News and Insights of 3D Printing and Manufacturing
Dutch construction design firm Studio RAP has been 3D printing ceramic tiles for their work on design elements of the pioneering New Delft Blue project in the historic Dutch city of Delft. After printing these tests at Studio RAP’s workshop, the tiles went straight into the kiln at Koninklijke Tichelaar where they were also beautifully glazed.
In yet another example of additive manufacturing in the automotive sector, Chevrolet announced that its 3D printing racing program supported over 80,000 miles of racing. This milestone is indicative of the competitive and manufacturing efficiency derived from AM products. Chevrolet’s announcement pairs with this Network’s recent reporting on Team Penske’s and Oxford Brookes Racing’s implementation of AM parts in their race cars.
A consortium of companies that operate in the construction and in the construction 3D printing area are participating in a selection in Holland to present new concepts for automated production of 3D printed circular viaducts, as part of the HONEYCOMB project.
PERI GmbH is building the first 3D printed residential building in Germany, and precisely in Beckum, North Rhine-Westphalia. The two-story detached house with approx. 80 sqm of living space per floor is being built with a COBOD system that PERI uses to provide 3D printing construction services. This segment is booming way beyond anyone could have imaged (except us: three years ago, when only a handful of companies were active, we forecast a €40 billion dollar industry by 2027, among general skepticism)
Following in the footsteps of construction 3D printing pioneers D-Shape and Contour Crafting, ICON, a developer of advanced construction technologies including robotics, software, and building materials, has been awarded a government Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract. The deal includes funding from NASA to begin research and development on Project Olympus: a space-based construction system that could support future exploration of the Moon. ICON will also dedicate a division of the company to focus on space.
ACCIONA, a global leader in sustainable infrastructure solutions, is taking part in the United Arab Emirate’s 3D Emerging Technologies exhibition, the Middle East’s largest and most influential event for the additive manufacturing industry.
Barberio Colella Architetti and Dr. Angelo Figliola proposed a design to ameliorate temperature perception in Abu Dhabi’s urban microclimates using 3D printed sandstone. The design focuses on a city whose average temperature for 2019 was 28.9 degrees Celsius. The United Arab Emirates’ annual average in 2019 was 29.1 degrees Celsius. The city’s warmest month is August; the architects and Dr. Figliola’s design projects temperatures of 26 degrees Celsius in August. This substantial cooling effect helps make targeted areas more comfortable.
The BMW Group has transposed its 3D printing activities to its motorbike racing team by printing S 1000 RR World Superbike components at the curbside, on-demand. This method allows the team to quickly prototype new components at the circuit. Testing is made more efficient, which is an old story for those familiar with additive manufacturing prototyping. Full production runs on these bikes occur after the 3D-printed prototypes are fully tested before final production occurs in Munich. BMW also uses its 3D printers at races to produce non-critical parts track-side.
LM Industries, the parent company of Local Motors – the first company to develop largely 3D printed EVs – raised $15 million from Mirai Creation Fund II (managed by SPARX Group Co., Ltd, the Japanese asset management firm). This financing will help Local Motors deliver Olli to customers and consumers who are seeking ways to redefine local mobility.
Three months after its foundation, Additive Drives GmbH, developers of additively manufactured electric motor components, obtained a seven-digit (€1.5 million) seed investment from the Munich-based investor AM Ventures Holding GmbH. The financing round is intended to further advance the market launch. In addition to scaling the business in the area of prototyping, high-performance series applications are also to be enabled. By means of 3D printing, Additive Drives takes electric machines to unexpected levels of performance and efficiency.