The voestalpine Group has opened a new research and development centre for Additive Manufacturing of metal parts at its site in Düsseldorf, Germany. The voestalpine Additive Manufacturing Centre will house the group’s research activities in AM, harnessing the process for particularly complex and lightweight metal components.

“The new development and test centre will continue to research and develop both metal powders and the design and production of metal components using 3D printing. It therefore represents a significant expansion to our existing material production and processing value chain for the most sophisticated industries,” stated Franz Rotter, Member of the Management Board of voestalpine AG and Head of the Special Steel Division.

voestalpine also announced it is investing in new metal powder atomisation facilities at the group’s subsidiaries Böhler Edelstahl GmbH & Co KG, Austria and Uddeholms AB, Sweden, to supply the Düsseldorf site. The next step is said to be more cooperative partnerships and locations in North America and China.

“As a result of the intensive research and development work undertaken in the past 15 years, voestalpine has developed from a traditional steel manufacturer to become a global leading technology and capital goods group. We want to consistently strengthen this position, and continue to remain at the forefront of developments in new production processes such as Additive Manufacturing,” stated Wolfgang Eder, Chairman of the Management Board of voestalpine AG.

www.voestalpine.com