News and Insights of 3D Printing and Manufacturing
A series of recently approved codes by the American Medical Association (AMA) will help to push the adoption and use of 3D printing for clinical applications and healthcare. The new codes—consisting of four current procedural terminology (CPT) category III reimbursement codes, came into effect on July 1.
The fourth edition of the 3D Pioneers Challenge came to a close this past June, after the contest’s expert jury selected the winning submissions from a pool of 36 finalists. Winners from each of the challenge’s eight main categories were presented with their prizes (worth over € 40,000) at Rapid.Tech + FabCon 3D.
Each year, Good Design Australia presents prizes to the most innovative designs in various disciplines. This year, the 61st annual Australian Good Design Awards presented the highest award—the Good Design Award of the Year—to medtech company Inventia for its Rastrum 3D bioprinter, which is designed for advancing cancer treatments.
The future of space exploration as we imagine it is not going to be possible without the heavy implementation of 3D printing technologies, intended in a broad sense as digital, additive and robotic manufacturing processes. Now NASA has awarded a $73.7 million contract to Made In Space, Inc. of Mountain View, California, to demonstrate the ability of its small spacecraft, called Archinaut One, to manufacture and assemble (3D print) spacecraft components in low-Earth orbit. Made in Space ‘s spaceborne construction 3D printer will launch aboard the Rocket Lab 3D rocket, powered by 3D printed engines, no earlier than 2022.
CADENAS, a German software developer specializing in strategic parts management and parts reduction, has introduced its latest platform, 3Dfind.it, a visual search engine that enables engineers and professionals to find and download millions of CAD and BIM 3D models from manufacturer catalogs around the world.
Leading polymer manufacturer Covestro and 3D printing company Carbon are teaming up to scale up production of Carbon’s polyurethane liquid resin material. The material, which is suitable for producing production parts using Carbon’s Digital Light Synthesis (DLS) technology, will now be produced at high volumes to meet mass production demand.
Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh’s reputable Swanson School of Engineering have been awarded over $1 million by the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE) and the university to develop a quality assurance method for additive manufacturing next-generation gas turbine components.
A collaboration between Digital Building Technologies and the Origen Festival in Riom, Switzerland, the installation Concrete Choreography consists of nine, individually designed, 2.7m tall columns. Each column is concrete 3D printed at full height in 2.5 hours with the process developed at ETH Zurich with the support of NCCR DFAB.
German chemical group WACKER is preparing to introduce a new and improved version of its ACEO 3D printing technology for silicone rubber at the upcoming K 2019 International Trade Fair for Plastics and Rubber. The new 3D printer—the ACEO Imagine Series K2—integrates a range of new features and capabilities, including printing up to four different silicone materials simultaneously.
Despite the many advances in Laser Powder Bed Fusion technology in recent years—including multi-laser capabilities and even support-free builds—powder bed fusion has remained limited by certain factors, namely, consistency. In fact, speaking to many people across the industry, consistency and reliability are two critical points that keep coming up as hurdles to the full industrialization of AM.