Additive Manufacturing

Additive manufacturing is an innovative technological process capable of producing articles by aggregation of material starting from a three dimensional digitized reference model, usually by overlapping layers, in opposition to the more conventional subtractive manufacturing technologies, in which an object is created by cutting away solid blocks of material until the final product is complete. Seamthesis offers an integrated service (one-stop-shop) to its customers and engineering: from commercial and technical consultancy, to support for the definition of the machine to be purchased; from support for the initial set-up of the process and the production of the first products, to advanced training for operators and technicians, both in the classroom and on-site. Additive manufacturing has already reached the due industrial maturity to make finished components for industrial equipment, cars, planes, energy systems and structural parts of the human body. 

Skills and competencies

Main activities (metal and plastic based)

• 1. selecting the best metal powders for the process and the component, metallurgical design of new powders (patentable as well) for MA on specific custmer request.

• 2. 3D metal printing with PBF technology (laser ed EBM-Electron Beam Melting) and DED laser (Direct Energy Deposition)

• 3. data preparation, designing printing startegy and printing parameters.

• 4. disegno CAD di parti e assemblati

• 5. parts and mechanical build-up components for MA (DfAM) re-engineering, using the main commercial  SW 

• 6. ottimizzazione topologica di parti e di assemblati, anche multibody; ottimizzazione volume di stampa

• 7. analisi strutturale tramite codici FEM per la validazione di parti e strutture, anche con accoppiamento termomeccanico e microstrutturale  

• 8. calcolo termo-fluidodinamico (CFD) e ottimizzazione dei canali tramite morphing per MA

• 9. simulazione termomeccanica ai volumi finiti del processo di stampa additiva (anche a supporto della determinazione dei parametri di stampa di nuove polveri metalliche)

• 10. conversione in modello 3D (.STL) di immagini diagnostiche (es. DICOM, x-ray, JPEG, TIFF, BMP, raw image data), manipolazione della superficie tassellata (con particolare riferimento alle applicazioni biomedicali (es. protesi ossee) 

• 11. progettazione degli esperimenti (DOE)

• 12. post-processing e finitura dei manufatti stampati 3D (es. per metallo: trattamenti termici di qualità, finitura meccanica superficiale, rimozione dei supporti, sabbiatura/pallinatura, pulizia elettro-chimica e tramite US, anodizzazione). Su richiesta è possibile provvedere a realizzare l'intero ciclo di qualifica e certificazione del componente, secondo specifiche Cliente o standard internazionali (normative).    

Some examples of 3D metal printing activities and products