Additive Manufacturing is seen by the energy and maritime industries as having the potential to optimise supply chains and reduce the cost of spare parts through the use of ‘digital’ warehouses. ... Read more »
There is a growing interest in additively manufactured pure tungsten, primarily propelled by the expected demand for tungsten components in future fusion power plants. Here, Additive Manufacturing veterans and PBF-EB enthusiasts, Ulf Ackelid and Ulric Ljungblad – both of Sweden’s Freemelt AB – provide insights into the AM of tungsten and the benefits of using an electron beam as the energy source. This article is a standalone continuation of previous PBF-EB articles in Metal AM, published in the Summer 2020, Autumn 2022, and Summer 2023 issues ... Read more »
The global semiconductor supply chain is under immense strain as a result of geopolitical and economic factors, putting significant pressure on Semiconductor Capital Equipment (SCE) manufacturers. In this article, Emily Godsey interviews Texas A&M’s Prof Alaa Elwany and Jiahui Ye, and Veeco Instruments Inc’s Dr Ahmed El Desouky, to explore the benefits of metal Additive Manufacturing technologies for semiconductor manufacturing and the SCE supply chain. ... Read more »
With seven structural titanium parts flying on every Boeing 787 Dreamliner, a Master Supply Agreement with Airbus for the A350, and projects with the likes of Northrop Grumman and General Atomics, Norsk Titanium is setting the pace when it comes to the production of airframe components by Additive Manufacturing. By using wire instead of powder and its own proprietary version of the Directed Energy Deposition (DED) process, the company combines high deposition rates with aerospace-grade materials properties. Martin McMahon visited the company on behalf of Metal AM magazine. ... Read more »
In the race to improve the productivity of PBF-LB Additive Manufacturing, machine OEMs have generally taken the path of adding more lasers. nLIGHT takes the view that it’s not necessarily just more lasers that are needed, but beam-shaping lasers. By using dynamic beam shaping technology, significant increases in the productivity, stability and metallurgical capabilities of PBF-LB have been demonstrated. Given the technology’s recent commercial success, with adoption by Aconity3D, AMCM, EOS and DMG Mori, we asked the nLIGHT team to review beam shaping technology and its potential impact on the AM industry. ... Read more »
In this joint study by Carl Zeiss AG, AMiquam SA, and EOS GmbH, the performance of eddy currents as a tool for the in-situ detection of defects in Laser Beam Powder Bed Fusion (PBF-LB) has been assessed. Process variations, including lack of fusion and keyhole formation could be detected in-situ, as well as individual defects as small as 0.3 mm post-build and post-polishing. Here, Jonatan Wicht, Harald Krauss, Frank Widulle, Julian Schulz, and Edson Costa Santos, Alain Berthoud, and Bernard Revaz present their latest findings. ... Read more »
For many decades, North America’s Metal Powder Industries Federation (MPIF) has organised its PM Design Excellence Awards competition in order to showcase the capabilities of the Powder Metallurgy industry. With the growing commercial success of metal powder-based Additive Manufacturing, the competition is seeing an ever larger number of entrants from this sector. Award-winning parts in this year’s competition include parts not only produced by Laser Beam Powder Bed Fusion, but also a wide range of innovative sinter-based AM processes. ... Read more »
China’s Additive Manufacturing industry is growing at extraordinary speed, driven forward by intense domestic competition and AM technology’s role in the country’s national manufacturing strategy. Based on a recent visit to the TCT Asia 2024 exhibition, Joseph Kowen shares an outsider’s perspective on what is happening in the Chinese metal AM industry. Are Chinese AM machines now rivalling those from the West in terms of capability, and how is an increasingly complex geopolitical situation impacting the dynamics of the AM industry? ... Read more »
The very existence of BMW Group’s state-of-the-art Additive Manufacturing Campus, located close to Munich, speaks volumes about the potential of AM technology in the automotive industry. In April, Metal AM magazine’s Technical Consultant, Martin McMahon, and Managing Editor, Nick Williams, had the opportunity to visit the campus. As is revealed here, they discovered an operation that not only functions as an application development centre and centralised location for the BMW Group’s AM expertise, but also operates as a model AM factory built around the concepts of productivity and automation. ... Read more »
Sustainability has risen to the top of the global manufacturing agenda. Whilst metal AM has long been considered a green technology because of its net-shape capabilities, it is far from being a process absent of environmental impact. Here, Martin McMahon explores how global efforts are being made to improve this through the use of more sustainable metal powders, combined with a greater focus on powder reuse and recycling. Inextricably linked to this are, of course, economic gains and, in terms of supply chain, national security benefits. ... Read more »
The growing use of titanium Additive Manufacturing for the production of medical implants is a major success story for the industry. With this growth, however, come vast volumes of process data which need to be monitored to ensure compliance with tight regulatory requirements. Here, Peter Lindecke, amsight GmbH, explains how holistic analysis software can be used to monitor the impact of powder reuse strategies in Electron Beam Powder Fusion to ensure the best possible outcomes. ... Read more »
The future of Additive Manufacturing lies in part production at scale. Innovation must, therefore, focus on how to reduce part cost and improve performance. Unlike other manufacturing processes, weight is time in AM – and time is money; raw material costs take a back seat when it comes to overall part cost. Here, Jonathan Meyer (APWORKS) and John Barnes (Metal Powder Works/The Barnes Global Advisors) explore the case for scandium-based aluminium alloys for AM from both technical and economic perspectives. ... Read more »
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