News and Insights of 3D Printing and Manufacturing
Thermwood has produced what could very well be the largest 3D printed autoclave tool for a helicopter ever made. The project, realized through a partnership with aircraft manufacturer Bell, utilized Thermwood’s LSAM 60 mm melt core technology and reinforces AM’s applications in mold production.
NASA Nebraska Space Grant office provided funding to examine the development, validation, and mechanically characterization of antimicrobial 3D printed medical devices for astronauts. The objective is to test the antimicrobial properties of Copper3D’s PLACTIVE filament material on the International Space Station.
At this point, we all know that additive manufacturing is a go-to technology for prototyping. Still, that doesn’t mean we don’t like hearing about case studies, especially when they’re as interesting as this one. CRP Technology, an Italian developer of 3D printing materials, and Leonardo Helicopter Division 3D printed a model of the LEONARDO tiltrotor AW609 aircraft for wind tunnel testing. The impressive test model was 3D printed using CRP’s high-performance Windform composites and selective laser sintering (SLS).
OHB System AG, a leading European space company and a subsidiary of tech group OHB SE, signed a contract with the European Space Agency (ESA) to develop a large-format 3D printer destined for the International Space Station (ISS). The 3D printer, to be used with high performance thermoplastics, will be developed through a OHB System-led consortium consisting of German space company Sonaca Space GmbH, Portuguese 3D printing company BEEVERYCREATIVE and Ireland’s Athlone Institute of Technology.
Relativity Space, an aerospace startup with a focus on 3D printed rockets, recently penned a deal with the U.S. Air Force to begin launching its rockets from the Launch Complex 16 at Cape Canaveral in Florida. Launch Complex 16, also known as LC-16, is something of a historic site: it was built in the late 1950s to launch LGM-25 Titan missiles, was used by NASA for some time and has not seen a launch since 1988’s Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty.
The U.S. Air Force has revealed that it installed a titanium 3D printed component on an operational F-22 Raptor fighter aircraft this past December. The 3D printed part, a secondary bracket component, enabled Air Force technicians speed up the replacement of a damaged part on the aircraft.
RUAG Australia, a subsidiary of technology company RUAG, is teaming up with Australian research groups to explore the utilization of the laser metal deposition (LMD) process for aircraft repairs. The project, carried out in partnership with members of the Innovative Manufacturing Cooperative Research Centre (IMCRC) and RMIT University, will specifically look at using LMD to produce spare parts for aircraft using steel and titanium.
Precision ADM, Inc., a Canadian AM solutions provider based in Winnipeg, has received AS9100 Rev D and ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management System certifications, enabling it to manufacture components for the aerospace industry.
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Despite some rocky beginnings, Russia’s Organ.Aut 3D bioprinter successfully reached outer space earlier this week and is already being put to good use. According to Russian scientists, the zero-gravity bioprinter has already printed a mouse’s thyroid aboard the International Space Station (ISS).