Metal AM

Material Extrusion: Now with Metal

Challenging our thinking about materials in metal additive manufacturing and the possibilities with material extrusion technology.

August 21, 2019 - Timothy W. Simpson

Basics

Additive Manufacturing via Material Extrusion

Material extrusion was the second process to be successfully commercialized. After three decades of material advancements and a diverse array of start-ups and applications, the use cases for this technology are still going strong.

August 1, 2019 - Timothy W. Simpson

Production

Additive Manufacturing — More Than Metal: How Vat Photopolymerization Started It All

Vat photopolymerization was the first AM process to be successfully commercialized. Three decades later, this technology has shown how AM is capable of scaling to volume production and making custom products on demand.

July 11, 2019 - Timothy W. Simpson

Additive Manufacturing and Metal Casting

How is additive manufacturing disrupting metal casting? A hybrid approach to consider.

July 4, 2019 - Timothy W. Simpson

Hybrid Manufacturing

Additive Manufacturing for Hard Tooling

Hybrid manufacturing is enabling tooling to be made with additive processes.

June 27, 2019 - Timothy W. Simpson

AM Technology

Combining Additive and Subtractive Processes for Hybrid Manufacturing

At this point, we are still learning how to combine the two to optimize hybrid manufacturing.

May 29, 2019 - Timothy W. Simpson

AM Technology

Additive Manufacturing with Wire

This system has the benefits of cheaper cost and easier handling. But there can be some drawbacks as well.

April 26, 2019 - Timothy W. Simpson

Metal AM

Three Cool Uses for Directed Energy Deposition

Most machining professionals don’t like to admit that they ever make mistakes, but every now and then wouldn’t it be nice to have an “eraser” to go back and repair a gouge or fix a nicked edge? Or maybe you took off a bit too much material on that last machining pass and you’d like to add it back? Well, directed energy deposition (DED) enables you to do that and more.

March 28, 2019 - Timothy W. Simpson

Basics

What Is Directed Energy Deposition?

Analyzing directed energy deposition and powder-bed fusion provides a thorough understanding of the extra machining necessary for a “near-net shape” versus a “net shape” manufacturing process.

February 15, 2019 - Timothy W. Simpson

Large-Format

Additive Manufacturing for Large Parts

Powder-bed fusion is driving the hype for additive manufacturing right now, but it may not be the best answer. Directed energy deposition is a strong contender.

January 30, 2019 - Timothy W. Simpson

Postprocessing

Options for Finishing and Postprocessing Metal 3D-Printed Parts

There is a host of technologies available for finishing and postprocessing your AM parts. This column identifies options beyond machining.

December 19, 2018 - Timothy W. Simpson

Metal AM

Can My Machine Tool Access My Support Structures?

Analyzing the machinability of support structures opens a new way of thinking about optimal build orientation.

November 19, 2018 - Timothy W. Simpson