On a brilliant September morning, AP&C, a GE Additive Company and a subsidiary of Arcam AB of Sweden, held the inauguration of its brand-new state-of-the-art facility in the industrial park of Saint-Eustache, Quebec, just north of Montreal. AP&C, headquartered in Boisbriand, Quebec, is the world's largest producer of spherical titanium alloy powder for additive manufacturing.
With a drum-roll, M. Alain Dupont, President and CEO of AP&C welcomed a large audience of corporate and civic representatives and other special guests. He expressed pride in the accomplishments of his team in completion of the new plasma atomization plant, on time and in budget. This expansion represented an investment of C$ 31 million for an increase in production capacity of 500 t/year. Mme Christine St-Pierre, Quebec minister responsible for the Laurentides region, responded with congratulations to AP&C for creating 200 jobs in the lower Laurentians region. It also represented a strategic investment and a big opportunity for the future.
Mr Magnus René, president and CEO of Arcam AB, parent company of AP&C, and a major manufacturer in the 3-D printing universe, was the next speaker. He said he first got to know AP&C about ten years ago when he was looking for powder supply for Arcam's EBM (electron beam melting) technology. Following the rapid growth in the AM business, Arcam acquired AP&C in 2014 to establish a secure supply of powders for its customers as well as to better understand the powder technology. He said one of their goals was to really transform the orthopedic [implant] industry from conventional to additive manufacturing. With AP&C's expansion he claimed they now have the powder to do that. He concluded, saying “Hats Off! to the AP&C team for completing the project in record time, on budget, and without accident or incident”.
This article appeared in the Nov/Dec issue of Metal Powder Report.
