AMUG Newsletter May 2019

President’s Report

After a very short break for myself and the AMUG Board, we need to get back to work. Part of this work is preparation for the transition of the newly elected officers to get acclimated and assume their positions. This handover occurs on July 1, and we are all eager to get the 2019-2020 team in place. The remainder of our near-term work is to continue to evolve our long-term strategy and make some decisions when it comes to what AMUG and the AMUG Conference will look like three to five years from now. The officers are meeting the last few days of May to define this strategy.

It has been my pleasure to serve as your president over the past two years. Even though I am moving on, members have made me, and will continue to make me, smile. At a recent event, I was stopped and told to “check this out”. I was a bit apprehensive…not sure what to expect. Suddenly this AMUG Member rolled up his pant leg and showed me his AMUG socks. That was both a relief—Phew! It is just socks—and a pleasant surprise. It was nice to see the AMUG passion and the AMUG community spirit live on after the conference. Thank you to him for making my day. And thank you to all of our members for making days by giving me the opportunity to connect with you in the alternate reality (as Todd Grimm described in his keynote) of the day-to-day world outside of the AMUG Conference.

Randy Stevens Scholarship Recipient

My expectations of what the AMUG Conference would be and what I would experience were more than met. Attending the AMUG conference provided me a great opportunity to communicate with a broader AM user community and to gain new perspectives on the uses and applications of AM technologies, which will help me provide better training of the next-generation AM workforce, promote the uses and applications of AM, develop new AM technologies to better serve the users for a wider range of applications, as well as engage and cultivate a larger AM community.

The conference was great. The people were great. And the environment was great for sharing and learning more about AM. Through the run of the conference, I was immersed in the state of the art of the industry and exposed to new techniques, processes, and machines…all of which I will use to advance AM technologies and train the next generation.

Somewhat surprising to me was the value I gained from working with the AMUG team on the operational aspects of the conference, such as stuffing the bags that each attendee received. Seeing these back-end operations gave me an appreciation for what goes into making the event successful. And working with volunteers to make all of this happen showed me the passion for AM and for the AMUG community.

This is truly a great conference for anyone who wants to learn more about AM, no matter if they are beginners or experts. It was my pleasure to be a part of it.

Dr. Wenchao Zhou
Assistant Professor
Department of Engineering
University of Arkansas

Guy E. Bourdeau Scholarship Recipient

AMUG 2019 was an absolutely incredible experience as a first-time attendee, active AM user, and recipient of the Guy E. Bourdeau scholarship. The knowledge I left with was better than that from any other conference I’ve attended. Not only was I introduced to the latest, rising AM technologies, I was able to experience these and other well-known processes firsthand. Attending AMUG granted me the educational benefits of the conference and allowed me to further assimilate myself within the AM community.

I met an immeasurable amount of AM users due to AMUG’s excellent networking opportunities. Because of my aptitude for medical applications, I am thankful that AMUG provided the chance to connect with many pioneers actively involved in medical and healthcare. Without attending AMUG, I would not have gained these networking connections. Furthermore, the random seating at the networking lunches allowed me to meet with people I would have never imagined to connect with, and I found this to be a great experience that is unheard of at other conferences.

Beyond the benefits of networking, I was able to expand my AM knowledge by attending a range of technical sessions on various aspects and applications of AM. Personally, I favored the talks with panelists because the audience was introduced to more than one opinion on a specific topic. I admired the fact that the attendees were able to ask the expert panelists any question that could help them overcome obstacles they have encountered in their own work. It truly shows that AMUG values the fact that the panelists and attendees are part of a community, and the goal is to help the entire community excel and grow together. I was able to walk out of these sessions with different viewpoints, triggering fresh, innovative ideas.

Even though I have only been involved with AM for a short amount of time, in comparison to others, I left AMUG 2019 feeling welcomed to the AM community. As the recipient of the Guy E. Bourdeau scholarship, I will forever be thankful to Renee Bourdeau, Cimquest, and the AMUG Board for giving me the opportunity to share my work and exposure in AM to the AMUG community. It was an incredible experience, and I plan to stay actively involved with AMUG Conferences.

Victoria Sears
Graduate Student in Bioengineering
University of Michigan – Dearborn

RAPID + TCT

AMUG, as well as our sponsors and media partners (articles below), will be at RAPID + TCT, which will be held in Cobo Center, Detroit, Michigan, from May 20-23. The exhibits are open from May 21-23, and AMUG will be on the show floor in booth 2221.

If you will be at RAPID + TCT and find that you can spare a few minutes at this busy event, please stop by our booth. We’d love to see you again, share stories and hear your thoughts on making AMUG even better.

Proceedings

Survey: Building a Better AMUG Experience

The AMUG team asks a simple question before making decisions and implementing changes: “Is it good for the members?” With our growth, and that of the AM industry, it has become a bit harder to answer that question. So we want to get your feedback on your AMUG Conference experiences. We will be soliciting those comments through a survey that will be issued in June.

At the heart of the survey is a desire to understanding what motivates you to keep coming back to the AMUG Conference (what to keep or improve) and, possibly more important, what elements may cause you to skip a few years of attendance (what needs to be fixed).  We also want to learn your general likes and dislikes about the conference.

The AMUG team wants to make the experience better, and we can do this best by hearing your thoughts. So please respond to our request to complete the survey, which will be coming in June via email.

Formlabs Wraps Successful Digital Factory and User Summit in Boston

The Digital Factory took place on May 7, bringing together CEOs, CTOs, and manufacturing leaders at a day-long executive summit. Attendees heard from managers who are reconfiguring their entire businesses around new digital manufacturing technologies, including artificial intelligence, additive manufacturing, advanced automation, and analytics.

Formlabs User Summit took place on May 8, bringing together the people defining what’s possible with digital fabrication. Users like Matej Vlasic, who was awarded the impact award at the summit, showed us what is possible. Matej’s son was born one month prematurely and, due to difficulties during childbirth, suffered severe brain damage that led to cerebral palsy. Matej, a Slovenian engineer, took on the challenge of developing a custom orthosis for his son, inventing a new scanning and printing workflow that helped his son learn how to walk in just a few days. Today, Matej has transformed his innovation into a business that has the potential to positively impact the lives of millions of children all over the world.

Max Lobovsky onstage at Formlabs User Summit.

Big Things Happening at RAPID + TCT for BigRep

Heading to RAPID + TCT later this month?  Here’s a quick summary of what to expect from BigRep.

• The BigRep PRO will make its second appearance in North America in Booth 503. This large-format industrial printer is powered by MXT® Metering Extruder Technology, and a state-of-the-art Bosch Rexroth motion control system delivering unprecedented speed, precision and quality and IoT connectivity that fully integrates with Industry 4.0.
• The NERA eBike is coming to Detroit! Be sure to check out the NERA eBike on the show floor and hear from the designer, Marco Mattia Cristofori, on Thursday about how it came to life in just 12 weeks.  In case you haven’t seen it, here’s a quick video to get you excited!
• And one last big happening, but you’ll have to wait until Monday, May 20 to find out more. We think it’s pretty cool.

Schedule a demonstration at RAPID + TCT or a virtual one if you won’t be there.

See you at Rapid + TCT 2019!

Farsoon Technologies will be exhibiting at Rapid + TCT 2019 in the “Open for Industry” booth, #1264, at the Cobo Center.

On display will be an array of sample prototypes produced on Farsoon additive manufacturing sintering systems, a variety of materials, and solutions for both polymer and metal additive manufacturing.

Farsoon will be exhibiting some of the world’s largest laser sintered parts produced on the new HT1001P polymer system as well as large titanium parts produced on the FS421M metal laser sintering system. Farsoon will also display the newly developed Flight™ Technology and advancements on copper material processing.

Schedule a meeting with a Farsoon Team member to learn more at info@farsoonam.com!

  Watch: Introducing Flight™ Technology

Hitting the Big Screen

It’s not often that additive manufacturing gets a nod in a mainstream motion picture. But it was definitely the case this past April when Stratasys made the credits for the LAIKA Studios movie, “Missing Link.” LAIKA Studios is the award-winning movie production company that uses stop-motion animation to create its art. Past LAIKA films include “Coraline,” “Kubo and the Two Strings” and “Paranorman.”

Producing the multitude of character models, particularly the varied facial expressions needed to bring them to life, is an incredibly time-consuming task. To expedite the process, LAIKA turned to 3D printing. For the color and realism they needed on “Missing Link,” LAIKA used the Stratasys J750™ 3D printer.

You can read more about the “link” between LAIKA Studios and Stratasys in this April Stratasys blog post. To see the printer that helped make the movie possible, visit the J750 page at Stratasys.com.

Some of the many character faces 3D printed by LAIKA Studios.

Renishaw Showcase AM Capabilities at RAPID + TCT

To share its expertise in medical device manufacturing, global engineering technologies company Renishaw is returning to RAPID + TCT, the leading additive manufacturing (AM) and 3D printing event in the United States. Renishaw can be found on Booth #827 at the Cobo Center in Detroit, Michigan.

On Tuesday, May 21^st at 3.30pm (EDT), Marc Saunders, director of AM applications at Renishaw, and Alexis Dang MD, chief medical officer at PrinterPrezz Inc., will give a talk explaining the clinical and manufacturing considerations when additively manufacturing spinal implants, as part of the AM Technical Insights Forum. The talk will explore the growing capabilities of additive manufacturing technologies and how they can be used in the medical sector to improve productivity when manufacturing customizable implants.

The talk will complement the exhibition of Renishaw’s latest AM system, the RenAM 500Q, which includes four 500 W lasers in the most commonly used platform size. By speeding up the AM build process, manufacturers will see a drastic increase in productivity, leading to a reduction in cost per part, an increase in return on investment and a reduction in process waste. This will allow AM to be used in applications that were previously uneconomical.

Learn more.

Exhibition of the four-laser RenAM 500Q will be complemented by Renishaw talks at RAPID + TCT.

Additive Industries Redefines the Business Case for AM Industrial Production at RAPID + TCT 2019

Metal AM is maturing rapidly to become a regular production technology. When applications shift from single prototyped parts to larger series production, the process and equipment requirements change from manual flexibility to automated predictability and integrated reproducibility. The MetalFAB1™ system is accelerating industrial additive manufacturing of high-quality metal parts by offering a modular 3D printing system, including a seamlessly integrated information platform, to demanding markets like aerospace, automotive, medical & high-tech equipment. With substantially improved reproducibility, productivity and flexibility, Additive Industries redefines the business case for industrial production. Meet us on May 21-23 in Booth 703 to hear more about the MetalFAB1, and to learn more about:

• The unique optical system of the MetalFAB1: 4 full field lasers – preventing stitching zones, automated laser to laser alignment, and automated laser focus;
• The modules of the MetalFAB1: Multiple AM Cores, heat treatment module, and exchange module improve your productivity and flexibility;
• Customer’s experiences on their industrial applications

See MetalFab1 at RAPID + TCT in booth 703.

Connecting the World

Additive manufacturing is pushing the limits of possible.

When we look back 100 years, we see manufacturing just starting to shift the social fabric. When we look forward 100 years, we see a future that has been designed and manufactured to make all our dreams come true.

This film is for you, the enablers of dreams.

Watch “AM Connecting the World” (video).

GE Additive at RAPID + TCT

RAPID + TCT opens in four days, and we hope to see you there! We’re excited to show customers how GE Additive is truly a full-service additive partner. With a suite of product offerings and materials, we can help our customers unlock the full potential of additive manufacturing. Visit us at our booth and:

• See the first 3D-printed titanium wheels on a Ford GT—technology demonstrators created through the GE Additive AddWorks™ team partnership with HRE Wheels
• See ULA’s Vulcan Centaur rocket part on display
• See our Spectra H and M2 cusing on display
• Learn more about our software solutions
• Explore AP&C powders and GE Additive materials

Additive manufacturing is rewriting the rules of manufacturing and GE Additive is leading the charge.

Be sure to follow us on, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram to see the latest updates during the show.

Can’t wait until RAPID + TCT to get in touch? Contacts us now.

GE Additive to display a suite of products and solutions at RAPID + TCT.

Rethink Manufacturing with 3D Systems at RAPID+TCT 2019

If you’re attending RAPID+TCT 2019, join 3D Systems in booth 1227 to view our solution portfolio and talk with company experts. There will also be several opportunities to hear our customers speak about the benefits they’re realizing from our solutions:

• Vyomesh Joshi, 3D Systems’ president and CEO, will moderate a customer panel May 22, 12:30–1:30pm focused on the industrialization of additive manufacturing. During this session, hear from Stewart Haas Racing, rms Company, and Nokia.
• On May 22, 11:45–11:55am Dr. Ken Gall, chair of the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Duke University, will deliver a session titled “Compressive and Tensile Fatigue Behavior of Gyroid-Based Titanium Alloy Scaffolds Produced by Direct Metal Printing.”
• In 3D Systems’ booth, come hear Jim Hall, chief engineer, Jay Leno’s Garage; Terry Hill, CEO and founder, Rapid Application Group; Mike McLean, general manager, 3dprintedparts.com.

For more information, please visit the company’s website.

Parts manufactured via 3D Systems Figure^® 4 solution.

Essentium Showcases Advances in ESD Safe Materials for 3D Printing at AMUG 2019

At the AMUG Conference 2019, Brandon Sweeney, head of R&D for materials and co-founder at Essentium Inc., conducted a workshop on the use and measurement of electrostatic discharge (ESD)-safe 3D printing materials, critical to protect electrostatic-sensitive devices in electronics manufacturing, oil and gas, and aerospace industries.

The key issue with old ESD materials is that they require a high loading level of conductive additives to qualify as ESD-safe, and those high levels degrade the material properties making them unsafe for electrostatic-sensitive products.

What makes Essentium’s carbon nanotube ESD-safe material so unique is its multilayer extrusion process. Essentium has developed high-quality, multi-layer structures into its filament to create a no-compromise ESD-safe material for 3D printing. This enables the use of premium quality conductive nano-filllers that achieve electrical percolation at very low loading levels and are fully entrained in the polymer matrix, eliminating the possibility of sloughing conductive particles onto electronic assemblies during manufacturing.

Since the majority of the filament is composed of the base polymer, the mechanical properties of printed parts remain unaffected by the ESD-safe layer. Essentium ‘Z’ filaments are the world’s first no-compromise, premium ESD-safe 3D printing materials for transforming the factory floor.

Find out more at essentium3d.com.

Brandon Sweeney, head of R&D for materials and co-founder, Essentium Inc.

New Colleagues, New Products, New Partnerships

BASF 3D Printing Solutions continues to grow, seeking to accelerate the industrialization of additive manufacturing. Below are some of our recent announcements…

In the news:

• François Minec joined as chief commercial officer of our 3D-printing team
• BASF 3D Printing Solutions introduces new TPU material for HP Multi Jet Fusion technology
• BASF 3D Printing Solutions launches new website
• New partnerships, new distributors, new use cases… to be announced at Rapid + TCT next week. Stay tuned!

For more information, check out our new website or contact us at 3d-printing@basf-3dps.com.

BASF introduces new TPU for HP’s MJF (video).

HP Inc. Announces Powerful New 3D Printing Solution, Industrial Alliances, and Global Production Network

HP has unveiled a series of innovations and partnerships helping its customers accelerate their digital manufacturing journey. HP is expanding its industry-leading 3D printing portfolio with the new Jet Fusion 5200 Series 3D printing solution, an industrial 3D printing system bringing new levels of manufacturing predictability, efficiency, repeatability, and quality to customers scaling to full production. HP also introduced a new certified material, Ultrasint™ 3D TPU01, developed by BASF, to expand the breadth of final-parts applications for customers on the new Jet Fusion 5200 Series systems.

HP is also expanding its strategic alliances with industrial leaders BASF, Materialise, and Siemens, and launching the HP Digital Manufacturing Network, a new, global community of proven, large-scale 3D printed parts providers.

At the same time, HP and Siemens are celebrating their alliance expansion at the new Siemens Polymer Competency Center in Erlangen, Germany. The integration of HP’s new Jet Fusion 5200 3D printing solution with Siemens’ Digital Enterprise offerings enables industrial companies to bring 3D-printed parts to market faster, more cost-effectively, more sustainably, and at higher volumes than ever before.

HP Jet Fusion 5200 3D Printing Solution (video).

Visit SLM at Rapid + TCT in Detroit, Booth #1003

SLM is gearing up for its best Rapid + TCT Show yet! Join us in booth # 1003 at the most comprehensive event in the industry. This year SLM will not only have a new machine on display, but we will hold in-booth presentations. Catch our partners delivering great content right in our booth, #1003! Don’t miss free presentations by Altair, Boeing, Carpenter Technology, Identify3D, Relativity Space, and The Barnes Group Associates!

Click here to see the schedule.

NASA Seeker Robot x The Technology House, Powered By Carbon

NASA recently launched its first fully autonomous, free-flying robot, Seeker, to the International Space Station (ISS). One of Seeker’s most critical parts is a high-performance thruster for cold-gas propulsion, enabling the robot to propel itself through space. With a short timeline to launch and complex design requirements, NASA turned to Carbon and The Technology House (TTH) for help.

Through an iterative design approach, TTH worked with NASA to rapidly and cost-effectively produce the thrusters using Carbon’s Digital Light Synthesis™ technology. Using Carbon, NASA was able to design, test, and iterate the parts quickly, enabling them to go from idea to project start to part certification to launch in a little over a year, which is virtually unheard of when it comes to timelines for NASA spacecraft.

Seeker (left) is an external, free-flying robot that will inspect Cygnus.

ExOne to Showcase New X1 25PRO™ 3D Printing Production Machine at RAPID + TCT

First announced at formnext 2018, ExOne will be displaying its newest 3D binder jet production printer, the X1 25PRO™ at the RAPID + TCT show. Combining the fine metal injection molding (“MIM”) powder capability of ExOne’s INNOVENT+™ machine with production volume capability, the new X1 25PRO™ is positioned to address the needs of MIM, powder metallurgy, and manufacturing customers seeking a larger platform solution for producing reliable parts in a production environment. The new X1 25PRO™ offers customers the ability to produce fine quality parts from a diverse range of MIM powders.

We will also be displaying the Innovent+^TM system, as well as printed sand and metal parts, including a unique 3D printed metal piece created specifically for the event!

Make sure to stop by booth #917 at RAPID. We look forward to seeing you!

ExOne’s New X1 25PRO™ production machine.

Why Additive Manufacturing Needs the Executive Perspective

Who benefits from the move to additive manufacturing (AM)? That is, within a manufacturing enterprise, what discipline or department ought to own and understand this move, because this group has the most to gain from it?

It is an important question. For the company thinking about transitioning part of its production to AM and wondering about the potential promise this transition might bring, this question is arguably the most important one to answer correctly. Proceeding with the wrong answer can doom the adoption of additive even in an organization poised to benefit from it. The wrong advocate won’t be able to find and make the proper case for the technology.

Who then is the right advocate? The answer to this question might be the same for almost every company contemplating this move: the CEO.

Read the full article from Additive Manufacturing.

Read the full article from Additive Manufacturing.

Want to Speak at this Year’s TCT Conference @ Fomnext?

There are just two weeks left to submit your abstracts for this year’s TCT Conference @ formnext which will take place on November 19-22 at Messe Frankfurt, Germany.

By bringing together 3D printing experts, research analysts, academics, engineers and designers, this year’s summit will explore cutting-edge AM applications, materials and processes and shine a spotlight on the latest developments and global trends in the AM marketplace.

If you have valuable insight to share, submit your presentation title, abstract (maximum 200 words), speaker biography (maximum 200 words) and a high-resolution headshot here. But you’ll need to be quick, the call for papers will close on May 31^st.

(Please note that abstract submissions will not be accepted from vendors of machines, materials or services who are exhibiting or are deemed to be suitable as exhibitors.  Exhibitors are, however, invited to apply for the TCT Introducing Stage @ formnext.)

Formnext 2018 speaker providing insights to a rapt audience.

3DMP is Ready for RAPID + TCT

As North America’s premier additive manufacturing event descends on Detroit this month, 3D Metal Printing will be there in full force, reporting on the latest technologies and developments. Our newly published Spring 2019 issue previews RAPID + TCT, providing a sneak peek of what you’ll see. And 3DMP provides an extensive recap of the AMUG Conference 2019, summarizing new products, industry news, and info-packed presentations.

Be sure to visit our website for details on 3DMP’s Mexico Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing Conference, June 12-13 in Monterrey, Mexico, and the 3D Metal Printing Experience and Tech Tour, June 6-7 in Detroit, MI.

www.3dmpmag.com

The Spring 2019 issue of 3D Metal Printing provides an extensive preview of RAPID + TCT, where our editors will take to the aisles to report on industry advancements.

3 Examples Where AM Is Winning for Production

Is additive manufacturing ready for production? Three stories in the latest issue of Additive Manufacturing say yes. The cover story explores how a structural titanium component for the Boeing 787 came to be made additively at Spirit AeroSystems, resulting in a lower buy-to-fly ratio versus machining from stock.

Contract manufacturer Incodema3D offers a second example, illustrating what it’s like to dive into continuous-flow production with metal AM.

Finally, Resolution Medical is finding opportunities with Carbon’s CLIP technology as an alternative to plastic injection molding for manufacturing medical device components such as catheter handles.

Production AM has arrived for these companies. Learn more in the digital edition.

Our latest issue highlights three instances of 3D printing for production. Subscribe here.

From Rapid Prototyping to Rocket Engines: The Evolution of 3T Additive Manufacturing

In the latest issue of Metal Additive Manufacturing magazine, discover the evolution of a company with two decades of experience in part production using additive manufacturing technologies.

Based in the UK, 3T Additive Manufacturing Ltd enjoys a strong position as an international developer and supplier of cutting-edge metal AM components. At a time of transition for the company, we met with outgoing CEO Ian Halliday and his successor, Nigel Robinson, to discuss the evolution of the metal AM industry to date and the business’s plans for further expansion.

Read the article for free in Metal AM, Spring 2019, online or as a PDF download.

www.metal-am.com

The latest issue features insights into the evolution of 3T Additive Manufacturing Ltd.