Cincinnati BAAM Printer (Installed at Cincinnati)
Cincinnati BAAM Printer (Installed at Cincinnati)
Additive Engineering Solutions, an additive manufacturing consultancy group since its conception in 2015, has recently acquired production capabilities with a Big Area Additive Manufacturing Machine from Cincinnati Inc.
Initially, the company had the explicit aim of never to buy a printer, simply advise other companies on how to self-optimise in the additive manufacturing field. Yet, AES saw the opportunity to have ‘first mover advantage’ too good to turn down. The decision to purchase a Cincinnati Inc. BAAM machine was made during the partners first visit to Oak Ridge National Laboratory, where the technology was developed.
Spun out of OGS Industries, an Akron-based metal stamping and fabrication company, Andrew Bader and Austin Schmidt were inspired to establish AES after finding an application for 3D printing. Bader, thinking other companies in the region would benefit from the information, along with Schmidt filed the paperwork to start AES as a consulting business in August 2015.
It was Schmidt whose eye was caught with Cincinnati Inc.’s BAAM printers, and he and Bader persuaded Andrew’s uncle, Tom Bader and father, John Bader, who are both partners in the business, to explore the idea of buying a printer. The order was placed in July, less than a year after Bader and Schmidt filed to establish the company.
AES
AES BAAM machine
Now, AES can be used to print large scale parts that cannot be produced with smaller machines.
By September, Schmidt had begun planning the company’s supply chain, clients and customers, and staff.
With a BAAM printer at their disposal, AES plan to broaden their services. Now, the company can be used to print large scale parts that cannot be produced with smaller machines. Of the 11 BAAM machines Cincinnati Inc. has sold, this is the first to a service bureau – the rest have been purchased by universities, labs and large companies using the machines for their own benefits. Since Cincinnati Inc. often receive enquiries about printing parts, a service it provides without it being its main purpose, AES may now be on hand to support Cincinnati’s customers.
"We are excited to be bringing the BAAM technology online," Austin Schmidt told TCT. "Currently, none of the 10 BAAM printers in existence are available for contract use. They are either at research facilities or at OEMs behind closed doors. Our BAAM will be the first machine available globally for contract use. Since the technology was unveiled in 2014, many great applications have been developed. However, there isn't the capacity or bandwidth available in the marketplace to fully commercialise them. That is where Additive Engineering Solutions will step in.
"While we are open to any opportunity to put the technology to use, we expect to be utilising the technology to create moulds and tooling for a variety industries. Most of the interest at the moment is aerospace, but there is also a decent amount of interest from wind, marine, and auto."
The purchased machine is set to arrive with AES before the end of the year. Between the order being placed in July and its delivery in December, AES partners have regularly visited ORNL to get to grips with the machine, study its capabilities and plan the next stage of the company’s development around the printer.
With the addition of the BAAM printer, AES will be able to output up to 80lbs of material an hour at a variety of different nozzle sizes, enabling it to achieve different printed resolutions. This efficient output level, enables large printed parts and tools to be produced at a very fast rate.
AES are hoping the BAAM’s unique ability will lead their company to have a unique asset, that is to offer a service for the printing of large scale parts.
