The part has been fitted on board the BW Epic Kosan vessel Epic Salina and was made using Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM) technology in Nickel Aluminium Bronze.
The two-kilowatt laser, which features nLIGHT’s proprietary beam shaping technology, is said to ‘significantly boost productivity’ of laser powder bed fusion systems.
Both companies are renowned for their delivery of copper-based alloys and believe the acquisition deal will allow them to better serve customers across aerospace, defence and additive manufacturing.
After making its debut at TCT Asia back in May, the China-based metal additive manufacturing company will exhibit the latest version of the machine alongside its EMEA subsidiary BLT Europe GmbH at Formnext.
The Institute for Strategic Partnerships, Innovation, Research, and Education (InSPIRE) will serve as crucial hub for the AM Forward collaboration, with ASTRO America hoping the facility will support the development of critical supply chains.
Protolabs expects to ‘substantially complete’ this restructuring plan within the next year, with affected employees receiving severance and other transition assistance.
Throughout the next two years, Ursa Major will transition its copper additive manufacturing capability into flight-qualified hardware for two defence customers after securing a follow-on contract with America Makes.
The funding comes from Luxembourg Space Sector Development, EIT Raw Materials, with further support from the "Young Innovative Enterprise" initiative from the Ministry of Economy of Luxembourg.
The Fund has been set up to support the White House’s AM Forward initiative, which was created in 2022 with the aim of supporting smaller manufacturers in adopting additive manufacturing technology.
