Ant Anstead shows a 3D printed part for the Lotus Type 62-2 coachbuilt as shown in the Discovery+ documentary Radford Returns.
Stratasys’ 3D printing technologies have been used to create over 500 parts for the launch of the Lotus Type 62-2 coachbuilt as shown in a Discovery+ documentary called Radford Returns.
Radford Returns details the revival of the art of coachbuilding and the building of the retro-modern Lotus Type 62-2 supercar, and will feature former Formula One champion driver Jenson Button.
Using Stratasys’ GrabCAD Shop workflow software, Radford scheduled and tracked their 3D prints across five global locations. Up to 20 different Stratasys 3D printers – including the F900, F770, Fortus 450mc, F370 and J55 – were used at one time, with printers in operation at the Radford Studio, Aria Group facilities and Stratasys Direct Manufacturing sites.
Among the parts to be additively manufactured were a large solid composite firewall sandwich core, which was printed in two halves in ULTEM 1010 on the F900, bonded together into a single piece and then wrapped with carbon fibre without the use of a layup tool. Meanwhile, many exterior items like side mirror housings, radiator ducts and body vents were printed in Nylon Carbon Fiber and ASA materials.
“Stratasys’ 3D printing technology gave us the design freedom and ability to easily create customised, one-off pieces and parts for these two prototype vehicles. It gave us the ability to fully embrace customised coachbuilding but with updated processes using 21st century technologies,” said Ant Anstead, host of the Radford Returns documentary. “When relaunching Radford, we set out to only work with world-class companies. Lotus is a world-class company, Radford is a world-class company, so when we looked to 3D printed parts, we looked to Stratasys.”
“By integrating 3D printing technology into their shop, Radford has been able to bring 1960’s-style supercar auto-making into the 21st century with the high-end, hyper-customised style and features that their customers expect in a vehicle of this calibre,” said Pat Carey, Senior Vice President, Strategic Growth for Stratasys. “It’s an extreme example of something we see every day in the auto industry. Everyone making investments in new vehicles wants a deeper level of customisation and 3D printing is helping make it possible.”
Stratasys will continue to support the Radford Lotus Type 62-2 project with 3D printed parts produced using its FDM, SAF, Stereolithography and P3 Programmable Photopolymerisation solutions.
