Oerlikon
Oerlikon has announced that it plans to ‘strategically realign’ its additive manufacturing business and consolidate its AM production in the United States. The company says this decision is due to the US being he largest growth market for its technology, and due to ‘adverse market conditions’ for AM in Germany that are limiting growth opportunities.
The company says that focusing AM production in Huntersville, North Carolina brings the business closer to the US growth sectors, such as semiconductor, and enables the business to benefit from ‘more conductive’ US framework conditions and higher market acceptance for disruptive technologies.
Oerikon says that in the future, European and other international customers are planned to be served from the United States.
In close coordination with existing customers, the current production at Barleben and Shanghai are planned to be relocated in 2024. The R&D site in Garching, Germany will focus on developing new advanced materials, surface coating technologies and digitalisation.
Additive manufacturing is a business in Oerlikon’s Surface Solutions division, and was founded as a start-up to develop and produce novel 3D applications for sectors such as aerospace and semiconductor.
In June 2023, Oerlikon signed a multi-year, 3.8 million EUR contract with Airbus for the additive manufacture of satellite antenna clusters. The two companies have worked together for ten years, with several components co-developed between the two already in orbit.
Oerlikon is headquartered in Pfaeffikon, Switzerland, and operates in two divisions, the Surface Solutions division and the Polymer Processing Solutions division. As of 2023 the company says it has a global footprint of over 13,000 employees at 205 locations in 37 countries.
