North America's most influential additive manufacturing event, RAPID + TCT returns for its 2019 edition on 20-23 May at the Cobo Center in Detroit, MI.
Visitors can expect industry firsts, North American debuts and plenty of application inspiration. Here are just a handful of the technologies and user stories you can find on the show floor in Detroit.
3DQue to make official debut (Booth 1765)
3DQue, a Vancouver-based start-up, will make its official launch at RAPID + TCT, unveiling QPoD, a configuration of nine desktop FFF 3D printers, powered by its QSuite automation technology.
The company will be hosting interactive demonstrations of how QSuite works to print volumes of parts autonomously. Automation technology within the hardware removes parts and resets the print beds to enable 24/7 operation of the machines, while 3DQue’s software facilitates automated scheduling, job delegation, and resource allocation. During an in-house field trial, 3DQue reported that the QSuite technology ran for more than eight days in succession to print 248 switch cube frames with no interruptions or failed prints. Printing the same batch without automation would have taken 29 days.
QPoD will be available for order immediately after the company’s launch at a cost of 45,000 USD for a configuration of nine desktop platforms able to fit into an 18 square foot space for users wanting to get started straight away. The QSuite automation technology will later be made available to desktop FFF OEMs for licensing.
“We don’t want to make our own printer and start competing with established manufacturers, because they have wonderful technology,” Mateo Pekic, founder and Chief of Innovations & Technology, 3DQue, told TCT. “Everyone is working to make the print process better and they can just add on this automation level that takes their printer’s unique capabilities to a massive scale. A scale beyond prototyping.”
A first look at Freeform Injection Moulding (Booth 2105)
AddiFab and Mitsubishi Chemical will be co-exhibiting the unique Freeform Injection Moulding, a blend of additive and injection moulding technology, paired with Mitsubishi Chemical’s range of high-performance injection mouldable materials. AddiFab’s technology is based on a patent-pending Sacrificial Thermoplastic Injection Moulding (STIM) platform which is said to deliver complex injection-moulded metal and ceramic components in just 24 hours. The company plans to debut an example of how the technology has been leveraged to support generative design on an injection moulding platform.
3D Systems to introduce new materials and printing tech (Booth 1227)
3D Systems will introduce new plastic materials and printer technology, enabling manufacturers to broaden their applications and scale to production. These latest additions will complement its current plastics solutions including Figure 4, ProX SLS 6100 and FabPro 1000. 3D Systems will also feature its metal DMP Factory 350 and DMP Factory 500 machines, which are integrating additive and subtractive technologies to help customers scale production. Also on view will be the company’s suite of software products that enable integration of technology to connect workflows from digitisation & design to manufacturing and inspection, as well as 3D printer fleet management.
AlphaSTAR to exhibit new simulation toolset (Booth 116)
AlphaSTAR will present its newest GENOA 3DP features. The software suite is a simulate-to-print toolset which uses Multi-Scale Progressive Failure Analysis to simulate the AM process for polymers, metals and ceramics. The micromechanical solution allows users to virtually qualify each step of the AM process from material characterisation to build optimisation to in-service loading. New features include PathCoverage and TMg, which provide virtual quality assessment of the printer path and use effective approaches to predicting thermal history, material states and dynamic evolution of melt pool and heat affect zones.
Essentium to showcase high speed printing platform (Booth 1617)
Essentium, Inc., will make the first public demonstration of the Essentium High Speed Extrusion (HSE) 3D Printing Platform. This system is said to be up to 10x faster and 5x more accurate than competitive offerings and solves historic AM challenges around speed, strength and scale. The HSE 3D Printer offers such speeds by utilising a non-slip, high torque extruder system and all linear motor. Essentium reports one customer has already decreased its time to tool by 99% over aluminium tooling and 90% over other extrusion 3D printing with 60% cost savings.
Get a closer look at the Form 3 and Form 3L (Booth 817)
Formlabs will exhibit its new professional Low Force Stereolithography (LFS) 3D printers, the Form 3 and Form 3L. LFS uses a flexible tank to reduce forces on parts while printing and a Light Processing Unit (LPU) which maintains a uniform, high density laser spot to ensure accurate, repeatable prints. The larger Form 3L simultaneously uses two LPUs and offers five times the build volume and two times the laser power to print large parts fast. Formlabs will also showcase its new Draft Resin which enables up to four times faster printing at 300 microns layer lines for rapid prototyping.
GPAINNOVA to show award-winning post-processing tech (Booth 120)
GPAINNOVA will be showcasing the latest developments in its TCT Award-winning DLyte dry electropolishing solution. The Barcelona-based company will exhibit new materials and industrial modular solutions which will be released throughout 2019 and 2020. DLyte uses a patented technology for polishing high precision metal components with a disruptive dry electropolishing solution which achieves better surface quality, speed and costs. DLyte uses solid bodies instead of liquid as electrolyte which allows to polish only the peaks of the roughness. This technology allows polishing all type of metals, without changing the original shape of the object even the cutting edges.
HP to deliver volume production solution (Booth 1241)
HP 3D Printing and Digital Manufacturing will be showcasing its latest Jet Fusion plastic technology and Metal Jet printer, said to offer production grade metal parts up to 50 times faster and significantly cheaper than current metal AM systems. The booth will also provide hands-on experience with some of the latest breakthrough applications across industries along with new HP materials. Additionally, HP 3D Printing and Digital Manufacturing President Christoph Schell will be delivering a presentation on the main stage on May 21 with HP partners and customers.
MakerBot to exhibit Method and reveal news (Booth 317)
MakerBot will showcase its portfolio of 3D printers, which are used widely across industries, including manufacturing, engineering, and education, and will also be announcing some news. The MakerBot Replicator+, Replicator Z18, and Method – its newest machine and the first performance 3D printer - will be featured and available for demos. Dave Veisz, Vice President of Engineering at MakerBot, will also be presenting on agile methodologies and best practices in hardware design on Wednesday, May 22, 2019 from 15:00 in Room 250A.
Optomec to demo hybrid manufacturing (Booth 517)
Optomec will feature its newest hybrid machine tool system, the LENS 860 Hybrid Controlled Atmosphere (CA) System, which integrates LENS 3D metal printing with high-performance vertical machining in the industry’s first hybrid controlled atmosphere system. The company will be running demonstrations showcasing simultaneous 5-axis metal printing and a single tool path for both additive and subtractive processes within a single 860 x 600 x 610 mm work envelope. The LENS 860 Hybrid CA comes with a hermetically-sealed build chamber for processing reactive metals and can be configured with closed loop controls and a high-power 3kW fibre laser.
Origin to unveil Open Additive Production technology (Booth 2153)
After coming out of stealth mode in November, Origin will be exhibiting at an additive manufacturing (AM) trade show for the first time at RAPID + TCT. The San Francisco-based start-up will unveil its Open Additive Production technology, offering live demonstrations to showcase the capabilities of its open additive ecosystem. High-performance materials will also be presented, and new material partners confirmed.
Details about Origin’s Open Additive Production platform have so far been scarce. It is known to be powered by a process called programmable photopolymerisation (P3) and modular to facilitate ‘mass additive production’, backed up by the ‘tens of thousands of end use products’ the company says have already been manufactured and shipped by early access users of the system. Meanwhile, BASF and Henkel are the only materials partners to have been confirmed as yet, with the former showcasing parts printed with P3 at last year’s Formnext.
Now, at the largest AM event on home soil, Origin will reveal more about its offering to the market, lifting the lid on its Open Additive Production Hardware for the very first time.
“After coming out of stealth late last year, we are excited to unveil our technology and expanded ecosystem at RAPID + TCT,” commented Chris Prucha, Origin founder and CEO. “We will show how an open approach to additive manufacturing results in the throughput, materials, and scalability that exceeds the expectations of the industry.”
A closer look at Liquid Additive Manufacturing (Booth 1673)
R.D. Abbott Co., a full-service elastomers supplier and materials science company, will demonstrate the L280 LAM 3D printer in the Dow Chemical Company booth. Developed in collaboration with German RepRap and Dow Performance Silicones, the first production-ready L280 LAM 3D printer uses Dow SILASTIC 3D 3335 liquid silicone rubber (LSR), a material with physical and dynamic properties that have been proven to match those of moulded LSR. The patent-pending machine prints successive layers of LSR which are then cured with heat to produce functional prototypes and highly customised parts for small manufacturing trials.
Sintratec S2 makes North American debut (Booth 1753)
Sintratec
Swiss company, Sintratec will debut its latest affordable SLS system to the North American market. First launched in November last year, the Sintratec S2 offers a complete system covering the entire process from printing to post-processing that is configurable to the user’s needs. Sintratec believes this end-to-end solution of semi-automated processes and modules for laser sintering, de-powdering, material preparation and surface treatment, enables the production of precise and complex prototypes and small series parts with reduced down times. Additional modules can be easily integrated to allow users to run a wide variety of materials on a production line at the same time.
Ultimaker to shine spotlight on materials (Booth 427)
Ultimaker will highlight how customers including Ford, Volkswagen, L’Oreal and Sylatech are using its desktop machines for manufacturing aids, product development and end-use parts. In addition, the Ultimaker Material Alliance Program continues to expand, now joined by more than 80 companies just one year since its introduction. Leading material manufacturers like BASF, DSM, DuPont and Owens Corning are bringing a wide variety of high-performance materials to the professional market through the Print Profile Assistant from Ultimaker. Ultimaker will showcase many of these new material profiles at the show.
VDM Metals to show latest developments in alloys for AM (Booth 1757)
VDM Metals, a producer of corrosion and high-temperature resistant nickel alloys and special stainless steels, will present its latest developments in additive manufacturing alloys. VDM Alloy 699 XA is designed for use in metal dusting environments and contains 29% chromium and 2% aluminium. During tests, the conventionally manufactured material showed a remarkable longer time to first pit in comparison to other high-temperature alloys. Ideal for turbine construction, VDM Alloy 780 is a new 718-type high-strength superalloy. The most significant differences in chemical composition are the replacement of Fe by about 25% Co and a higher Al content in combination with a lower Ti-content.
Xjet invites visitors to get hands-on with soluble supports (Booth 1103)
The Israeli additive manufacturing company is inviting participants to get ‘hands-on’ at its on-booth ‘support removal clinic’ where visitors are encouraged to witness the speed and ease of XJet’s soluble support material removal. XJet will also showcase a new demonstration part, illustrating the company’s vision of the future for its NanoParticle Jetting technology and hinting at the limitless possibilities that additive manufacturing could tap into. The new parts can be seen in a presentation on Wednesday, May 22nd at 11:00 in the Grand Ballroom.
RAPID + TCT takes place on 20-23 May at the Cobo Center in Detroit. Register here to attend and follow @TheTCTMagazine or head to our dedicated RAPID + TCT news section for more updates.
