AMUG Newsletter December 2017

President’s Report

It is mid-December, and it’s time to prepare for the holidays and reflect on a year coming to its end. I look back on the year and find much for AMUG to celebrate. Reviewing the year-end AMUG activities, we have been very busy.

I was lucky to attend formnext powered by TCT in Frankfurt, Germany, and represent AMUG.  The show has expanded very rapidly from last year. The exhibit space was much bigger, with many massive booths and far more exhibitors. According to my fitness monitor, I walked across all of Europe and back while trying to meet with all our sponsors and friends from Europe and from around the world. I was joined by Gary Rabinovitz, chairman, and we were able to meet with most of our AMUG supporters, but even though we tried hard, we couldn’t get to everyone. Considering the growth and industry excitement I saw at formnext, the 2018 AMUG Conference will be another record-setter.

30 years, did I mention that, yet?  The 2018 AMUG Conference will be our 30th anniversary of AM users getting together. I am talking with members almost every day, and many ask me how long has AMUG been around.  Nothing makes me prouder than to say it’s been around for 30 years!  As we prepare for April, we will be folding in a description of how we started and a history of how we developed. There have been many highlights as well as a few low points. It’s a great story; I can’t wait to share it with you.

If you have not registered for the conference and made hotel reservations, please do so as soon as possible.  Our exhibitor space and many sponsorships sold out at a record pace. I suspect registration and hotels will fill very quickly as well.

Happy Holidays to you and your families.  If you are traveling, be safe.  If you are entertaining, have fun.

Sponsor & Exhibitor Update

Thank you to AMUG supporters for the responsiveness in getting registered.  We now have a full AMUGexpo with names being added to the waitlist. That’s right, a waitlist! We have also sold out many of our sponsorship levels. We now have 76 sponsors and 110 exhibitors!

We strongly encourage companies to contact us to be added to our waitlists. Should there be a cancellation, those on the waitlist will be contacted. Also, inclusion on the waitlist will help us understand what our needs may be for the 2019 conference. To be added to the waitlist, send an email to VicePresident@amug.com.

We are diligently working with sponsors and exhibitors for space selection. And soon we will be rolling out the Exhibitor Manual and requesting details that will enable us to get everyone moved in and set up efficiently. Please be on the lookout for these communications and set aside time to review them since there is a lot of information to cover.

If there is anything you notice that might be in error or could be improved, we ask you to please mention it.  This will help us smooth out the many new things being implemented and get ideas for how to make everything better.  After all, like you, we are AM users, not conference professionals, yet!

Premature Departures

Our hotel registration reports show that quite a few attendees are scheduled to check out on Thursday, April 12, 2018. We want to remind everyone that the AMUG Conference activities continue through 10:00 pm Thursday. Following the last presentations at 5:00 pm, we will have our “Family Dinner” from 6:00 pm to 10:00 pm.

We know people are in a rush to get home after a long week of conference activities, but please consider departing on Friday, April 13, 2018, instead. This will give you the opportunity to join us for one last social gathering where information is exchanged, networks are extended and friendships are built.

Technical Competition

It’s that time of year to once again make sure you submit your designs for the Technical Competition.  We have two categories that you can enter, Advanced Concepts and Advanced Finishing. This is an opportunity to show unique and innovative work that you’ve done over the past year.

The competition takes place on Monday night during our AMUGexpo. The entries are judged by a panel of DINOs, and their selection for top prizes will be announced at our Awards Banquet on Tuesday night. As an added incentive, the top three entries in each category get an award. Winners in each category get their entry highlighted in our 2018 conference agenda and marketing materials, and being the best entitles them to a free attendee pass for next year’s conference.

For details and entry form, please visit the Technical Competition page. If you have any questions, please contact Mark Barfoot at PastPresident@amug.com.

AMUG Scholarships: Student and Educator

The scholarship committee will accept applications for the Guy Bourdeau and Randy Stevens scholarships through February 8, 2018. Each scholarship covers transportation, 2018 conference registration and lodging expenses.

The college student scholarship honors long-time AMUG member Guy Bourdeau, who served as treasurer for many years. This scholarship is awarded and managed by Renee Bourdeau. The Randy Stevens scholarship is awarded to a college professor or high school teacher with additive manufacturing in the curriculum. Randy was an enthusiastic member and regular technical contributor to AMUG. This scholarship is awarded by In’Tech Industries.

Details and application forms can be found on the AMUG website’s scholarships page.

Claire Belson (center), 2017 Guy E. Bourdeau Scholarship recipient, with Steve Deak (left) and Renee Bourdeau.

Whitelisting AMUG.com

With our transition to the new domain name, AMUG.com, we have discovered that we have inherited a blocked/blacklisted status from the previous owner. The result is that emails from AMUG may be blocked, bounced, or sent to a spam folder.

To ensure that you receive important communications, please add AMUG.com to the whitelist for your email client and check with your IT department to make sure that our domain is not on the server’s block/blacklist.

Comparing Equipment Acquisition Options Including Tax Strategies

In the midst of tax-reform uncertainty and the typical year-end/new year procurement planning, businesses want to better understand their equipment options as well as relevant tax strategies. Check out this infographic to compare those options and for helpful information regarding the benefits of various acquisition methods for new selective laser melting systems.

Bigger, Better, Faster – GE Additive Presents a Scalable World-Class Machine

At formnext, GE Additive unveiled the first BETA machine developed as part of its Project A.T.L.A.S. (Additive Technology Large Area System) program. The meter-class, laser powder-bed melting machine has been developed to provide manufacturers of large parts with a scalable solution on size and laser sources that can be configured and customized to their own specific industry applications.

Key features of the BETA machine on display at formnext were:

• Build volume: 1.1 x 1.1 x 0.3 m (x,y,z) (the build volume is scalable)
• Gantry-based architecture
• Latest 1 kW laser & 3D scanner (number of lasers can be increased)
• Discrete dosing
• Optimal air flow over the print area
• Excellent feature resolution
• Process and machine health monitoring

For more information, visit www.ge.com/additive.

Renishaw and Identify3D Collaborate to Enable Secure Digital Manufacturing

Renishaw and Identify3D are now collaborating to offer an end-to-end, secure digital manufacturing process. Identify3D will provide data protection coupled with contractual and manufacturing licensing from design to production on Renishaw AM systems. By choosing to secure all digital data in the engineering phase, the technology enables users of Renishaw systems to protect their digital intellectual property, enforce production rules and provide traceability in the digital supply chain at the industry’s highest standard.

The two companies are currently working together on pilot projects for several manufacturing customers. The collaboration will enable sectors such as aerospace, automotive, defense and medical devices to accelerate their adoption of AM, enabling secure distributed manufacturing across their supply chains.

Check Out the Latest Customer Stories on HP’s YouTube Channel

It’s been a busy and exciting last few months for HP’s 3D Printing business, with lots of momentum – including announcements around new and future HP 3D printing technology expansion, new partnerships and new materials. We are also happy to share some exciting updates from some of our customers who are reaping the benefits of HP Multi Jet Fusion technology – check out our HP 3D printing video YouTube playlist to watch some of our latest customer and applications stories.

Look Real creates customized toy dolls that look just like their owners. Just one of many videos in the playlist.

Emirates Incorporates New Flame Retardant Nylon Material

3D Systems’ new DuraForm^® ProX^® FR1200 SLS material is in use by Emirates to manufacture components for its aircraft cabins. Engineered to deliver excellent flame retardancy properties and surface quality suitable for commercial aerospace business applications, this new SLS material enables lighter weight, strength-optimized parts with the potential to lower fuel emissions and costs for Emirates aircraft.

Emirates worked with 3D Systems to successfully 3D print video monitor shrouds before subjecting the prints to a range of structural, durability, flammability and chemical tests. The parts are also in the process of receiving EASA certification for airworthiness for aircraft interior cabin parts.

For more on this application read Emirates’ announcement or learn more about DuraForm ProX FR1200.

Emirates’s 3D printed video monitor shroud built with DuraForm ProX FR1200.

Carbon Powers Next-Gen 3D Printing Software with Cloud-based Computation

Carbon announced a new version of its next-gen 3D printing software, which expands its industry-leading tools to design, engineer and make polymeric parts using Carbon’s Digital Light Synthesis™ (DLS) technology and resins. With this software release, Carbon now offers a variety of tools that enable customers to print parts easily and successfully the first time, optimize supports for material usage, and minimize post-processing. These new software tools are backed by finite element analysis (FEA), a powerful cloud-based computational technique that simulates the forces of DLS.

In this latest software update, customers can expect advanced auto supports, new fence support, and fast and secure simulations.

Learn more here.

 Representative heat oracle simulation showing hot-spots at multiple part cross-sections.

EOS and Under Armour Announce Partnership

Announced at the recent formnext expo in Frankfurt, Germany, EOS and Under Armour have entered a new strategic partnership. Sharing the same innovative vision, the two organizations will collaborate in leveraging EOS additive manufacturing (AM) technology to advance Under Armour’s 3D footwear business.

“With EOS’ industry-leading laser sintering 3D printing technology, Under Armour can deliver shoes to the marketplace in a meaningful way, creating truly amazing, desirable products which solve our customers’ needs in ways that could have never been imagined before. Together, our two organizations make a formidable pair,” said Clay Dean, chief innovation officer, Under Armour.

Read the full press release here.

UA Architech Futurist with 3D Printed midsole.

BASF Continues its Co-innovation Efforts with Pioneering Partners

At formnext 2017, BASF launched several new materials & engineering solutions for industrial 3D printing. We also announced our latest collaborations in the additive manufacturing industry, including:

• Partnership with Ricoh to bring further innovation to the market – enable industrial usage of additive manufacturing with laser sintering technology.
• Cooperation with EOS on plastic powders produced by BASF and supplied by EOS – new powders based on TPU and PA.
• Collaboration with XAAR to improve the Photopolymer Jetting (PPJ) process – produce 3D printed parts with improved properties at a lower cost.

To learn more, please contact us at 3d-printing@basf.com.

BASF at formnext 2017 (click image for video).

The Ultimate Guide to Rapid Prototyping

With rapid prototyping, designers and engineers can create prototypes directly from CAD data faster than ever before, and execute quick and frequent design revisions based on real-world testing and feedback. Formlabs’ new Ultimate Guide to Rapid Prototyping sheds light on how rapid prototyping fits into the product design process, its applications, and what rapid prototyping tools are available to today’s product design teams.

Additive manufacturing technology and materials are a natural for the rapid prototyping process. Formlabs’ library of engineering resins simulates a range of injection-molded plastics, covering the full spectrum of properties required to conceptualize, prototype, test, and manufacture successful final products.

Righthand Robotics used stereolithography 3D printers as an integral tool for prototyping and producing their ReFlex Hands.

International Expansion Begins

Desktop Metal announced it has begun accepting international pre-orders of its metal 3D printing system, the Studio System™, from companies throughout Europe, Asia Pacific, Canada and Mexico. To support its international expansion plans, Desktop Metal has developed strategic partnerships with authorized Desktop Metal international resellers to begin pre-selling its Studio System throughout Canada, Mexico, Germany, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom, with availability beginning in mid-2018, and it plans to expand more broadly throughout Europe and APAC. Availability of the Studio System will vary by country, and interested buyers should visit www.desktopmetal.com/international for more information.

International pre-orders now being accepted for The Studio System, an end-to-end metal 3D printing solution that includes printer, debinder and furnace.

Additive Industries: Accelerating Industrial Additive Manufacturing

Additive Industries is accelerating industrial additive manufacturing of high-quality, functional metal parts by offering a modular end-to-end powder bed fusion system, MetalFAB1, and seamlessly integrated MRP and a data acquisition platform, Additive World Platform, for highly regulated and demanding industrial markets. With substantially improved reproducibility, productivity, and flexibility, Additive Industries redefines the business case for production of additive manufacturing applications in aerospace, automotive, medical technology and robotics.

Additive Industries offers a range of modules in its metal powder bed fusion systems, from a two-module version to a fully automated and integrated 3D metal printing production system, while maintaining the large 420 mm X 420 mm X 400 mm build volume.

MetalFab1, a modular end-to-end system with integrated MRP and data acquisition.

Functional Prototypes in FDM Nylon 12CF Speed Thule Products to Market

The strength and durability of FDM Nylon 12CF enables designers at Thule to build high-performance prototypes that can stand up to rigorous testing. FDM Nylon 12CF, a carbon-fiber reinforced thermoplastic, meets the demanding needs of the production environment, allowing the replacement of metal tooling for applications such as forming and end-of-arm tooling.

Thule, a global leader in solutions for an active life, creates everything from car racks and carriers to kids’ accessories, luggage and bags, and is notorious for rigorous functional testing during the product development phase. 3D printing prototypes with such a high level of strength and functionality lets Thule bring ideas to life quicker. With FDM Nylon 12CF, Thule can more accurately model production parts, test concepts and designs faster, and ultimately get to market faster.

Watch the video.

Thule’s applications for Nylon 12CF (click image for video).

3D Metal Printing Reviews formnext in Winter Issue

With formnext 2017 in the books, 3D Metal Printing digs deep to detail the new technology offered at Europe’s largest additive manufacturing (AM) event. Centerpiecing the event were debuts of new AM machines, including Renishaw’s RenAM 500Q that features four 500 W lasers, each able to access the whole powder-bed surface simultaneously. Another, the direct-energy-deposition Modulo 400 from BeAM Machines, SAS, integrates all peripherals into the machine cabinet, resulting in a significantly reduced footprint while allowing industrial-scale metal AM. Find out more in the winter issue of 3DMP, out in January. And, read all 3DMP issues at www.3dmpmag.com.

New metal-printing machines, including Renishaw’s RenAM 500Q,  highlighted in 3D Metal Printing’s comprehensive coverage of formnext 2017 in the winter 2018 issue.

TCT’s 2017 in Numbers

• 16 issues of the magazine across 4 regions, printing over 125,000 copies (click here for your free subscription).
• 6 TCT branded trade shows or conferences with an average 20% increase in attendees.
• Over 250 speakers on 10 stages in 3 continents.
• 35% increase in sessions on tctmagazine.com.
• 104,968 miles clocked by editorial team alone, enough to fly around the world over 4 times.

As 2018 rolls around, there will be no slowing down of the content onslaught, but TCT asks the readers of this AMUG newsletter for a favor: Take a look at our editorial planner and get in touch if you have an innovative application for AM technology that you’d like us to cover.

TCT editorial calendar for 2018 (click to enlarge).

Winter 2017 Issue Out Now

Download your FREE copy of Metal AM magazine today. The 120-page Winter 2017 issue has just been published and includes the latest industry news as well as the following exclusive features:

• Oerlikon: Swiss industrial group positions itself as a leading developer of AM components and materials.
• The 1st Munich Technology Conference: AM is on course for broad industrial use.
• Costs and considerations when investing in a metal AM system.
• Combining Metal AM and HIP: Application and process innovations.
• Beyond particle size: Exploring the influence of particle shape on metal powder performance.
• POWDERMET2017: Developments in powder production methods for AM.

Download your free PDF copy of the magazine dedicated to the world of metal additive manufacturing.

3D in 360° – Showcasing Advanced 3D Technology from Every Perspective

Registration is now open for RAPID + TCT 2018, an influential additive manufacturing event that showcases product innovations and offers collaborative learning opportunities to ultimately accelerate the adoption and advancement of the technology. The event will be held April 23-26, 2018, in Fort Worth, TX.

RAPID + TCT provides attendees with hands-on exhibits, groundbreaking product announcements, education from the industry’s most respected experts, and several networking activities.

Early bird conference pricing is available through December 31, 2017. The full conference pass includes three days of conference sessions and lunch vouchers, post-event conference proceedings, a ticket to the 2018 RAPID + TCT Welcome Event, and access to the exhibit floor and all keynote presentations.

Register for RAPID + TCT 2018.

The 3D Printing Industry Continues to Expand

With visits to Singapore, GE Healthcare’s Advanced Manufacturing Technology Center in Sweden and 3D Systems in Colorado, our reporters have kept busy this past month. But of course, the major event of November was formnext in Frankfurt.

Four of the 3DPI team spent the week at the show, where not only exhibitor numbers have grown but also build volumes – as evidenced by the unveiling of the GE ATLAS range of machines.

Looking forward to 2018, we will be hosting our 2nd Annual 3D Printing Industry Awards. The event will take place in Central London on May 17, 2018. We are currently in the nominations phase and look forward to hearing from you about the people and enterprises driving the industry forward.

Nominations are open for the 2018 3D Printing Industry Awards.

Additive Manufacturing News for The Design Engineer

Make Parts Fast (www.makepartsfast.com) offers information, news, and insights into the additive manufacturing industry that help design engineers determine the best way to use this technology in their designs and production of objects. It is primarily for the industrial design engineer, with additional stories that help spark designers’ imagination and educate users.

Users also contribute to this site with their experience and insights. One example is from GoEngineer on how engineers used 3D printing to remove design constraints. Another example is how designers take advantage of 3D printing to create the world’s largest optical lens.

New article on removing design constraints discusses topology optimization and other advantages.

Special Digital Issue: Advancing Additive Manufacturing

Check out this special digital issue that includes 10 articles from Digital Engineering magazine on how rapidly additive manufacturing technologies are evolving. The pace of change creates challenges that are being addressed by hardware and software vendors, service providers, industry and academia alike. Topics covered in this digital issue include model prep and optimization, 3D printing tools and jigs, desktop metal 3D printers, materials, additive manufacturing speed boosts, 3D printed circuit boards, service providers, design for 3D printing and more.

Check out this free resource.

Significant Expansions for AM Magazine and Conference in 2018

Beginning in 2018, Additive Manufacturing magazine, which has been a quarterly publication since its founding in 2012, will expand to publishing six times per year. AM added new staff members this year—senior editor Brent Donaldson and European correspondent Barbara Schulz, in preparation for this change.

Also in 2018, the brand’s Additive Manufacturing Conference will return to the International Manufacturing Technology Show in September in Chicago, while organizers will also be adding an additional event on May 9, the new 3D Printing Workshop to be held in Orlando at NPE 2018, the Plastics Show.

Learn more about these developments.

2017 AM Conference included a panel discussion led by AM magazine’s Peter Zelinski, joined by GE, John Deere, Smith & Nephew, B&J Specialty and Tangible Solutions.