materials development, large-scale metal systems, robotics and automation. The collaboration between Siemens and ORNL on multiple DOE-funded projects has enabled the cooperative investigation of multiple methods of advanced manufacturing and materials solutions.
“The joint collaborative research done at MDF to address industrial problems demonstrates the success of the DOE’s MDF model and clearly shows the need for a path to industrialisation through similar hubs in industry focusing on higher technology readiness levels. Siemens launched its Charlotte Advanced Technology Collaboration Hub (CATCH) to fill this void,” stated Dr Anand Kulkarni, Senior Principal Key Expert at Siemens Technology.
Bill Peter, Advanced Manufacturing Program Manager, ORNL, added, “ORNL and the researchers at MDF are proud to collaborate with innovative industrial partners like Siemens to help advance and revitalise the US manufacturing sector. We recognise that our DOE-funded research is often best leveraged through regional and national collaborations like CATCH and the MDF, helping to advance Additive Manufacturing technology, drive workforce development and create a more efficient and de-carbonised manufacturing base.”
Recently, Siemens opened its new CATCH facility – spearheaded by Siemens Digital Industries, Siemens Technology and Siemens Energy – which is intended to help its customers accelerate plans for the industrialisation of Additive Manufacturing. Specifically, Siemens intends to use this space to collaborate with key machine builders (OEMs), end-users and US national laboratories to enable the successful industrialisation of Additive Manufacturing.
“We are excited to launch this new Additive Manufacturing hub and begin inviting customers in to collaborate and find ways to accelerate the industrialisation of this technology using our machine-agnostic solutions,” stated Tim Bell, Additive Manufacturing Business Manager, Siemens Digital Industries. “The benefits of Additive Manufacturing are clear — from faster time-to-market to better design through digital prototypes, to localised manufacturing helping to reduce supply chain constraints. We believe that the future of manufacturing is additive.”
CATCH is intended to be the entry point for many manufacturers to understand how and why Additive Manufacturing is crucial to designing products more effectively, manufacturing them closer to the point of purchase and creating a more resilient supply chain.
To support its customers along their journey at CATCH, Siemens has accumulated a group of experts from several Siemens businesses and operating companies. CATCH will become one of seven Siemens hubs strategically placed at major AM eco-systems around the world with the distinct focus of facilitating customer AM journeys.
