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Investigating Properties of Virgin, Sieved, and Waste 316L Metallic Powder for SLM 3D Printing

We often see metal 3D printing used to make steel parts, so plenty of research is being done regarding the material properties. Researchers from VSB – Technical University of Ostrava in the Czech Republic published a paper, “Research of 316L Metallic Powder for Use in SLM 3D Printing,” about investigating Renishaw’s AISI 316L powder for use in Selective Laser Melting (SLM) technology.

“Understanding the SLM process is extremely challenging, not only because of the large number of thermal, mechanical and chemical phenomena that take place here, but also in terms of metallurgy. The presence of three states (solid, liquid, gaseous) complicates the ability to analyze and formulate a model formula for proper simulation and prediction of part performance when printed,” they explained. “Since the SLM process operates on a powder basis, this process is more complicated by another factor compared to the use of other bulk material. The properties of the used printing powder define to a large extent the quality of the finished part.”

Because the material can impact an SLM 3D printed part’s final properties, powder research should be done ahead of time for best results. Particle size, shape, flowability, morphology, and size distribution are key factors in making a homogeneous powder layer, and using gas atomization to produce spherical particles helps achieve high packing density; this can also be improved with small particles.

The researchers investigated three phases of metallic powder present in the SLM process – virgin powder (manufacturer-supplied), test powder that had been sieved 30 times, and waste powder “that had settled in the sieve and was no longer being processed and disposed of.” They used a non-magnetic austenitic stainless steel, alloyed with elements like nickel and chromium and containing a low percentage of carbon.

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to investigate the powder morphology, which “affects the application of metal powder by laser in terms of fluidity and packing density.” First, the shape of the powder particles was measured and evaluated, and then a visual quality evaluation was completed to look at the spherical quality and satellite (shape irregularity) content. The team found that many particles had satellites, but that this number increased in over-sized powder.

Fig. 1. SEM image of virgin powder 316L, magnification x180

“The measurement of virgin powder (Fig. 1) reveals that the production of powder by gas atomization is not perfect and the shape of some particles is not perfectly spherical,” the researchers wrote. “It is also possible to observe satellites (small particles glued to larger ones, Fig. 2), which are again a defect of the production method.”

Fig. 2. Satellite illustration, magnification x900

They found that the particle shape was “not always isometric,” and that cylindrical, elongated, and irregular shapes appeared alongside spherical particles in over-sized powders.

“Another interesting phenomenon was manifested in the sieved powder, where particles with a smoother and more spherical surface were observed than the original particles. This is most likely due to the melting and solidification process that is specific to AM,” they noted.

Fig. 3. Morphological defects – a) particle fusion; b) gas impurities; c) agglomeration – sintered particle;
d) dendritic particle structure; e) spherical particle; f) particles with a satellite

An optical method was used to measure powder porosity. The 316L powder was embedded in a resin, and was “1 mm layer abraded” post-curing before the particles were cut in half and polished with diamond paste. The images captured via microscope were loaded into analysis software, which determined that the total density of the powder was 99.785%.

“In general, pores must be closed from 3/4 of their circumference to be considered pores,” the team explained. “Particles that do not comply with this rule are automatically considered irregular particles.”

Fig. 4. An example of open pores that correspond to the rule (L), and pores that do not conform (R)

The researchers also measured the size of all individual pores and recorded which ones began at 5 µm, though they noted that due to potential image resolution issues, “pore sizes of about 5-8 μm should be taken with some uncertainty.”

Fig. 5. Pore size measurement of 316L metallic powder

A histogram showed that, in the metallic powder particles, the “15 µm pore size was most present,” and that the largest was 30 µm.

Table 3. Measured values of porosity of powder particles

Finally, they used an optical method to measure and examine grain size distribution of the virgin and sifted powder. Using 200x magnification, measurements were taken at five random locations, each of which had roughly 200 particles on which they performed static analysis. The results were processed with statistical software, which created cumulative curves to indicate how many particles were smaller or larger than a certain size.

“Of these, the quantiles d10, d50 and d90 were obtained, which express the cut-off limit within which the size falls to 10, 50, 90 % of the measured particles,” they wrote.

The average particle size only increases a little by repeatedly sieving the metallic powder, but because of irregular particles, agglomerated or molten particles larger than 45 μm, they fall through the mesh. Results show that <10 µm particles are reduced, while larger particles are increased, in the sift powder. But, the team notes that the powder is still usable.

“The sift powder showed an increase in particle volume and surface area while circularity decreased, indicating that virgin powder generally has a higher sphericity,” the team explained.

They found defects like agglomeration, gas impurities, and particulate fusions at all three stages, but since the powder is still usable, they concluded that SLM is both an economic and ecological technology. The researchers listed several measures to take in order to “achieve the best possible consolidation,” such as high purity, fine surface, low internal porosity, tight particle distribution, and as few surface pores and satellites as possible.

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Scott Dunham: SmarTech Industry Forecasts for Metal and Medical/Dental 3D Printing

The 2020 Additive Manufacturing Strategies (AMS) event ended earlier this week in Boston. The summit was focused on the business of 3D printing in medical, dental, and metals, so it makes sense that Scott Dunham, the Vice President of Research at SmarTech Analysis, was on hand to give everyone a sense of where we are in these industries, just like at last year’s AMS. SmarTech provides the additive manufacturing industry with industry analysis reports and consulting services, and Dunham began with the company’s metal additive quarterly advisory services. These reports are compiled using data from 10-12 consecutive quarters.

Dunham noted that the messaging and adoption rates have changed for metal AM, and that while we’re all still “working towards the same goals,” we are “drilling down to specific solutions and challenges.”

“Metal additive manufacturing is in a strange place right now,” he said. “From 2016 to 2018, there was lots of hype, lots of investments and growth and attention paid, and the growth was aggressive and accelerated. But now, the past couple of years, we’re in this period where people are saying, ‘What’s happening? We though this technology was supposed to revolutionize things.’ Growth rates don’t always line up with perceptions.”

He got into some of the specific factors that are going into the challenges the metal AM market is facing. There’s a large disparity between metal AM hardware and metal powder sales, which Dunham said tells us that metal 3D printers are viewed much differently than the machine tool systems to which people compare them.

“Right now, the machines are not viewed or utilized in the same way that other popular manufacturing tools are, so people are still looking at this as a longer-term opportunity that still needs development work and may not necessarily always be the right tool for high-volume serial production,” he explained. ” Users now understand they can’t just drop it on the shop floor like a CNC machine. This in some ways is a barrier to growth. There are still plenty of investments being made, though, but maybe we don’t expect those days to last forever now. We may be ending the phase of early adopters and innovators who want to make these investments.”

In the years 2014-2016, the sale of metal machines was averaging just below 30%, then climbed up closer to even, but are now dropping again a bit. According to SmarTech, non-metal 3D printers are still generating most of the hardware sales, but Dunham said we should see more of a 50/50 split into the mid 2020s.

SmarTech has a theory that this leapfrog effect is due to the current two-tiered market scenario. The advanced market focuses on serial applications and high-volume production, while the legacy market consists of applications that have around for a long time, maybe resembling a factory floor, such as injection molding and tool inserts, jigs and fixtures, prototyping or limited series, medical and dental models, and one-off high volume components. Dunham said these markets are both important, but that they each have a “different set of considerations.”

He pointed out that this advanced market will soon grow to over $4 billion worth of AM hardware sold.

“We consider this side of things a little bit further ahead of polymer machine sales,” Dunham explained. “That’s why there’s so much focus on metals.”

So, where is all this growth in the metal AM market coming from? Dunham said that hardware sales is a “good indicator of the pulse of the industry,” and that SmarTech is seeing a lot of growth on what Dunham called “the fringes,” like some of the new companies coming up over the last few years, as well as the legacy manufacturing companies adopting the technology for the first time. He referred to the newer companies, such as Desktop Metal, HP, Markforged, Trumpf, and VELO3D, as “challengers,” while the legacy companies were called “incumbents.”

Next, he talked about metal 3D printing service bureaus, which see a global market of a little over $2 million.

“It’s a pretty big opportunity on the metals side, but not as big as we think it should be, or as big as polymer service bureaus,” Dunham said. “But the footprint of metal additive manufacturing in the healthcare industry is very important, and will continue to be so.”

Dunham pulled up a slide about powder bed fusion technology, noting that because the dental industry was so mature in terms of AM adoption, it actually skews the production data in the top two graphs

Bound metal processes, like binder jetting, are currently used often for tooling, and SmarTech forecasts that applications for this technology in prototyping and end-use components will rise. Dunham said that powder-based DED 3D printing is currently “heavily skewed” towards end-use components, in addition to prototyping, and that the “vision of this will likely not change much in the future.

Moving on to the market value of metal parts produced with 3D printing, Dunham said that this number is “hard to assign,” but that investments by end users are likely just south of $5 billion. However, there are lots of high-value parts to consider, which contributes to that number.

“By 2025, we expect that all metal 3D printed parts will exceed 20 billion,” he stated.

In terms of project applications for metal AM, healthcare leads the pack, with crown and bridge substructures and hip implant components at the top of the list. If you remove medical applications from the equation, we’re looking at using the technology to repair high-value turbine blades and aircraft parts, valves and pumps in the oil & gas & energy sector, and more medium-sized industrial components.

“If you’re a supplier in the industry, these are what will succeed,” Dunham said. “The incentive here is to invest in different approaches to metal additive manufacturing.”

Dunham summed everything up by saying that while metal AM is still demonstrating value, entry barriers, such as financial reasons, are also high, which does deter growth somewhat, and that a multidisciplinary approach to it is necessary for growth to continue.

Then I followed Dunham out and into the next room for the SmarTech medical 3D printing forecast, which was wisely titled “Healthcare – the Backbone of Additive Manufacturing.”

“Within the healthcare segment, there are many ways that AM has been and will continue to be leveraged,” he stated. “There are some very industrialized serial, serious manufacturing applications in healthcare, so emphasis is put on the customization of these devices.”

He noted AMS 2020 has a theme of looking at business cases, which is why it’s so heavily focused on dental and orthopedic 3D printing applications.

“We don’t think these are more impactful or important, but these are areas that we’re seeing more challenges and work here,” Dunham explained.

Excluding software numbers, the healthcare portion of the AM market – combining medical and dental applications – is a little over $3 billion dollars; truly, “the backbone of the industry.” These revenue numbers have gone down a bit, because there’s a lot of attention being paid to industrial markets, but Dunham said that SmarTech forecasts a stabilization, stating that healthcare will “continue to be important to overall industry structure for at least the next several years, and into decades.”

As has been previously mentioned, in comparison to other industries, dental is “fairly mature overall in its adoption of additive manufacturing.” If you’re looking at metal AM used in healthcare, you get into the orthopedic sector, which means you’re looking at implants.

“The longer that we can gather clinical evidence for these implants the better,” Dunham said, noting that this will help ‘build confidence’ with metal 3D printing in the medical field.

Some OEMs are bringing AM in-house, so that they can better control the process to try and ensure a good outcome. A lot of factors go into making medical implants, and if something goes wrong, “clinical efficacy is damaged.”

As of yet, there isn’t a huge push by OEMs for non-metal 3D printed implants, but SmarTech believes this is coming later, for materials like ceramics, and especially for craniomaxillofacial (CMF) implants.

There are plenty of business use cases for metal orthopedic 3D printed implants, and while the hip is still in the lead, about a third of 3D printed implants made now are are spinal. But Dunham said that hip implants won’t dominate the production numbers forever, as the 2025 forecast shows more diversification coming.

Moving to the dental side of things, companies are seeing a lot of success with high speed vat photopolymerization technologies, which Dunham said was expected. But what they didn’t count on was the aligner segment looking to get into powder bed fusion.

“No one process has everything locked down, and we can all benefit from more competition to push the technology forward,” he said.

Dunham said we should expect that 3D printing will ultimately follow the “trend of machines in dentist offices.”

“We expect a pretty healthy growth in investment by dental offices and clinics, though dental labs are still where it’s at from a hardware perspective.”

Dunham pulled up a slide that showed numbers from 2018, and forecast out to 2027, that show specifically what’s going to keep driving the sale of materials and hardware for dental applications. Looking at things like direct aligners and aligner tools, models, surgical guides, and denture bases and trays, it’s clear that he’s correct when he said that there is a lot of “diversification going on out there.”

Stay tuned to 3DPrint.com as we continue to bring you the news from our third annual AMS Summit.

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[Photos: Sarah Saunders]

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Equispheres Receives $8 Million from SDTC to Scale Metal 3D Printing Powder Production

Canadian materials science company Equispheres has just announced that it’s received support, and $8 million in funding, from Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC), which it will use to help scale its metal 3D printing powder production capacity over the next two years.

The SDTC foundation was created by the Government of Canada in order to advance clean technology innovation across the country by funding and supporting entrepreneurs and small and medium-sized enterprises that are working to develop, demonstrate, and deploy “globally competitive” clean technology solutions.

SDTC believes that Equispheres’ aluminum alloy powder, which was specifically designed for additive manufacturing and optimized for applications in both the aerospace and automotive industries, can help bring about real-world change.

“Canadian cleantech entrepreneurs are tackling problems across Canada and in every sector. I have never been more positive about the future,” stated Leah Lawrence, the President and CEO of SDTC. “Equipsheres as developed a metal powder that acts as ink for 3D printing and enables automotive and aerospace manufacturers to reduce the weight of their products. With Equispheres’ powder set to remove 100 – 200 kg of mass from an automobile, this would be the equivalent to removing 75 million cars off the road!”

Scanning Electron Microscope photo of Equispheres novel powder.

Aerospace and automotive manufacturers alike have the same mission to reduce their products’ carbon footprint, and weight optimization is key. While 3D printing has certainly been used in these industries many times before, it was not always possible to achieve mass production scale with aluminum alloy powders, which is what Equipsheres specializes in. According to a company press release, these materials also “account for a significant amount of the material demand” in both industries, so a powder that can make stronger, more lightweight parts in a more efficient way is hugely important.

Equispheres provides high performance, mono-sized metal powders, which can fabricate parts that are up to 30% stronger and lighter than those made with other AM powders. In addition to more efficient production, part performance has also been positively impacted with these powders – the release states that the company’s AM powder is anticipated to improve fuel efficiency by over 10% in the automotive industry, was “proven exceptional” in tests run by McGill University, and outperformed in aerospace-ready quality tests.

Equisheres has received major funding for its work in AM powders before, but the timing of this particular award from SDTC “aligns well with other initiatives” the company has been working on in regards to offering a clean technology solution in the aerospace and automotive fields. For example, it put together a consortium that includes a top aerospace company and leading automotive manufacturer in order to use the weight optimization potential of the AM powder to its advantage in order to reduce vehicle weight. But this new funding support from SDTC will allow Equispheres to work with even more partners in the aerospace and automotive industries to “help them realize the benefits of more efficient production and reduced emissions.”

Equispheres CEO, Kevin Nicholds

“We are excited to receive this funding award from the SDTC Foundation. This support from SDTC speaks to the importance of our powder technology as a key to achieving significant emissions reductions in the automotive sector,” said Equispheres CEO Kevin Nicholds. “The funding from SDTC will help Equispheres to continue to accelerate our production capacity and support this important work by our automotive partners.”

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3D Printing News Briefs: August 3, 2019

For this edition of 3D Printing News Briefs, we’re starting off with a celebration – Scansite created 3D printed replicas of the spacesuit that Neil Armstrong wore for the 50th anniversary of the moon landing. Moving on to business and metals, 3D Hubs has hired a new Managing Director for the US, and DigiFabster published a case study. IAM 3D HUB’s newest technological partner is ArcelorMittal, and finally, SmarTech Publishing released some new research on metal powder bed fusion.

Scansite Creates 3D Printed Replicas of Famous Spacesuit

Just over 50 years ago last month, Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the moon, and people around the world have been celebrating this important anniversary. In 2015, the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum launched a Kickstarter campaign to conserve, preserve, and digitize Armstrong’s spacesuit from that fateful day; this year, to commemorate the anniversary, the museum contacted Scansite to create 15 extremely faithful replicas of the suit for its 50th celebration of the moon landing. The interactive, life-sized “Apollo at the Park” replicas were made to display at 15 MLB ballparks around the US, together with an augmented reality app so visitors can learn important facts about the Apollo 11 moon mission.

“Baseball parks are the perfect venues for new generations to learn more about that summer night on July 20, 1969. The spacesuit replicas allow us to bring a piece of Apollo to Americans everywhere,” said Ellen Stofan, director of the National Air and Space Museum.

Scansite conducted high resolution 3D scanning of the original spacesuit, which was tricky because it features many details and different materials. The company used both a Breuckmann structured light scanner and a Faro touch probe to acquire the scan data, which resulted in a file with over 5.3 gigabytes of data. The data was edited, using surrounding topology of each hole in the information as a guide to fill everything in, and Scansite created a full-scale 3D print of the spacesuit, in 16 separate panels, on a Voxeljet 3D printer out of porous acrylic material. The sections were glued together to create the master model, which was then used to make a mold; finally, each replica was hand-sanded and painted, finished with a tough, autobody clear coat, and mounted on an engraved granite base.

3D Hubs Names Robert Schouwenburg as US Managing Director

Online manufacturing marketplace 3D Hubs announced that Robert Schouwenburg, the former COO & CTO of Shapeways, will be joining the company as its Managing Director for the USA. The company recently announced an $18 million funding round, which it’s been using to expand its team in the US, including opening a new North American headquarters at Chicago’s mHUB. Schouwenburg has over 20 years of experience in the industry, and will be working with the Chicago team to better service the company’s North American customer base, in addition to expanding 3D Hubs’ CNC machining services offering in Chicago.

“We’re at the start of ‘industry 4.0,’ an era when automation and data exchange will accelerate manufacturing technologies, and 3D Hubs is uniquely positioned to become a leader in this upcoming industrial revolution,” stated Schouwenburg.

DigiFabster Helps MakeItQuick Lower Costs and Increase Revenue

3D printing software and services provider DigiFabster recently released a case study about its customer MakeItQuick, a UK 3D printing service bureau. DigiFabster helps machine shops and service bureaus like MakeItQuick generate more new revenue, while lowering the cost of labor-intensive activities such as order entry, project management, and quoting. MakeItQuick teamed up with DigiFabster not long after it launched, and quickly started seeing results – the company was able to reduce quoting costs by up to 95% and order transaction costs by up to 85%. This allowed MakeItQuick to scale quickly and grow their revenues by 25% a month.

“The software handles 90% of our quotes without the need to manually review every part that is submitted. The time savings were immediately evident,” said Marco Massi, the owner of MakeItQuick.

“We save even more once a quote is confirmed. All the order details are at hand, giving us the opportunity to analyze the data and decide on the best way forward.

“In less than a year with DigiFabster, our revenue has grown steadily. We’re now experiencing a 25% monthly revenue increase, paving the way for our future success.”

IAM 3D HUB’s New Technological Partner

The latest technological partner of AM technology incubator IAM 3D HUB is ArcelorMittal, one of the world’s top steel and mining companies. The company, which has a presence in 60 countries and an industrial footprint in 18, will support the Barcelona-based hub with its technologies, materials, and knowledge to allow for new applications of and metal materials for 3D printing. The two share similar objectives, but ArcelorMittal hopes to use its experiences to contribute a new point of view.

ArcelorMittal’s membership in IAM 3D HUB will allow it to develop new metal 3D printing materials, as well as leverage the hub’s end-to-end solutions platform and work with stakeholders. By incorporating this company, the hub is welcoming a new member in the value chain of 3D printing “as a material developer.” It joins technological developers like HP, Renishaw, and Wacker Chemie, strategic partner Fira de Barcelona, and post-processing specialist Abrast by Coniex.

SmarTech Publishing: New Research Note on Metal Powder Bed Fusion

Less than a year ago, 3DPrint.com’s owner, 3DR Holdings, acquired an interest in industry analysis firm SmarTech Markets Publishing, and we continue to have a great relationship. If you’re ever interested in reading the firm’s latest data reports or market studies, you can find them all under the Research tab on our home page. Speaking of research, SmarTech’s VP of Research Scott Dunham, who has prepared the company’s Additive Manufacturing with Metal Powders Report for the last five years, recently released a research note on metal powder bed fusion, titled “Who Will Win (and Who Will Lose) the Metal PBF Marathon?”

“Despite what headlines, technologists, and marketing executives would have you believe, the metal 3D printing “race” is a marathon, not a sprint. To continue with the metaphor, we’re probably in about mile 10 of the race today –certainly not at the beginning anymore, but also quite a long way from the end. We are now about twenty three years since the first commercial metal powder bed fusion (PBF) systems came into view,” Dunham wrote.

“With so many closely comparable suppliers of metal PBF equipment now vying for market share, this begs the question, who has what it takes to make it? Everyone in the race today is working toward similar visions of an “Industry 4.0” future that hinges on metalworking going fully digital and highly automated from end to end, from prototyping all the way up to scaled production, with varying levels of customization capabilities based on industry needs along the way.”

Dunham goes on to list some of the technology’s “standout traits,” and names the company’s predictions on how the metal PBF race will turn out: which companies will be the front runners (EOS, GE Additive, Trumpf).

To learn more, check out SmarTech’s recently published “Powder Bed Fusion Markets, A Metal Additive Manufacturing Market Analysis.”

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NRC Canada Partnering with Polycontrols to Scale Up Cold Spray Additive Manufacturing

Lamarre and Bernier

Last year, we learned that Jean-Michel Lamarre and Fabrice Bernier of the National Research Council (NRC) of Canada had started fabricating electric motor magnets using a process called cold spray additive manufacturing, or CSAM. The technology involves a metal material, in fine powder form, being accelerated in a high-velocity compressed gas jet. A stream of powder hits the substrate at high speed and starts building up a layer at a time, and the process has extremely high buildup rates, which makes it possible to produce several kilograms of magnets an hour. Cold spray itself is a relatively old technology but adapted here to build up objects and giving them magnetic properties is a step forward. In many 3D printing processes, magnetic parts are problematic because we have difficulty aligning metal fibers, organizing particles or getting the part itself made.

As metal 3D printing continues to be used in more sectors of the economy in Canada, it seems that more industrial-scale demonstrations are required so that interested parties can see its potential. So now, NRC Canada and Quebec-based Polycontrols, which specializes in surface engineering solutions and equipment integration, are partnering up to improve the accessibility of CSAM for the country’s manufacturers.

The NRC in Boucherville, home of the future the Poly/CSAM facility

Together, the two will be building a collaborative research facility, located at the NRC’s Boucherville site in Quebec, that will work to scale up the CSAM process, as well as help researchers and manufacturers study, adopt, and deploy the technology.

“The National Research Council of Canada acknowledges the value and importance this collaboration can offer the industry and the Canadian advanced manufacturing ecosystem,” said François Cordeau, the Vice President of Transportation and Manufacturing for NRC Canada. “We see great potential in bringing together different stakeholders to enable innovation and to build a network of industrial partners for a stronger Canadian supply and value chain. Our renowned technological expertise and capabilities in additive manufacturing research and development will support Poly/CSAM and contribute to developing demonstration platforms targeted at end user-industries and cluster networks.”

Poly/CSAM facility interior layout design

The Poly/CSAM facility is expected to open in February of 2020, and will help adapt laboratory-developed technology in order to meet factory and mass production requirements. Investissement Québec, the Business Development Bank of Canada, and Bank of Montreal have helped Polycontrols launch the first phase of this strategic growth initiative with an estimated $4 million investment over the six-year venture.

“Polycontrols is eager to leverage its proven track record in thermal and cold spray implementation (aerospace and surface transportation industries) to showcase its capabilities as a large-scale manufacturing integrator offering custom equipment platforms with the objective of bringing disruptive technologies such as hybrid robotic manufacturing, data analytics and machine learning (supported by Artificial Intelligence) to the shop floor,” stated Luc Pouliot, the Vice President of Operations for Polycontrols. “We see Poly/CSAM as a way to strengthen Canada’s industrial leadership in cold spray additive manufacturing and becoming more agile and competitive on the national and international scene.”

The Poly/CSAM facility will offer multiple technologies, including:

data logging and analytics
machine learning
surface preparation
sensor technologies
in-situ robotic machining and surface finishing
coating and 3D buildup by cold spray
local, laser-based thermal treatment

Poly/CSAM, a new metal additive manufacturing facility to open in February 2020

In addition, to ensure that the technology will be used safely and securely out in the world, NRC Canada will provide advice, training, and technical services to manufacturers through its professional team of over 40 experts.

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[Source/Images: National Research Council of Canada]

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Sandvik Acquires Substantial Holdings in Beam IT—Expanding Additive Manufacturing Presence

Sandvik continues to add to their high-tech offerings, as well as expanding Sandvik Additive Manufacturing with the recent investment in Beam IT. The Sweden-headquartered engineering group, specializing in metals, additive manufacturing, materials, metal cutting, and mining, has taken on a ‘significant’ stake in Beam IT, with the potential for further investment in the future.

This strategic partnership will not only strengthen Sandvik’s position in the additive manufacturing and wider component manufacturing industry but also metal 3D printing.

Currently, Sandvik is a leader in AM metal powder production, with continued and ‘sizeable’ investments within the industry. The Swiss company has over 150 years of materials technology and science in its formidable industrial background, with 75 years also spent developing post-processing methods.

“The AM sector is developing fast and there is a need for AM-specialist-partners with the advanced skills and resources required to help industrial customers develop and launch their AM programs. With the investment in Beam IT we provide our customers with the opportunity to access the complementary and combined power of Sandvik and Beam IT,” said Kristian Egeberg, President of Sandvik Additive Manufacturing.

Continuing to refine their operation further, Sandvik also combined their AM and Powder divisions—allowing them to offer comprehensive solutions to their customers, from metal powder to finished AM parts.

Beam IT, headquartered in Italy, has been involved in metal AM development for over 20 years, acting as a supplier of components for applications like:

Aerospace
Automotive
Energy
Racing

“The demand for additively manufactured components is expected to grow rapidly the coming years,” said Mauro Antolotti, Chairman and founder of Beam IT. “In Sandvik, we have a very good owner who can help us accelerate the growth – and who can provide us with leading materials expertise, development of high-quality metal powder suited for all AM processes, as well as world-leading post-processing know-how.”

With over 20 PBF printers installed, Beam IT also possesses AS 9100 certifications for aerospace, and NADCAP approval. The AM company began with a specialty in prototyping plastic parts, and then forged ahead into metal; today, their strengths are in serious innovation and a dedication to research and development and growth overall—with a focus on DMLS, EBM, and SLS processes. Beam IT is truly a cutting edge metal printing firm with exciting projects in areas such as Formula 1 and defence.

“We are extremely pleased to announce this deal and partnership with Sandvik, which aims to leverage synergies and further strengthen both companies’ position on the metal AM market. Our partnership will definitely benefit both current and future AM-customers going forward,” said President of Beam IT, Michele Antolotti.

Sandvik has been a dynamic presence in 3D printing and additive manufacturing throughout the years, involved in other innovative and unique investments within the industry, and a continued focus on showcasing their dedication to related software and hardware.

What do you think of this news? Let us know your thoughts! Join the discussion of this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com.

[Source / Images: Sandvik Additive Manufacturing]

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3D Printing News Briefs: June 11, 2019

Starting with a little business in today’s 3D Printing News Briefs, Materialise has signed an MoU with Sigma Labs, and Carpenter Technology Corporation launched an additive manufacturing business unit, while Ampower just released a metal 3D printing technology map. Moving on to news about 3D printers, 3D Potter has introduced a compact version of its Scara clay 3D printer, and a UK service bureau installed an HP Jet Fusion 4200 system.

Materialise and Sigma Labs Sign MoU

Back in 2014, Sigma Labs signed an agreement with Materialise to integrate its PrintRite quality inspection technology into the Belgian company’s 3D printing software. Now, five years later, the two companies have entered into a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in order to evaluate this integration together.

The mission behind the MoU is, according to MarketScreener, “to create an integrated product solution composed of sophisticated control technology enhanced with in-situ process monitoring for metal additive manufacturing.” Materialise and Sigma Labs have a shared vision to ultimately set up a formal licensing agreement, or a formal joint marketing collaboration, for a truly integrated product.

Carpenter Launches Additive Business Unit

Carpenter Technology Corporation has been working to build on its reputation as a metal powder supplier in order to become a leader in the 3D printing industry, and it appears to have worked. Recently, the company launched a new business unit, called Carpenter Additive, which offers a wide range of products and services, such as finished component production capabilities, metal powder lifecycle management solutions, and integrated AM and R&D facilities. The new business unit even made an appearance at the recent RAPID + TCT 2019.

“From powder production to manufacturing and finishing parts, the full spectrum of our capabilities is what differentiates Carpenter Additive from the rest of the AM industry. We are revolutionizing how customers approach this disruptive technology by offering end-to-end solutions through an array of technical expertise, powder production, parts production, and material lifecycle management,” said Carpenter’s President and CEO Tony R. Thene. “Carpenter Additive is working with our customers and driving industry-wide change.”

Ampower Releases New Technology Map

Metal 3D printing consultancy Ampower is working to prepare for its metal additive manufacturing report, which will be released at formnext in Germany this fall. While compiling the report, Ampower closely studied all of the available metal AM technologies and counted them up, arriving at a total of 18 falling into seven different categories, including powder, wire, and granulate. In addition, Ampower analyzed the supply chain and counted up nearly 90 different metal AM machine vendors. Now, the consultancy has put all of its findings together in a high-resolution metal AM technology map, which can be downloaded from Ampower’s website.

“In our Technology Map for Metal Additive Manufacturing, we subdivide the procedures based on the ASTM / ISO 52900,” Ampower wrote on its website. “However, methods are now known that elude a known classification. Systems from vendors such as Vader and Fabrisonic use completely new approaches to energy input and raw materials. However, these technologies still have a relatively young degree of maturity. In addition, it should be noted that even with the same classification, the procedures may still differ. For example, the technology of 3DEO can only be classified as binder jetting as it incorporates a milling process at the same time.”

To learn more, download the metal AM technology map today.

3D Potter Launches Compact Version of Scara V3 3D Printer

Florida-based company 3D Potter, formerly known as DeltaBots, makes low-pressure, high-powered 3D ceramic printers. These delta-style printers are completely dedicated to 3D printing ceramics and pottery, and the company is now the 3D printer manufacturer for over 200 aerospace and defense entities, research facilities, and universities. Recently, 3D Potter introduced a lightweight, compact version of its Scara V3 – the 3D Potterbot Scara Mini V1, which has no air compressor and features a single joint Selective Compliance Articulated Robot Arm (SCARA), which operates on a rotational x and y-axis. The printer’s 200 ml extruder is easy to clean, and there’s no weight limit for final 3D printed products, which achieve high accuracy and even consistency with no air bubbles. The Scara Mini V1 is fully capable of 360° multiple object printing.

“The other advantage for universities and architectural departments is that it can do architectural objects. It can actually print inside an object,” explained 3D Potter president Danny Defelici.

To see the new Scara Mini V1 in action, take a look at the video below.

Design Reality Service Bureau Installs HP Jet Fusion 4200

UK industrial design consultancy and service bureau Design Reality, headquartered in Wales, is made up of design and electronics experts who work to create products for clients in the medical, industrial, and consumer industries. Recently, the company made the decision to install an HP Jet Fusion 3D 4200 3D printer in order lower outsourcing requirements and improve upon its design and production capabilities, which will in turn provide its customers with a consistent, end-to-end solution and faster turnarounds. Since the system was installed, Design Reality has already attracted some new customers.

“Our ambition is to make lives healthier and safer with the products that we design. We want to leverage any advantage we can to improve product development quality, performance and speed of delivery,” said Graham Wilson, the Owner and Design Director at Design Reality. “The technology offered in the HP Multi jet Fusion HP 3D 4200 enables reliable prototyping and additive manufacturing, providing quality products into the hands of our clients, faster and at a lower cost. Our clients no longer have to wait for conventional tooling and manufacturing processes, and the investment that is associated with it.”

Design Reality is mainly sticking with HP’s Nylon 12 material in order to lower waste, and is using HP’s subscription pricing, which is the first pay-per-use subscription model in the industry, for its materials.

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3D Printing News Briefs: February 16, 2019

We’ve got business, events, software, and materials news for you in today’s 3D Printing News Briefs. MELD has introduced a new operator training course, and Protolabs is launching a range of secondary services. AMUG announced the keynote speakers for its upcoming conference, while the call has gone out for submissions to the 2019 Altair Enlighten Award. This week at SOLIDWORKS WORLD 2019, Stratasys introduced AdvancedFDM software for GrabCAD Print. Finally, a gold partner at America Makes has created an Ultem 9085 materials database for FDM 3D printing, and 3D MicroPrint is using a powder rheometer to push the limits of additive manufacturing.

MELD Manufacturing Offers Training Program

MELD Manufacturing Corporation is launching a new operator training program to teach participants how to operate its award-winning technology, which uses an innovative no-melt process to additively manufacture, repair, coat, and join metals and metal matrix composites. The 4-day courses will provide both classroom instruction and hands-on machine training, and attendees will also review the history of MELD’s development.

“This program creates certified MELDers and delivers the capacity to integrate and innovate with MELD. Our customers have raved about the elegance of the MELD process and the ease of training. We’re excited to offer more of these opportunities,” said MELD’s CEO Nanci Hardwick.

The size of the classes, which will be held at MELD’s Virginia headquarters, will be limited so that each attendee can have the maximum amount of machine time in order to become certified, so you should register ASAP.

Protolabs Launches Secondary Services in Europe

Protolabs is a digital manufacturing source for custom prototypes and low-volume production parts and offers all sorts of traditional and additive manufacturing services. This week, the company announced that it was introducing detailed measurement and inspection reporting, which will be only the first part of its newly launched in-house Secondary Services across Europe. These services will provide support for the company’s On-Demand manufacturing requirements, and will also help in launching more value-add secondary operations, like assembly and surface treatment, in the future.

“Our customers really value our rapid manufacturing services for low-volume parts and prototypes, but they now want the benefit of On-Demand manufacturing for production parts, which have higher expectations for sampling, measurement and process documentation,” said Stephen Dyson, Protolabs’ Special Operations Manager. “The marked increase from customers across all industries wanting to take advantage of the speed and flexibility of On-Demand manufacturing brings with it a desire to simplify the supply chain. We are offering Secondary Services to reduce the number of process steps that the customer has to manage, saving time and resources.”

Protolabs will hold a webinar for designers and engineers on February 28th as part of its Secondary Services launch.

AMUG Announces Keynote Speakers

L-R: Brian McLean, Brad Keselowski, Todd Grimm

The Additive Manufacturing Users Group (AMUG) recently announced who the keynote speakers will be for its 2019 conference, which will be held in Chicago from March 31st to April 4th. The conference, which will have nearly 200 presentations, workshops and hands-on training sessions, is designed for both novice and experienced additive manufacturing users, and the three keynote speakers will address the use of additive manufacturing in a variety of different applications. Brian McLean, the director of rapid prototype for LAIKA, will take attendees on a visual journey of how 3D printing has helped to redefine stop-motion animation, while NASCAR driver Brad Keselowski, the owner and founder of Keselowski Advanced Manufacturing (KAM), will share how technology such as 3D printing can help companies win the race. Finally, Todd Grimm, the president of T. A. Grimm & Associates, is returning to the conference as a keynote speaker again.

“We are extremely excited about our 2019 AMUG Conference keynote speakers,” said Gary Rabinovitz, the AMUG chairman and chair of its program committee. “They will provide a snapshot of the most transformative ideas shaping the AM industry today.”

2019 Altair Enlighten Award Submissions

Michigan-based technology company Altair, together with the Center for Automotive Research (CAR), are now taking submissions from around the world for the 2019 Enlighten Award, which is the only award from the automotive industry for dedicated lightweighting. The award will be presented in the categories of Full Vehicle, Module, Enabling Technology and The Future of Lightweighting, and winners will be recognized during the CAR Management Briefing Seminars (MBS), along with getting the chance to ring the Nasdaq stock market opening bell in New York. Suppliers and manufacturers can learn more about the criteria and submit an entry for the awards here.

“We are pleased to continue our collaboration with Altair because of their global leadership in solutions that produce the optimal balance between weight, performance and cost. This award helps drive innovation in lightweighting, which is critical to the success of e-mobility solutions,” said Carla Bailo, the President and CEO of CAR. “We can’t wait to see the key contributions the 2019 nominations will bring in new approaches to automotive engineering and design, contributing to further reductions in weight, fuel consumption, and emissions.”

Stratasys Announces AdvancedFDM Software for GrabCAD

At this week’s SOLIDWORKS World 2019 in Dallas, Stratasys introduced a new feature for its GrabCAD Print software that will remove more complexity from the design-to-3D print process. Advanced FDM will use intuitive model interaction to deliver lightweight yet strong and purpose-built parts to ensure design intent, and is available now via download with GrabCAD Print from versions 1.24 on up. The software feature will help users avoid long, frustrating CAD to STL conversions, so they can work in high fidelity and ramp up parts production, and it also features CAD-native build controls, so no one needs to manually generate complex toolpaths. Advanced FDM can automatically control build attributes, as well as calculate 3D print toolpaths, in order to streamline the process.

“For design and manufacturing engineers, one of the most frustrating processes is ‘dumbing down’ a CAD file to STL format – only to require subsequent re-injection of design intent into the STL printing process. This software is engineered to do away with this complexity, letting designers reduce iterations and design cycles – getting to a high-quality, realistic prototype and final part faster than ever before,” said Mark Walker, Lead Software Product Manager at Stratasys.

America Makes Ultem 9085 FDM Properties in Database

America Makes has announced that its gold-level member, Rapid Prototype + Manufacturing LLC. (rp+m), has created and delivered a complete, qualified database of material properties for the FDM 3D printing of high-performance ULTEM 9085 thermoplastic resin. This comprehensive database, which features processing parameters and both mechanical physical properties, was released to America Makes, and the rest of its membership community, in order to ensure the widespread use of the Type I certified material for 3D printed interior aircraft components. The database is available to the community through the America Makes Digital Storefront.

“The qualification of the ULTEM 9085 material and the establishment of the material properties database by the rp+m-led team are huge steps forward for AM, particularly within the aerospace and defense industries. On behalf of all of us at America Makes, I want to commend rp+m and its team for enabling the broad dissemination of the collective knowledge of ULTEM 9085 for the innovation of future part design,” said Rob Gorham, the Executive Director of America Makes. “The ability to use AM to produce parts with repeatable characteristics and consistent quality for certifiable manufacturing is a key factor to the increased adoption of AM within the multi-billion dollar aircraft interior parts segment.”

3D MicroPrint Identifying Ultra-Fine 3D Printing Powders

Additive Manufacturing Powder Samples

Germany company 3D MicroPrint uses 3D printing to produce complex metal parts on the micro-scale with its Micro Laser Sintering (MLS) technology, and announced that it is using the FT4 Powder Rheometer from UK-based Freeman Technology, which has over 15 years of experience in powder characterization and flow, in order to push the technology to its limits by identifying ultra-fine metal powders that will process efficiently. The system can differentiate raw powder materials, less than five microns in size, with the kinds of superior flow characteristics that are needed to produce accurate components using 3D MicroPrint’s Micro Laser Sintering (MLS) technology.

“With MLS we are essentially pushing standard AM towards its performance limits. To achieve precise control at the micro scale we spread powders in layers just a few microns thick before selectively fusing areas of the powder bed with a highly focused laser beam. The ultra-fine powders required typically behave quite differently to powders of > 25µm particle size,” explained Joachim Goebner, the CEO at 3D MicroPrint. “We therefore rely on the FT4 Powder Rheometer to identify materials which will perform effectively with our machines, with specified process parameters. Before we had the instrument selecting a suitable powder was essentially a matter of trial and error, a far less efficient approach.”

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Sandvik Showcased Customer Use Cases at formnext, Continues to Invest in Metal 3D Printing

Global engineering group Sandvik has been investing in a wide range of 3D printing process technologies for metal components for years, with experience in 3D printing metals such as titanium alloys, tool steels like maraging, stainless, and duplex steels, cemented carbide, high-temperature materials, and nickel-based alloys. Now, the company is increasing its metal AM capacity with a significant investment, and announced at formnext 2018 that it has installed several RenAM 500Q quad laser 3D printers by Renishaw.

These new metal 3D printers are the perfect complement to Sandvik’s current systems, which include machines from Arcam, Concept Laser, EOS, and ExOne that use a variety of different methods and materials.

This expansion is on the heels of another investment by Sandvik in a new manufacturing plant for titanium and nickel 3D printing powders, which complements the company’s market-leading Osprey gas atomized metal powder range, showcased at formnext this week.

Use cases are rarely the same when it comes to 3D printing, as characteristics like flexibility, geometric complexity, hardness, strength, weight, and others can vary depending on the specific application. But Sandvik works across the whole value chain: all the way from component selection, design and modeling, and material choice to the optimal 3D printing method, post-processing, testing, and quality assurance.

“We refer to our process as ‘Plan it. Print it. Perfect it.’ Printing is only one of seven steps you need to master to obtain a perfect AM component. So, you have to think beyond printing to get the best possible value from additive manufacturing,” explained Kristian Egeberg, the President of Sandvik Additive Manufacturing.

While the design of a component certainly plays an important role in 3D printing, so too does the quality of material used. Sandvik, in its own words, has an “in-house capability” to make the broadest portfolio of alloys on the market, thanks to its Osprey metal powder range, in addition to the necessary know-how and expertise in metallurgy to customize the optimal material for whatever application is required.

Annika Roos, Head of the Powder Division in Sandvik, said, “We work closely with our customers to tailor alloys in line with their exact requirements, even for small batch print runs. Not only do we match the alloy to the purpose, we can also optimize the particle size for the chosen printing process.”

This week at formnext, which came to an end today in Frankfurt, Sandvik showcased several different 3D printing use cases with a variety of materials, process technologies, and post-processing methods, in addition to a selection of its Osprey powders. The 3D printed components on display are real industrial customer use cases, featured at various stages of development, and each of them was able to leverage the technology in order to deliver either improved effectiveness, functionality, performance, or productivity.

3D printed coolant clamps for Seco Tools, made from maraging steel, had internal curved channels for better lifespan and performance, while a titanium Sandvik Coromant CoroMill 390 milling cutter is up to 80% more lightweight, and 200% more productive.

Maraging steel sliding cases for LKAB Wassara were also on display at Sandvik’s booth. These two-pieces parts, 3D printed as a single unit, featured internal channels for underground hammer drilling, which helped to increase service life and improve performance. Finally, Varel nozzles 3D printed on-demand from cemented carbide had tailor-made threads which are long enough to be used for drilling in the oil and gas industry.

With its newly acquired Renishaw 3D printers, who knows what Sandvik will tackle next? The company is also looking for collaborate further with Renishaw in AM process technologies, materials development, and post-processing as well.

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Two French Companies Collaborate to Make the Country’s First 3D Printed Mechanical Metal Watch

While there are those who have used 3D printing to make their own watch cases, watch bands, and watch chargers, others have taken the next step and actually made 3D printed watches, from kid-friendly to sophisticated, wooden to gold and plastic, and even timepieces that can tell you if you’ve had a little too much to drink. For years, I rocked the same black, Velcro, digital sports wristwatch every single day. Looking back at old photos, it was definitely functional, but not at all attractive. My friends joked that they would have to pry it off my wrist on my wedding day…which they did not, I might add. I decided on my own that a watch with a Velcro band and light-up screen didn’t really say ‘elegant winter wedding.’

But a new 3D printed watch that’s the result of a collaboration between French special metals distributor STAINLESS and watchmaking company UTINAM Besançon might be the perfect accessory for a fancy event.

“…we worked in 2018 with a well-known French watchmaker, Mr Philippe LEBRU (who built giant clocks in France, Switzerland and Japan) to build the first watch developed for metallic additive manufacturing,” Jean-Baptiste Sepulchre, the Marketing and Communication Officer for STAINLESS, told 3DPrint.com. “This project is our way to celebrate our 90th birthday, STAINLESS having been created in 1928.”

[Image: STAINLESS]

The timepiece, conceived of and assembled at French watchmaking capital Besançon, is said to be the first automatic, mechanical 3D printed watch made in France. The two project partners are both well-known for their technical expertise and reliability: UTINAM Besançon was founded by monumental clock and original watch creator Lebru, as mentioned above, and STAINLESS distributes special metals to demanding industries, like aerospace and medical.

[Image: L’Est Républicain/Ludovic Laude]

The two companies were committed to having as many of the watch components as possible manufactured within the boundaries of Franche-Comté, a traditional province in eastern France; one of the only exceptions was the Japanese timing mechanism. A 100-year-old factory in Morteau made the watch hands, and a craftsman from Besançon created the hand-sewn, genuine leather bracelet.

The watch case was entirely 3D printed, using laser melting technology, out of stainless steel 316L powder on a Renishaw AM250. Apprentices from the Besançon training center at the UIMM “Creativ Lab” 3D printed the case.

The project came about from a STAINLESS initiative to showcase its values in honor of its 90 years in business. To do so, STAINLESS wanted to complete a project that was regional, innovative, and historic, and reached out to Lebru with a proposition to combine their separate expertise on a collaborative piece.

The collaboration itself can be considered something of an innovation, given that both participants focus on very different end products: Lebru and UTINAM Besançon designs and manufactures original watches and clocks, while STAINLESS supplies raw metal materials, including metallic powder for 3D printing.

Joëlle Verdier, STAINLESS president, and Philippe Lebru, UTINAM Besançon watchmaker [Image: STAINLESS]

But because both of the companies were open-minded, they were able to get past the typical relationship between customers and suppliers and transcend to one based on, as STAINLESS put it in a press release, “mutual confidence and trust,” which resulted in a lovely, 3D printed metal watch.

At last month’s MICRONORA Exhibition in Besançon, STAINLESS displayed the 3D printed watch at its stand. Starting at the end of the year, it will be on sale at the UTINAM Besancon boutique, which is opposite the Musée du Temps.

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