Given the havoc that COVID-19 is causing with global supply chains, manufacturers have arguably never needed to regroup and rethink how they source parts more than they do now. However, the pandemic has also prevented large swathes of the 3D printing community from gathering, sharing ideas and identifying opportunities to address this, with Rapid+TCT called off in 2020 and smaller than usual last year.
With that in mind, it was a relief to find that the 2022 edition of the event was back at full capacity, and jam-packed with new, innovative products, as well as engineers willing to explore their functionalities. To make sure that those unable to attend didn’t miss out, 3D Printing Industry’s own Paul Hanaphy attended the event in full, and has put together a rundown of the show’s highlights below.
Better meeting manufacturers’ needs
合适的是，Rapid+TCT今年在底特律的亨廷顿广场（Huntington Place西门子CEO Barbara Humpton on the ‘glocalization’ of US production. During the speech, Humpton not only highlighted the need for greater insourcing by manufacturers as a means of reinforcing the country’s supply chains, but the potential of 3D printing to help facilitate this shift as well.
As it turned out, the keynote’s focus on the need for innovation to overcome supply issues was reflected on the show floor, with the likes ofSPEE3D展示其快速部署能力LightSPEE3D。The machine has beenused by the Australian Army in many field trials，该公司的首席执行官拜伦·肯尼迪（Byron Kennedy）在其展位上齐头并进，以解释它现在如何帮助将军用车保持在路上。
At the stand, Kennedy showed off a battery connector which usually takes 16 weeks to produce and ship, but with SPEE3D 3D printing, it can be made inside ten minutes. What’s more, the CEO added that post-processing the component is simple and quick, before going on to perform the process himself in front of attendees.
Elsewhere,Pantheonalso featured a machine boasting rapid manufacturing capabilities. Known as the ‘HS3,’ the industrial-grade system is said to be five times faster than comparable 3D printers. While the machine is slated for a Q3 2022 launch, the Canadian start-up has already begun working with clinicians, with the aim of helping them digitize and begin insourcing their supply of medical parts.
“We’re actually working with a couple of groups already on digitizing supply chains,” explains Pantheon CEO Bob Cao. “Right now we have a project with Vancouver General Hospital, where we’re essentially creating a digital inventory of plastic medical goods. We’re also looking at some things in the defense sector. That’s starting to really blow up for us, and speed is enabling that to be possible.”
Edging towards material sustainability
Another trend that popped up multiple times throughout the show was material sustainability, with an entireAMGTA-sponsored panel being dedicated to the topic on day two. During the discussion,6K Additive’sFrank Roberts said there needs to be a “little less conversation and a little more action” on reducing waste, before later at his firm’s booth, explaining how its technology is driving a change for the better.
进一步详细介绍公司的UniMeltsystem, Roberts shared how the microwave plasma technology converts millings and turnings into metal powders. Using the process, the company’s President said that it’s now able to produce nickel while using 91% less energy to do so, and reducing emissions by as much as 91.5%, when compared to conventional induction furnace gas atomization.
There were also a range of sustainable materials on-show at the event, withPolymaker显示其PolyTerra PLA。在展会上3 d印刷行业,the firm’s Marketing Manager Luke Taylor claimed that the polymer targets eco-friendliness on many fronts. Not only is the filament bio-based and sold on cardboard holders, but the company pledges to plant a tree for each spool sold.
In terms of new launches,Braskemdebuted itsfirst-ever sustainable 3D printing filamentrange at the show. Released in the run-up to the event, the materials are available in ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), recycled polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) variations. On the show floor, Alexandre Luz, an Innovation and Technology Leader at the company, said that each of these is made from sugarcane-sourced ethylene, making them eco-friendly but not at the expense of end-part performance.
Likewise,Jabil在活动中发布了PK 5000。通过隔离一氧化碳并将其变成固体形式，据说该聚合物比PA12等尼龙更可持续，并且具有更大的耐化学性。该聚合物设计用于选择性激光烧结（SLS）机器，可用于创建滑动，剪裁和连接器零件，其中许多零件在展位上进行了演出。
解决AM的数据挑战
On the event’s third day, a panel hailing from various 3D printing software-developing leaders including西门子,Autodesk,Hexagonand实现然后，继续捕捉了该节目的另一个主要趋势：如何最好地利用整个行业中3D打印制造商现在捕获和存储的数据。
虽然洞察力的讨论涵盖了从文件格式的好处到加密的所有内容，但鉴于它的推出，物料的副总裁和GM Bryan Crutchfield的存在非常重要CO-AM platformat Rapid+TCT.
Speaking to the firm’s Software Marketing Director Hans Van Glabeke at its booth that day, I was told that CO-AM enables the creation of a ‘data lake,’ that is capable of communicating with any integrated production tools. The platform is open to third-party app integration, even those that replace Materialise’s own products, and it has already partnered with蓖麻andAM-FLOW促进此功能。
后者还以其新的AM质量产品的形式在展览会上发表了自己的合作产品发布的突出显示和新闻。与之一起开发Oqton，该系统有效地检测出在手动零件检查过程中无法识别的污水坑（例如污水坑）等打印错误。目前，该技术仅用于基于小规模的实验室应用程序，但Am-Flow展位上的团队表示，他们的目标是使其与之兼容AM-SORTsoon.
Scaling new highs and lows
As with many 3D printing shows, some of the most attention-grabbing booths at Rapid+TCT featured machines and prints that scaled new heights. TheThermwood Corporation的display was particularly impressive, in that one of its LSAM systems was being used to create a huge build in live-action. The firm also had a massive钟helicopter blade mold on-show that took just three hours to print.
In a similar vein, atSciaky，其营销副总裁罗伯特·菲利普斯（Robert Phillips）说Lockheed Martinhas managed to use one of its systems to create the bottom half of a large satellite propellant tank. According to Phillips, the defense contractor, which is now part ofBiden’s AM Forward initiative, is able to realize such builds thanks to a “natural advancement of the technology” that has taken place over the last decade.
Meanwhile, at the opposite end of the scale,Nano Dimensionshowcased the capabilities of itsFabrica 2.0machine alongside a range of highly-accurate, tiny parts that, when viewed through a microscope, had visible 50 micron-sized holes.
工程师在Azothalso spoke of their improved small part production capabilities as part of a media tour of their facility, the night before the event started. At the site, which featuresXJet’s first installed Carmel 1400M, the team explained how the system’s ability to produce parts with “fine tolerances” and “complex overhangs” could now enable them to address new customers with higher-throughput needs.
Getting up close and personal
正如您所期望的那样，参加Rapid+TCT的其他好处之一是，它提供了机会，可以通过在演出中启动的新系统来近距离地站起来。展出了无数的机器和技术，其中许多围绕金属3D打印的进步旋转，其中包括桌面金属showcasing itsExOne S-Max Flex奉献。
通过将其新的3D打印机与单个通行证打印机安装ABBrobotic arm, the firm says it has managed to halve the unit’s cost, and make it accessible to a wider audience. Thanks to its modular architecture, foundry and pattern shop adopters should also be able to scale their capabilities as they grow, while its build rate of 115 liters per hour enables industrial core and mold production.
Similarly,Xact Metal在活动中展示了另一台成本意识的3D打印机XM200G2。At the firm’s booth, one of its distributors explained that the 150 x 150 x 150 mm build volume unit’s galvanometer system enables it to support multi-laser setups, but even with its beefed-up specs compared to the original XM200G, it can still be bought and installed for a total of just $110,000.
AtDigital Metal, meanwhile, the company was exhibiting itsDMP/PROmachine. Fitted with a platform-wide printhead, the system is said to be 2-4 times faster than its predecessor, and thanks to its ‘cleaner’ handling of powder than other similar 3D printers, it’s capable of printing titanium without needing to do so inside an inert gas-filled chamber. Though the machine won’t be released until late-2022 to early-2023, the word from the firm’s booth team was that it had already sold two units.
Alongside these technologies, launched by established metal 3D printing names, optical equipment manufacturerJEOLalso made a splash with itsJAM-5200EBM系统。电子梁（EBM）3D打印机能够从“异国合金”中最多可创建高达400mm x 250mm的堆积，因此该公司将其瞄准了航空生产商。
Interestingly, at the booth, JEOL’s President Bob Pohorenec added that people are starting to “see the value potential” in EBM, driving new entries to the market. “There hasn’t been a lot of innovation since the beginning, but that looks like it’s changing,” said Pohorenec. “The initial entry was Arcam, they’ve made innovations, nowWayland Additive’sin it, we’re in it, a large number of companies are jumping on it.”
最后，在聚合物方面，BCN3Dprovided another glimpse into the capabilities of its new粘性光刻制造(VLM) technology. VLM-equipped 3D printers are said to be capable of processing resins 50 times more viscous than industry-standard ones, paving the way for ultra-high-strength parts with a mixture of flexible and rigid elements.
Although these machines weren’t on display at the show, a number of demo parts produced using them were, including some of the 7,000圣哥哥was able to create as part of a pilot project. Using the technology, the company manufactured these over seven days at a cost of just $0.86 per piece. BCN3D’s team said that it continues to work with over 400 manufacturers regarding VLM applications via its ‘TAP’ program, with further developments expected in due course.
要了解最新的3D印刷新闻，请不要忘记订阅3D打印行业newsletter或跟随我们Twitteror liking our page onFacebook。
For a deeper dive into additive manufacturing, you can now subscribe to ourYouTubechannel, featuring discussion, debriefs, and shots of 3D printing in-action.
Are you looking for a job in the additive manufacturing industry? Visit3D Printing Jobsfor a selection of roles in the industry.
Featured image shows the entrance to Huntington Place, Detroit at Rapid+TCT 2022. Photo by Paul Hanaphy.
