Additive Industries MetalFAB-600 visual
As the virtual doors were closing on last week's Formnext Connect, we were just about ready to power down our laptops when Dutch metal additive manufacturing company Additive Industries made a surprise announcement - a new large-scale 3D printer equipped with ten 1kw lasers.
While we certainly got more information compared to the teaser for its now flagship MetalFAB1 system - anyone else remember that intriguing empty box at Euromold 2014? - Additive Industries' announcement contained few details on the new MetalFAB-600 aside from its multi-laser capacity, 600 x 600 x 1000 mm build volume, and an intent to present the machine towards the end of next year.
Rather than wait until then, we spoke to Additive Industries' Product Manager, Jurgen Westerhoff about where development is up to, the demand for large-scale metal 3D printed parts, and what those ten lasers mean for productivity.
TCT: You’ve announced a new metal AM system at Formnext Connect – what’s different about it?
JW: The MetalFAB-600 will be one of the most productive metal AM systems to enter the market, with a very large build volume of 600mm by 600mm and 1000mm height. Next to this the laser power of 10x 1kW combined with the automation of key processes like powder handling, alignments and calibrations will make the MetalFAB-600 a real contender for traditional production methods like casting and machining.
TCT: We know we can expect to see the new model towards the end of 2021 - what made you decide to tease the machine now?
JW: We are looking for beta customers to participate in our testing phase, starting next year.
TCT: We’ve seen Additive Industries' technology used by a range of industries already, particularly aerospace and automotive - what kinds of industries are you seeing demand from for these bigger print volumes?
JW: Aerospace, high tech industry, and energy. These industries have large portfolios of complex parts that are currently casted and machined, which are a great candidate for a large-size AM machine.
TCT: The hardware is equipped with 10 x 1kW lasers - can you tell us what that means for its productivity?
JW: It will push productivity up to 1000cc/hr. This is a massive increase compared to the current industry standard, and vital for the production of very large parts. The productivity rate of 1000cc/hr brings the cost per kilogram in a competitive area compared to casting, which we believe will be the key to widespread adoption of metal AM as an industrial production method.
TCT: What does this mean for the existing MetalFAB1 - will this now become more of an entry level machine?
JW: Our aim is to offer a full line up of products to provide a tailored solution to our customers applications. In the end the application and supply-chain at our customer will determine which product in our line up will fit best.
The line up starts with the MetalFAB-420 1-laser, which we will be offering from 725,000 EUR, which will make it easier for companies to enter the productive large-size AM market.
TCT: In the announcement, acting CEO Jonas Wintermans talked about how it is “crucial for Additive Industries to develop and innovate” - can you elaborate on that?
JW: We see that the market is ready to start taking large parts into industrial production with AM. With the MetalFAB1 we gained experience with these applications and environments, making it clear that, for us, very large part production is the way to go. We have proven that we can transition large parts from traditional casting and machining to our MetalFAB1 platform, and have seen and discussed the potential for even larger parts with our customers. This customer feedback is the direct driver for our development of a larger size machine.
TCT: When TCT last spoke with Additive Industries, we heard about how, "It’s more than just buying equipment, it’s about matching next-gen capabilities with the specific desires of the market” - how does this machine fit into this ethos?
JW: We are very closely working together with our customers to find out what for their specific needs are. We gained a lot of experience in a broad range of markets with the MetalFAB1, enabling us to improve and push the MetalFAB1 to the maximum of its ability. We showed the current status of development with the 150kg rocket turbo housing on our virtual booth, reaching an impressive 70% deposition rate at 1,27kg/hour. This was only possible thanks to technical optimisation of the system, as well as great efforts in process development, all fuelled directly by feedback of our customers. For the MetalFAB-600 we are going to build on this knowledge to push productivity even further, and closely tailor to what the end user needs for their production of parts. Listening closely is what brought us this far, and will take us much further.
TCT: Where is development currently up to? What updates can we expect to see next from the MetalFAB-600?
JW: We are building on the MetalFAB1 legacy, re-using the proven technology and market-tested performance as much as we can for the MetalFAB-600. For instance, the next generation optical unit is currently going into testing, and will be released on the MetalFAB1 platform first, making the technology ready for use in the MetalFAB-600. Furthermore we are working on the system design and starting the full-size prototype of the MetalFAB-600, with which we will achieve the ‘first print’ milestone in 2021.
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