Velo3D supports Intergalactic heat exchanger programme
Velo3D, based in Fremont, California, USA, has announced that Intergalactic, an aerospace systems integrator based in St George, Utah, USA, has leveraged the company’s Rapid Production Solutions (RPS) to produce IN718 microtube heat exchanger headers. The components, intended for use in a cabin air heat exchanger assembly designed for a mass-produced commercial aircraft, were manufactured on Velo3D’s Sapphire XC.
“Customers with aggressive programme timelines rely on Rapid Production Solutions to get hardware fast without redesign and without lengthy development cycles,” said Velo3D Chief Revenue Officer, Michelle Sidwell. “RPS embodies Velo3D’s mission to remove friction from innovation and give our customers a true competitive edge.”
The additively manufactured components include large-radius geometries and sweeping low-angle transitions that are typically constrained by the mechanical recoaters used in legacy Laser Beam Powder Bed Fusion (PBF-LB) machines. By using the Sapphire XC’s non-contact recoater, and Velo3D’s advanced parameter sets, the parts were produced as designed with minimal internal support structures and without design concessions.
RPS reportedly enabled Intergalactic to move from design to manufactured parts in just a couple of weeks, supporting an accelerated path to component testing and system integration. The headers were manufactured using Velo3D’s standard, production-ready Inconel 718 parameter sets, eliminating the need for part-specific parameter development and significantly shortening the time to first article production.
This production approach also lays the groundwork for a long-term supply chain strategy. By utilising standard parameter sets on Sapphire XC, the design can reportedly be produced across any validated Sapphire or Sapphire XC system, enabling a distributed, flexible supply chain. The Technical Data Package (TDP) production is said to lay the foundation for a digital inventory, where identical parts can be manufactured across multiple sites without machine or site-specific development.
Rhett Burton, Intergalactic supply chain leader, shared, “Building these heat exchanger headers on the Sapphire XC supported Intergalactic’s goal to meet its system-level test schedule and established the groundwork for a scalable path to a distributed supply chain for future production.”
Velo3D’s RPS model leverages its fully integrated solution that includes Flow pre-print software, Sapphire and Sapphire XC machines, and Assure quality assurance with the intention of creating a predictable, production-ready pathway from initial concept to hardware delivery.
