The Institute for Advanced Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI), Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Cincinnati Incorporated (Cincinnati In.) and Dassault Systèmes (3DS) have won the JEC Innovation Awards 2016 Composites Magazine Special Prize for additive manufacturing (AM) technology.
The Big Area Additive Manufacturing (BAAM) technology is a new, large-scale, platform for the 3D printing of polymer and composite structures. The development of this advanced technology was led by the Manufacturing Demonstration Facility (MDF) at ORNL, a partner of IACMI.
The technology can reportedly enable the production of large-scale 3D printed components in the matter of hours. Using BAAM technology, material is deposited 500 to 1,000 times more quickly than with existing systems and production costs can be cut by 95%. This new technology was used to print the replica Shelby Cobra, the first of its kind, in only 24 hours. IACMI and Dassault Systèmes are working with ORNL and Cincinnati Incorporated to enable full industrialization of this unique technology.
‘This is an exciting time for the composites industry with unprecedented opportunities for industrialization of advanced composites,’ said Craig Blue, CEO of IACMI. ‘Through partners such as Cincinnati Inc. and Dassault Systèmes with its 3DEXPERIENCE platform, large structures can be 3D designed and printed much cheaper, faster and better than ever before.’
This story uses material from IACMI, with editorial changes made by Materials Today. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent those of Elsevier.
