DMG Mori Announces LASERTEC 400 Shape Laser Ablation System
The hybrid manufacturing market continues to grow at a steady pace, as an increasing number of machine manufacturers look to combine additive manufacturing and machining capabilities. The latest comes from CNC machine and 3D printer manufacturer DMG Mori.
DMG Mori has announced the release of a new five-axis CNC machine designed specifically for performing laser texturing on 3D freeform surfaces of molds and tools. The LASERTEC 400 Shape is the largest of the company’s four laser ablation machines, capable of working with parts weighing up to 20 tons and measuring up to 3,350 x 1,350 x 1,000 mm. In addition to the large LASERTEC 400 Shape, the machine manufacturer is aiming to release a more mid-range system with a 2,000 mm X-axis, the LASERTEC 200 Shape.
Using a newly developed additive manufacturing laser head, the purpose of the LASERTEC 400 Shape is to apply defined surface structures to existing plastic injection molds and press tools which improve the form and/or function of parts that they produce, such as scratch resistance or water repellence.
The laser features 100W of power with a switchable pulse length and frequency up to 1 kHz. An F-Theta scanning lens provides the system with 3D processing optics that allow the system to apply features onto existing 3D surfaces. The print head has two degrees of movement with ± 200 degrees rotation and a swivel range of -100 to +135 degrees, allowing it to process undercuts.
DMG Mori suggests that laser machining is more ecologically sustainable than conventional etching, while offering greater freedom of design and repeatability. The system is marketed as being able to reach seemingly inaccessible portions of a part, including deep and narrow features, saying that even filigree cavities can be filled with the ablation process.
As discussed in a previous profile on the Japanese conglomerate, DMG Mori is one of the largest machine builders globally. This most recent addition to its systems portfolio builds off of the company’s more recent entry into additive manufacturing. DMG Mori offers a variety of hybrid manufacturing systems that incorporate DED laser systems into milling machines. With the acquisition of a majority stake in metal powder bed fusion system maker Realizer, the company began offering its own laser PBF printers in 2017.
DMG Mori has yet to combine PBF and machining processes the way that its competitor Matsurra has, but this Shaper line does operate similarly to Trumpf’s laser-based machining. Meanwhile, a hidden player with a huge stake in all manner of AM is Siemens, which produces hardware and software for managing systems like these. In the case of the LASERTEC 400 Shape, a Siemens 840 D solutionline provides control.
Hybrid manufacturing has huge potential for the manufacturing of molds and dies. In addition to the ability to repair existing tools, it is possible that functionally graded materials can be used to create unique molds that take advantage of the properties of multiple materials. For instance, copper could be used as a heat sink in order to more quickly cool down the part after an injection molding cycle, while steel can be used to maintain the overall durability of the part. When complex features are possible (not often the case with directed energy deposition-based systems), conformal cooling channels can be added, which can also reduce cooling time.
To read more about the state of hybrid manufacturing, look for our series here. To read more about tools and dies, see this series.
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DMG MORI launches new Lasertec 30 Dual SLM 3D printer
Hybrid 3D Printing Profile: DMG Mori
DMG Mori is one of the largest machine builders worldwide, generating about $3 billion in revenue each from its Japanese and German divisions. Though its position in the 3D printing industry is comparatively limited, it is growing, which is why we thought we’d take a look at DMG Mori its role in additive manufacturing (AM).
DMG Mori began as textile manufacturing equipment maker Mori Seiki Co. in 1948, which ultimately led to the production of machine tools by 1958, from which it has not since diverted. Early machines included manually controlled lathes before the introduction of numerically controlled lathes, then vertical and horizontal machining centers. These various machine tools continued to improve up to the present day.
An important component of DMG Mori’s current operations is its German division, DMG Mori AG, which first became a partner of the Japanese company in 2009. The largest manufacturer of cutting machine tools in Germany, DMG Mori AG was founded as GILDEMEISTER by Friedrich Gildemeister in 1870 and, by 1910, was a mass manufacturer of turret lathes, multi-spindle automatic lathes, milling machines, and vertical and horizontal milling machines.
While new automation features and orders from a quickly industrializing Soviet Union allowed the German company to succeed during the depression of the 1920s, the two World Wars saw Gildemeister nearly shut down by Allied forces twice. After World War Two, the company began to boom as the German economy recovered, with Gildemeister ultimately releasing numerically controlled machine tools in the 70s. From the 60s through the 90s, the company made important acquisitions. By the time of the 1995 acquisition of Deckel Maho AG, it was an established European powerhouse in manufacturing machine tools.
As Mori Seiki’s partnership Gildemeister, deepened and the Japanese company increased its ownership shares in the German manufacturer, it changed its name to Deckel Maho Gildemeister (DMG) Mori in 2013. By 2016, the Japanese and German divisions were officially integrated into a single conglomerate.
It wasn’t until 2015 that DMG Mori entered the AM market with its first hybrid manufacturing system, the LASERTEC 65 3D, which incorporated a directed energy deposition (DED) head into a five-axis milling machine. The system features a 2.5-kW diode laser for DED at rates of up to 1 kg/h. Since then, the company continued to release hybrid machines. In 2016, the LASERTEC 4300 3D was added to its portfolio, which included DED, 5-axis milling and turning functionality. Its most recent hybrid system is the LASERTEC 125 3D Hybrid, unveiled at Formnext in 2019.
In 2017, DMG Mori acquired a majority stake in early metal powder bed fusion (PBF) company Realizer and released its first PBF 3D printer, the LASERTEC 30 SLM, to the market. This was followed up by the LASERTEC 12 SLM, which is smaller and designed specifically for thin-walled components.
Printed metal parts typically require heat treatment, which hardens the metal, before other post-processing operations can be performed, meaning that hybrid machines can’t necessarily move directly from printing to machining without heat treatment in between. However, the newest LASERTEC 125 3D hybrid can deposit material with a hardness of up to 63 HRC, DMG Mori suggests allows users to skip the heat treatment step when harder metals are used.
DMG Mori bills all of these systems as part of a larger collection of four process chains. While the hybrid systems are able to perform all of the additive and subtractive functions necessary for 3D printing, the SLM machines and the LASERTEC 65 3D (a pure DED system) can be complemented with CNC machines offered by the company. Workpieces 3D printed with these systems can be finished to proper tolerances and surface quality on a milling machine or previously milled base plats and bases can be have objects printed onto them without the need for support structures.
Now that the Japanese conglomerate is firmly settled in the additive space, it has begun offering AM consulting services. This includes verifying the printability of parts, redesigning parts for AM, engineering new components and product categories, simulation and topology optimization, 3D printing of prototypes and small series, courses and training, and consultations dedicated to overall strategy.
Because DMG Mori has developed laser PBF, DED and hybrid machines, it would appear to be an important contender in the AM space. Perhaps, in the near future, we’ll see the company release a hybrid PBF system, like Matsuura offers, or laser-based machining, like Trumpf. As impressive as hybrid 3D printing technology appears to be from the outside, we will have to see more success stories coming from industry before we can truly assess its place in the larger AM and manufacturing markets.
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