At Rapid: A 73-Year-Old Machine Shop’s Journey into Metal AM

“A 73-Year-Old Machine Shop's Journey into Metal Additive Manufacturing” is the title of a talk that Imperial Machine & Tool will give at Rapid, the annual conference and tradeshow dedicated to 3D printing and additive manufacturing. Rapid this year is May 8-11 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Imperial Machine & Tool is a fourth-generation family manufacturing business with a long history of investing in leading-edge capabilities. The shop was using jig grinders in the 1950s and it was an early adopter of numerical control. Current President Chris Joest sees additive manufacturing as a logical step on that trajectory; the company now has two selective laser melting machines from SLM Solutions. We’ve covered the shop’s journey into AM most recently in this article detailing how additive has come into its own in this shop, now following most or all of the same planning and workflow procedures as the traditional manufacturing operations.

Imperial’s presentation at Rapid is currently scheduled for Tuesday, May 9, at 10:15 a.m. The company will also have a booth on the show floor, exhibiting components made from the combination of SLM and precision machining.