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43 - The AM Ecosystem, User Journeys and More from Formnext Forum Austin

AM Radio

Release Date: 09/11/2023

58 - The Postprocessing Episode show art 58 - The Postprocessing Episode

AM Radio

Postprocessing is a necessary part of the additive manufacturing (AM) workflow in almost every instance, because 3D printing alone rarely yields a finished part ready for use. Depending on the materials and processes they choose, AM adopters have to account for depowdering, curing, heat treat, cleaning, dyeing, tumbling, machining and many other post-print operations. Coupled with the high-mix, low-volume production typical in AM, such steps are difficult to automate or optimize — leading many companies to develop innovative and often secretive internal processes.   In this episode of...

info_outline 57 - Does Additive Manufacturing Win the Race? Exploring AM’s Production Rate show art 57 - Does Additive Manufacturing Win the Race? Exploring AM’s Production Rate

AM Radio

A question from an audience member about competing production rates for a forged metal part that might be made through additive manufacturing instead got Pete Zelinski thinking about production rate in general, and what this rate does and does not tell us about productivity overall. Additive can win a production “race.” An example involving a 1,000-piece production run of parts otherwise made through molding was documented by Formlabs (more info below). However, is a head-to-head comparison like this the measure by which additive must succeed? Pete explores this question. Find photos,...

info_outline 56 - Applications Reaching the Tipping Point, Semiconductors and Tungsten on the Rise, Costs Coming Down and More From Formnext 2024 show art 56 - Applications Reaching the Tipping Point, Semiconductors and Tungsten on the Rise, Costs Coming Down and More From Formnext 2024

AM Radio

Formnext 2024 lived up to its reputation as additive manufacturing’s largest trade show, attracting more than 34,000 attendees to 54,000 m2 of exhibit space. It was also large in the sense of showcasing just how big 3D printing can go, with plenty of showpieces and demos running to illustrate the current scale of large-format additive manufacturing (LFAM) technology. But beneath the robotic arms and towering prints, there were also plenty of new machine introductions, software advances and application examples. Over the course of their time at the show, AM Radio cohosts Peter Zelinski and...

info_outline 55 - How 3D Printing Aids Automation, and How Additive Will Reach Farther With Robots show art 55 - How 3D Printing Aids Automation, and How Additive Will Reach Farther With Robots

AM Radio

Additive manufacturing and robots are parallel technologies, both digitally enabled tools for manufacturing that are advancing in adoption. But they also enable each other. 3D printing can provide the grippers, end effectors and other specialized tooling that robots require to serve production. And robots are driving AM forward as well. Collaborative robots or cobots are being used to tend 3D printer farms, sometimes mounted on autonomous guided vehicles (AGVs) for a fully mobile, as well as automated, solution. And robots are opening opportunities for larger and more complex part production,...

info_outline 54 - New Equipment, Additive Manufacturing for Casting Replacement, and AM's Next Phase at IMTS 2024 show art 54 - New Equipment, Additive Manufacturing for Casting Replacement, and AM's Next Phase at IMTS 2024

AM Radio

The 2024 edition of IMTS – The International Manufacturing Technology Show welcomed more than 89,000 attendees to Chicago last week. While only a portion of the show’s 1,500 exhibitors were offering additive manufacturing equipment or services, AM nevertheless had a significant footprint at this show. Conversations with speakers, exhibitors and attendees revealed insights about where additive is finding traction now, and where it is heading next. In this episode of AM Radio, I talk with Pete Zelinski about equipment launches during the show, advances in usability and accessibility,...

info_outline 53 - Steel Mills and Spatter: AM and Advanced Manufacturing Research at Carnegie Mellon University show art 53 - Steel Mills and Spatter: AM and Advanced Manufacturing Research at Carnegie Mellon University

AM Radio

Stephanie Hendrixson shares observations from her visit to learn more about two different manufacturing institutes under the umbrella of Carnegie Mellon University. First, she visited the lab facilities at Mill 19, a refurbished steel mill site, used by the Manufacturing Futures Institute. The MFI aims to accelerate the digital transformation of manufacturing, through work that includes things like robotics, digital twins and generative design as well as AM. She also learned about the Next Manufacturing Center, CMU's additive-focused research institute seeking to solve increasingly specific...

info_outline 52 - Additive Manufacturing at NASA (PART 2) show art 52 - Additive Manufacturing at NASA (PART 2)

AM Radio

In this follow-up to episode #51 of AM Radio, Dr. Tim Simpson joins Stephanie Hendrixson and Pete Zelinski in the studio to talk more about how NASA is implementing and shaping additive manufacturing. As part of an intergovernmental personnel act (IPA) assignment, Dr. Simpson has spent the last two years deployed within NASA helping to advance additive use cases and connect AM users within the organization. In this episode, he shares insights from this work including NASA's collaborative relationship with commercial space; its role in studying AM fundamentals and providing testing...

info_outline 51 - Additive Manufacturing at NASA (PART 1) show art 51 - Additive Manufacturing at NASA (PART 1)

AM Radio

Additive Manufacturing Media editors have had the chance to visit three different NASA facilities: the Goddard Space Flight Center, Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Marshall Space Flight Center. Pete Zelinski and Stephanie Hendrixson learned and reported on how 3D printing is being used to fulfill NASA missions through parts like a generatively designed bracket, lightweight titanium lattices and a multimaterial thrust chamber made with two different processes. But where do these parts fit within NASA's broader mission, and what is the role of additive manufacturing at NASA? In this episode, part...

info_outline 50 - How Model No. Manufactures Sustainable Furniture with 3D Printed Polymers show art 50 - How Model No. Manufactures Sustainable Furniture with 3D Printed Polymers

AM Radio

When we first covered Model No. in 2020, the company was manufacturing furniture on its own large-format 3D printers, built to designs directly manipulated by customers through parametric options available on its website. Four years later, production looks a bit different. Gone is the user-facing design tool, as the company has discovered that conversation with customers is the more effective way to arrive at the right designs for its clients. More colors and materials are offered today, in part because of a circular economy-focused project that Model No. completed with several partners. And...

info_outline 49 - Trip Report from Innovative 3D Manufacturing show art 49 - Trip Report from Innovative 3D Manufacturing

AM Radio

We are trying something new on the podcast! Whenever one of us on Additive Manufacturing Media pays a visit to a manufacturer for the first time, we want to talk about the trip as soon as we return. Why keep this recap to ourselves? In this episode of AM Radio, here is Stephanie Hendrixson getting the full download just after I paid a visit to Innovative 3D Manufacturing in Franklin, Indiana. Innovative does contract production using 12 laser powder bed fusion machines, all from Renishaw. Just part of what struck me is this company’s connection to foundry work — not just in terms of...

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Formnext Forum Austin, the first Formnext event to be held in the United States, concluded August 30 after two full days of conference programming dedicated to industrial additive manufacturing. The event is jointly organized by Mesago Messe Frankfurt, AMT—The Association For Manufacturing Technology, and Gardner Business Media, the publisher of Additive Manufacturing Media. Along with sessions on additive end markets, production applications, AM technology and design for additive manufacturing (DFAM), Formnext Forum included a lively expo featuring nearly 80 exhibitors plus The Cool Parts Showcase. Attendees also had access to several facility tours and networking opportunities. The event drew more than 900 attendees, including the editors of Additive Manufacturing. Pete Zelinski, Fiona Lawler and Stephanie Hendrixson recorded this conversation for AM Radio shortly after the event.

 

Find photos and the transcript of this episode in this blog post.

 

This episode is brought to you by The Cool Parts Show. 

 

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