Page 16 - 3D Metal Printing Winter 2019

3D
FEATURE
Staff and visitors explore metal-printing equipment at Keselowski Advanced Manufacturing (KAM) in Statesville, NC, where the new company employs additive and traditional manufacturing technologies to produce parts for aerospace, automotive and other markets. Photo courtesy of Dana Jo Photography.
Hybrid-AM Startup Revs for Success
NASCAR driver Brad Keselowski has opened the doors of a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in NC, and bets on metal 3D printing to win.
BY LOUIS A. KREN, SENIOR EDITOR
and too expensive for production level applications. By combining additive man- ufacturing (AM) with subtractive capa- bilities, the goal of KAM is to lead the way for the next industrial revolution by mak- ing these technologies more accessible.”
Printers, Mills and More
Since a soft opening this past summer, KAM has been installing a variety of machinery, including two Concept Laser M2 direct metal laser melting machines from GE Additive, each employing two 400-W lasers and featuring a build volume of 250 by 250 by 350 mm. Also on the ros- ter, vertical, horizontal and five-axis mills from Mazak, which also supplied a seven- axis multi-tasking machine; and a wire EDM mill from GF Machining Solutions. More is on the way, including AM machines from SLM Solutions and EOS, according to company officials, who spoke exclu- sively with 3D Metal Printing magazine.
From its motorsports roots, a new company hopes to leverage a com- mitment to quality and expertise in materials and processes to reach the winner’s circle while serving customers across diverse markets.
This past January in Statesville, NC, Keselowski Advanced Manufacturing (KAM) unveiled a state-of-the-art 70,000- sq.-ft. facility, featuring advanced additive and subtractive manufacturing equipment and staffed by 30 employees. KAM (www.kamsolutions.com) is the brainchild of NASCAR driver Brad Keselowski, who
seeks to integrate manufacturing tech- nologies and parlay their capabilities into successful projects for aerospace, auto- motive, defense, energy, oil and gas, and tool and die applications. The company’s prime internal objective: scale up hybrid manufacturing capabilities at a produc- tion level in Statesville.
“The capabilities of new technologies are limited only by our imaginations and willingness to act,” said Keselowski when announcing KAM’s opening. “Until now, much of this advanced manufacturing technology was considered too complex
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