GKN Sinter Metals has started production using the additive manufacturing (AM) process for engine and transmission precision parts at its plant in Radevormwald, Germany.
The manufacturer will use the MetalFAB1 machine to produce small and medium-sized series of complex automotive components for the original equipment and replacement parts markets. Customers include most leading automakers and their system suppliers.
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The MetalFAB1 can simultaneously print hundreds of parts in one batch, meaning on one single build plate. “Depending on how many data sets we feed into the MetalFAB1, these can be 300 identical or 300 different parts” said GKN AM manager Simon Hoeges.
“This gives us unprecedented production capacity and flexibility.”
The integrated and automated 3D printer with highest productivity through multiple lasers is manufactured by Dutch company, Additive Industries, with a joint development programme optimising the technology for the needs of the automotive industry.
Data from just-auto’s Qube service shows GKN – which also numbers aerospace and a land division among its operations – is among the world’s leading suppliers of a diverse range of components and systems.
The company employs 51,400 people worldwide and operates out of 33 countries.
