Enhanced Finishing Solution for metal 3D printed components
Additive Manufacturing
There is extreme interest revolving around Additive Manufacturing. Fully functioning cars were produced using Additive Manufacturing techniques during the 2016 IMTS Show in Chicago – demonstrating the process benefits of the AM Technology.
Additive manufacturing (known also under DLMS; SLM; AM, ALM, 3D Printing) is a process of building parts and components layer by layer, connecting powder particles via an energy source.
Freedom of Design
There are numerous advantages to the metal 3D Printing process. Design Engineers have complete freedom regarding design and functionality. Each part or component can be designed and developed from the inside out allowing and with complete precision with enhanced efficiency both in resources and time. This also decreases the time necessary to bring each product to market. Freedom of Design, Resource Efficiency and Speed to Market greatly improve the ability of manufactures to meet the demands of today’s marketplace.
These benefits also reflect in Market Growth – The 3D Printed Metal Market reached $2.3 billion in 2016 & will grow up to $9 billion in 2020.
At Extrude Hone we only focus on metal 3D Printed components, but this includes demanding and challenging applications especially in Aerospace and Medical markets.
3D Printing generates components out of a 3D Model which will be converted via CAD / CAM interface into the 3D Printing machine. Here the part will be generated by connecting particles via an energy source, layer by layer on a built plate. Once the job is finished unused powder and parts removed & finally by the cutting process will be removed from the build plates.
The main challenge for most of the components is the poor surface finish components own after 3D Printing, as well as the removal of the “pickles” left from the support structures.
Enhanced finishing solution for 3D Printed Metal Component
There are several technologies established when post processing is required for 3D Printed Metal Components, but most of these Technologies do not meet what the market is requiring:
- Attractive Cost / Benefit Ratio of the Post Processing vs. 3D Printing
- Improvements in Microstructure (Rz < 5µm) as well as Macrostructure of the component
- Combined internal & external finishing
- Removal of remained “pickles” of the Support structures internally/externally in the same step like.
- Productivity
- Process control
- Reasonable material removal / reasonable edge rounding
- Flexibility
- delivery Time – we talk about “RAPID PROTOTYPING”
COOLPULSE™ TECHNOLOGY
Extrude Hone, a market leader in surface enhancement technologies saw it as a duty, to come up with a Solution. We established a technology called COOLPULSE™ (beside the already established AFM Technology (AFM = Abrasive Flow Machining) matching the market requirements, but also fitting into manufacturing strategy of 3D Printing manufacturing.
COOLPULSE™ is the Solution when it comes to the finishing of 3D Printed Components, as:
- The technology offers an attractive Cost / benefit Ratio, meeting market expectations
- The Technology offers Flexibility at shortest reaction times, supporting RAPID PROTOTYPING
- Easy to adapt, easy to implement, easy to understand
- Controlled technology owning high productivity
- reasonable material removal with acceptable edge rounding tendencies.
- Equipment accessible to the market
- Services available globally
Learn more by contacting Extrude Hone, downloading our White Paper or you are invited to attend Extrude Hone Technology Days. Presentations and live demo will be performed during the Technology Days on various metal 3D components. Technology days will be May 17th-18th in Holzgünz Germany