VELO 3D Sapphire next gen
VELO3D has announced the launch of its next-generation Sapphire metal 3D printing system which can produce parts up to one metre tall.
The machine is to begin shipping in Q4 of 2020 with Knust-Godwin set to become the first adopter of the platform. Knust-Godwin is already a user of VELO3D’s original Sapphire system and will continue to leverage the company’s metal 3D printing technology to manufacture end-use parts for the oil and gas industry.
VELO3D’s latest product release has been developed to enable new applications in the oil services and aerospace fields. It will encompass many of the same technical features as the original Sapphire system, including its SupportFree technology and compatibility with VELO's Flow and Assure software tools, while also boasting a 315mm-diameter build plate, dual 1KW lasers and in-situ optical calibration.
With these capabilities, Knust-Godwin is hoping to additively manufacture a host of end-use components. One application it has already identified is an oilfield drilling component that is currently manufactured with five subtractive processes and assembled together. Knust-Godwin will look to harness VELO3D’s Sapphire platform to consolidate this number of parts and processes.
“Our vision at VELO3D is to enable end users to build whatever they want without the constraints of yesterday’s standards. One of those constraints is the build envelope,” commented Benny Buller, VELO3D founder and CEO. “A metre-tall system enables industrial applications that couldn’t be built before, especially for oilfield service tools and flight hardware. Best of all, it will still utilise our highly patented SupportFree process, in-situ calibration and process control for quality assurance.”
“There tends to be a trade-off between large-format additive machines and part quality; VELO3D is attractive to us because of their semiconductor heritage and engineering disciplines around process control and metrology,” added Mike Corliss, VP of Technology at Knust-Godwin. “We have confidence that we’ll be able to build mission-critical industrial parts without compromises made to part quality.”
