All Additive/3D Printing articles – Page 5

  • New 2016 Nissan Altima production begins in Smyrna
    Article

    Driving down the skills gap

    2015-12-17T11:54:17Z

    If the automotive industry is to continue its progress, manufacturers will have to prioritise human resourcesThe US needs to fill no fewer than 3.5m manufacturing jobs over the next decade, according to Deloitte and the Manufacturing Institute, Washington. Meanwhile, UK organisations are pouring £42.9 billion ($64.7 billion) of investment into ...

  • 3D-printed intake manifold
    Article

    Does 3D printing add up?

    2015-12-01T14:30:18Z

    Additive manufacturing has long assisted prototyping, but OEMs are now exploring its uses in productionA hot topic for a number of years, it now appears that additive manufacturing (3D printing) technologies are starting to be used more widely by a number of automotive OEMs. But while additive manufacturing has been ...

  • 3D printing, Ford
    Article

    Ford hails 3D printing in production

    2015-11-20T13:54:34Z

    US – In celebrating the 25-year anniversary of the technology, the OEM said it has “played a key role” in the development of three well-known models: the GT, the Mondeo Vignale and the Focus RS. Also used on other Ford vehicles, 3D printing speeds up part prototyping, enabling designers and ...

  • 3D-printed parts, BMW
    Article

    BMW celebrates 25 years of 3D printing

    2015-11-18T16:24:20Z

    Germany – In 1990, the OEM’s Rapid Technologies Center in Munich commissioned the development of its first additive manufacturing facilities, and that year prototype parts were made on a stereolithography machine. Early examples featured on concept cars; BMW later developed further procedures and applications in line with component specifications.Today, the ...

  • 3D-Scanning-.....jpg.jpeg
    Article

    Shaping the future

    2015-11-09T16:04:25Z

    This year, for the first time, Euromold went to Düsseldorf, where the event showed signs of being revitalisedEuromold departed Frankfurt in Germany after 21 years, with legal wrangles in the background, and now other shows targeting similar market segments have emerged in the shape of Frankfurt’s FormNext and the Moulding ...

  • LM3D Swim, Local Motors
    Article

    Local Motors unveils 3D-printed car

    2015-11-05T09:53:21Z

    US – Four months after revealing the designs for LM3D Swim, the first vehicle has been produced by the direct digital manufacturing (DDM) methodology which includes 3D printing. Presales of the car, which will cost around $53,000, will begin in spring next year, while manufacturing and delivery are expected in ...

  • JLR F-PACE
    Article

    The view from Frankfurt

    2015-09-17T15:18:13Z

    Every other year, the automotive industry’s European movers and shakers convene in Frankfurt to gaze in admiration at the latest offerings and future concepts, particularly from the German brands. This year, despite the looming worry over what China’s slowdown might mean, the European car companies did not disappoint, with a ...

  • MAP079 - New inserts
    Article

    Laser-sintered indexable insert drills

    2015-08-04T17:32:33Z

    MAPAL UK says it has added laser-sintered indexable insert drills with diameters down to 9mm to its QTD drill range. It says it has used laser sintering – a form of 3D printing – in the production of the new drills. This allows a non-circular profile to be used for ...

  • Virtual Manufacturing
    Article

    Ford reduces production-line injury rate

    2015-07-16T17:03:52Z

    US – The company says it has cut the number of injuries to its 50,000-strong workforce in the country by 70% since 2003, through new ergonomics research, lift-assist devices, workstation redesign and data-driven process changes.“We refer to our assembly line employees as ‘industrial athletes’, due to the physical nature of ...

  • 3D core
    Article

    Perfect casting

    2015-07-15T12:40:29Z

    Executive director Ed Grainger explains how Grainger & Worrall has transformed the ‘black art’ of casting into a high-tech operation to meet the demands of clients including F1, NASCAR and supercar makersAMS: Could you provide an overview of how the company has developed?Ed Grainger (EG): The company was established in ...

  • Smart factory, Audi
    Article

    Audi progresses smart factory concept

    2015-05-27T15:15:02Z

    Germany – The OEM says it has already implemented some intelligent production processes but will introduce further innovations in the coming years. Audi’s vision for the future, discussed at its recent annual shareholders meeting, encompasses collaborative robots, 3D printing and cars driven from the assembly line in piloted mode.An increasing ...

  • Gear shift, KWSP
    Article

    KWSP's 3D printing makes 1920s car parts

    2015-05-27T15:00:42Z

    UK – Engineers from KW Special Projects (KWSP) in Brackley used their additive manufacturing capabilities and high-performance engineering experience to design and manufacture missing parts for the restoration of a 1927 Amilcar C6, based on a black-and-white photograph.The car had featured an extended selector housing, adapted from the original. Using ...

  • 2014 Ram Power Wagon front axle, FCA
    Article

    Chrysler using 3D printing for axle development

    2015-04-20T14:32:29Z

    US – Engineers at the Chrysler Technology Center (CTC) are now printing transparent plastic components for test purposes, providing Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) with a better understanding of axle durability and efficiency.In conventional methods of evaluating oil flow inside axles and pinion carriers, ‘windows’ are cut into the components so ...

  • Nick Holt
    Article

    Editor's note: Automotive alchemy

    2015-03-05T16:44:51Z

    Automotive manufacturing has, for the most part, become an exact science. With the exception of a few bespoke, artisan operations on luxury models, every operation is simulated, programmed and performed with exacting accuracy. Production processes aim to eliminate errors even within the operations carried out by human operatives. This drive ...

  • Google Glass 2 copy
    Article

    BMW sees into the future

    2015-01-21T10:08:00Z

    Google Glass is among the smart technologies the OEM is exploring to boost production efficiencyThe fourth industrial revolution is upon us. At least that’s what the German government believed when it coined the term 'Industry 4.0' to refer not just to increased industrial automation, but also cyber-physical systems, the Internet ...

  • IMG_8025-copy
    Article

    Hot off the printer

    2014-12-11T15:51:01Z

    More automotive companies are discovering the benefits of additive manufacturing for rapid prototypingIn April, the first race of the 2015 World Endurance Championship at the Silverstone racetrack in the UK will see the debut of the Strakka DOME S103, a low-slung coupe designed and developed by two organisations on different ...

  • Koenigsegg_One1_wing copy
    Article

    Smart design in the making

    2014-12-09T15:56:04Z

    The latest simulation software can speed up vehicle modelling and compress development timescalesAt the beginning of 2014, Swedish supercar manufacturer Koenigsegg launched a vehicle which, even by its standards, achieved new levels of extreme performance. One:1 takes its name from the ratio of its horsepower to its kerb weight in ...

  • REN066 - EVO Project press release - HN
    Article

    Additive manufacturing for industrial use

    2014-12-05T12:41:08Z

    Renishaw is developing a machine specifically for production manufacturing, provisionally named EVO Project. The company says this new machine is designed for single material industrial production. Powder handling is almost entirely hands off, whilst powder recirculation, recycling and recovery are all carried out within the inert atmosphere of the system, ...

  • Vitronic-is-offering-robot-inspection-cells-with-machine-vision-copy
    Article

    Envisioning automation

    2014-11-10T13:43:45Z

    The latest high-speed, high-functionality cameras are in demand to help automate vehicle productionAlthough the idea of a robot with ‘eyes’ sounds futuristic, the International Federation of Robotics confirms that as long ago as 1980, vision technology helped a robot to pick a randomly orientated component from a tray. The demonstration ...

  • FAP-2-Web2
    Article

    The potential of 3D printing

    2014-02-06T14:07:09Z

    Steve Erickson, vice-president, Sales and Engineering, First American Plastic, discusses the likely benefits of the technology for automotive OEMs and their customers3D printing used to be purely the stuff of science fiction – something that was centuries in the future, if plausible at all. But now, this fantasy is becoming ...