Aurora Labs (ASX:A3D) an Australian company that specializes in the development of metal 3D printers, has announced that it is developing a patent-pending Powder Production Unit (PPU).
借助PPU，Aurora希望通过以与其他商业卖家的价格生产材料来迎接添加剂合金市场。
每天最多生产5吨
In the “first step to commercial powder production,” Aurora has created a prototype PPU system that has now entered the testing stages for various parameters. The company has a number of patents pending for the processes used, though it expects it could take “several years to reach a firm conclusion of either rejection or grant.”
单个PPU预计每天最多5吨粉末的生产目标。有了更多的单位，该公司计划将流程扩展到更大的数量。
开发时间表
If all goes to plan, initially Aurora’s alloy powder will begin sales across international markets. After 18 months, the company hopes to scale the process to meet international demand.
Within 2 years, the process will be scaled again to serve an expected demand for materials created by the market introduction of Aurora’s Medium Format Printing (MFP) andLarge Format Printing(LFP) technology that is currently in-development.
The company will also seeks markets outside of additive manufacturing to make use of the powder.
An additive materials boom
最近利用对钛和镍合金的明显需求，高科技工程集团Sandvik投资2500万美元在3D打印材料的采矿和生产设施中。
An increasing number of enterprises hope to supply metal powders for 3D printing. For example, advanced plasma process specialist PyroGenesis made the decision to re-enter the金属粉末生产市场以满足3D印刷行业的需求。
Aurora Labs董事总经理David Budge表示：“我们在粉末开发方面正在迅速发展，因为我们看到这里很容易获得的机会，”
“金属粉的生产与添加剂制造所产生的潜在需求（例如使用我们的大格式打印机）之间存在明显的协同作用，我们打算利用这一机会。”
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Featured image shows a stainless steel bracket 3D printed by Aurora Labs. Image via Aurora Labs
