The TruPrint 2000, TRUMPF's latest additive manufacturing system. (Photo: TRUMPF)
At its annual press event - held virtually this year for the first time - TRUMPF UK's Managing Director, Lee Moakes reassured those in attendance that in spite of challenges around COVID-19, hence the decision to go digital with this very conference, the company is "open for business" with a series of product updates, two in its additive manufacturing (AM) line-up.
Speaking from the machine tool manufacturer's showroom in Luton in lieu of a postponed Open House event, Moakes provided an update on the company's figures and activity as it navigates what we've all become accustomed to calling "the new normal." With an estimated 80% of its customers closing in March (10% of which remain closed) and a third working at a reduced capacity, the lockdown has delayed the delivery and installations of a number of outstanding orders across its machine tool and laser system portfolio, while its financial plans for this year, which were firmly on track until the end of March, are now expected to end 15% below the plan. This comes off the back of a successful year in 2019 which ended 29% above the previous with a strong order book and a sales revenue of 60 million GBP.
By mid-February TRUMPF had already launched resilience plans to mitigate the effects of the pandemic and by the third week of March closed its showroom and commenced working from home. The company has however remained active in supporting current customers including those operating in the medical sector and supplying equipment such as bed frames, ventilator components and PPE to the NHS. Now, Moakes says it has completed the required risk assessments and is getting ready to open its doors to customers again.
Multi-laser capabilities allows for two lasers to work in tandem across the entire build area. (Photo: TRUMPF)
TRUMPF used the event to highlight its latest AM system, the TruPrint 2000. First announced at Formnext 2019, the machine is described as "economical" solution offering "premium quality." Elaborating, TRUMPF Sales Director Gerry Jones explained that while the machine fills the technology gap between the TruPrint 1000 and 3000 models, in terms of capabilities, it doesn't simply sit in the middle. The laser metal fusion system benefits from a multi-laser design which allows two 300W lasers to work in tandem, a build cylinder of 200 x 200 mm, and a reduced laser beam diameter of 55 microns to print parts with greater surface finish. While Jones acknowledged that the smaller beam diameter does naturally mean sacrificing productivity in favour of a "premium quality" output, the addition of a second laser with full access to the build diameter, makes up for it.
Speaking about the AM industry in general, Moakes admits that 3D printing has seen a "slower ramp up in general than we all hoped for." However, this latest iteration of its TruPrint line aims to address that by bringing a selection of capabilities found in its high-end TruPrint 5000 system and packaging them inside a machine with a price point closer to its entry-level TruPrint 1000. This includes the ability to preheat the base plate up to 200 °C to minimise shrinkage and cracking, external powder management, and an inert atmosphere to enable processing of materials like titanium. The TruPrint 2000 is also said to be ideal for printing amorphous metals, which can be prepared in an inert environment to prevent exposure to oxygen, as TRUMPF recently began exploring in a collaboration with Heraeus AMLOY. Designed with the dental and medical industries in mind, the system and has already been sold to an undisclosed medical company in Ireland.
Interbody cages printed on the TruPrint 2000. (Photo: TRUMPF)
Camera-based powder bed and melt pool monitoring has also been introduced to identify and analyse any errors during build. "This is absolutely key going forward," Jones said particularly for markets like medical and aerospace where process stability and reliability are crucial. The powder bed monitoring analyses each layer for any "high points" such as particles of unmelted powder and prevent any potential failures. Meanwhile, the melt pool monitoring observes the conditions of the melt pool and cross-references with data from a reference part to ensure the build complies with any preset tolerance parameters.
Elsewhere, the TruPrint 1000 also received an update with the launch of a new Multiplate option that enables automatic changing of the substrate plate for continuous productivity. Once one build job has finished, it gets pushed along to an overflow bin (which also benefits from additive with the implementation of a 3D printed suspension fork to control the process) allowing for the next build to start on a second preloaded substrate that sits underneath. This isn't the only example of metal AM being used in-house either as TRUMPF detailed another use case for its TruPrint technology in reducing the part count from 10 to 1 for a motor heat sink inside one of its cutting heads.
These updates mark the next steps in TRUMPF's additive ambitions. The company says AM is growing year on year from a small base after setting itself three objectives including getting a foothold in R&D and Catapult centres like the Manufacturing Technology Centre in Coventry, and selling into production companies.
Inevitably, TRUMPF summed up its digital conference with an acknowledgement of "life after COVID-19", whatever that may eventually look like. For now, Moakes says it's fair to accept that we simply do not know. TRUMPF is being proactive with enhanced digital services and sales tools like virtual machine and software demonstrations delivered from its showroom, and as some businesses start to open back up there is potential to realise some of those remaining machine deliveries in the coming months. The company also suggested that COVID could lead to further demand in large automation projects.
Moakes summarised: "We really have to focus on us as TRUMPF standing by and supporting our customers in every way that we can while they take stock and recover."
