Page 38 - 3D Metal Printing Spring 2017

3D Grimm’s 3D Metal Printing Tales
3DMT boasts a roster of 15 metal printers and can work with a range of materials, including steels, aluminum and titanium alloys.
that results from elimination of tooling and other fixed assets. Successful companies use this lead- time reduction to rapidly deliver first articles, sig- nificantly reduce time to market and quickly incor- porate design changes. When combined with design flexibility, this trait opens the door to the third pillar.
Low-volume production often is cited as a criti- cal factor for success, but Nichols sees this pillar differently. He believes that the success factor is high-mix, mid-volume production. Unlike tradi- tional manufacturing, where long, unchanged runs are the norm, metal AM opens the door to timely, affordable production of multiple designs that cater to specific customers or customer segments.
“High-mix, mid-volume is a big differentiator,” Nichols says. “With 10, 20 or 50 production designs, annual production rates in the hundreds of thou- sands are justifiable.”
enter into metal AM considerations with the understanding that the process can print anything. But that doesn’t mean that everything is a candidate for printing. To be a good candidate, Nichols cites three pillars for metal AM success.
Three Pillars of AM Success
Ideal metal-AM jobs have three interconnected characteris- tics in the areas of design, lead
time and production volume.
The first, crucial pillar is design flexibility. Nichols, who uses the term ‘flexibility’ rather than ‘freedom’ to acknowledge that there are some design limita- tions, finds that rethinking a com- ponent’s structure is critical to success.
“Without design modifications to improve performance, reduce cost and decrease time, the value of metal AM is severely under- mined,” he says.
In discussing design flexibility, Nichols also resists using the term ‘complexity.’ In his experience, design complexity leads people to think only of sophisticated, high- value components. His experi- ence shows that the larger oppor- tunity is to modify simple parts, maybe by adding just a few key features, to address performance needs or customer demands.
The second pillar is the speed
The Next Frontier: Everyday Applications
“Applications are moving into the realm of the conventional space,” says Nichols. “It isn’t just about high-value, complex parts such as the GE fuel nozzle anymore.”
He predicts that during the next year or two, the largest con- sumers of metal AM-machine time and materials will be those in the more industrialized indus-
tries that are tackling routine, ordinary parts.
When asked for real-world examples and company names, “I can’t say,” Nichols responds. “It goes back to the competitive advantage that companies don’t want to reveal. But trust me, the evidence is substantial.”
What does Nichols mean by ‘conventional space’ and ‘indus- trialized?’
“Think of something as basic as a flange,” he explains. “With high-mix capability and design flexibility, it can be customized with an integrated tube, each one with a different flow path to meet the needs of the specific customer. Maybe add a bit more value by making the component in an exotic alloy.”
Production-Ready, Today
3DMT primarily manufactures production parts. Although its
About 3DMT
3D Material Technologies (3DMT) utilizes metal AM for prototyping and short-run produc- tion for aerospace, defense, medical and indus- trial customers that need the speed to market of AM or the design freedom allowed by the process.
3DMT is part of ARC Group Worldwide, a global AM and 3D printing service provider. In addition metal injection molding, ARC provides metal and plastic 3D printing, plastic injection molding, machining, thixomolding and metal stamping, and also supplies tooling and flanges.
Equipment:
• 11 EOS M280
• 1 EOS M400
• 2 Concept Laser M1 • 1 Concept Laser M2
Materials:
• Inconel
• Titanium
• Aluminum
• Maraging steel
• Stainless steel
• Cobalt chrome
• Custom alloys by development
36 | 3D METAL PRINTING • SPRING 2017
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