Prodways has announced the second sale of its Promaker RAF 50, which is powered by the Rapid Additive Forging technology the company launched back in 2017.
A tier one research institute has invested in the machine and expects to install it later this year. The metal deposition platform has been developed to enable the 3D printing of large metal parts, potentially up to two metres in size, in a range of metal materials.
With this technology, Prodways has focused on the facilitation of components which boast the metallurgical quality and repeatability required in such industries as aerospace and defence. It was commercialised after three years of research and development, and sees titanium alloys processed to build components layer by layer, before being machined to achieve the final, ready-to-use piece. Aluminium alloys, stainless steels, nickel-based steels, and tool steels are also in development.
The first sale of the Promaker RAF 50 came less than a year after Rapid Additive Forging, and a separate Prodways subsidiary to manage the commercialisation of the technology, Prodways RAF, were launched. On this occasion Nexteam Group, a French aeronautics company, invested in the technology. In recent months, Prodways has reported new sales of 3D printed parts manufactured with Rapid Additive Forging, delivering these components through a partnering tier one aviation supplier into the defence and nuclear sectors.