Additive manufacturing is revolutionizing industry. Which application areas and manufacturing possibilities are there? Which parts can be produced feasibly using this process? Answers to these and other questions were supplied by OSB AG and EOS during their joint 3D workshop in Munich (photo: Benjamin Haller, Application Development Consultant at EOS). The workshop offered a chance for valuable knowledge exchange and also brought new insights into the area of part and assembly design.

The times when 3D printers were only used in the area of rapid prototyping are definitely over. According to a leading German business newspaper, Handelsblatt, the technology company Siemens now even wishes to produce sophisticated blades for gas turbines using 3D printing. Such parts need to withstand more than 13,000 revolutions per minute and temperatures of more than 1250 degrees Celsius.

According to Handelsblatt, the market research institute IDC predicts on the basis of these developments that companies will spend around twelve billion US dollars worldwide for 3D printing applications in 2018. By 2021, this amount is expected to rise to approx. 20 billion dollars – an increase of more than 20 percent per year.

OSB workshop checks opportunities and risks

In order to provide customers with optimum support in the area of 3D printing and to take full advantage of all the opportunities this technology has to offer, OSB AG joined forces with 3D printing pioneer EOS to host a workshop in Munich. EOS is seen as the global technology and quality leader for high-end solutions in the area of additive manufacturing.

“During the workshop, we highlighted in detail the application areas and production processes of 3D printing,” says Dominik Kuhl, Team Manager at OSB AG in Munich.  “It is remarkable which materials are now being worked with. Nevertheless, it is important to consider the economic aspect. Together, we went through several different scenarios to see when production using additive manufacturing makes financial sense and when not.”

Fresh thinking in design

The whole topic becomes particularly exciting when it comes to the area of shaping and design. After all, 3D printers can produce things completely differently to the way we are used to. “It is now possible to print complex and agile assemblies as a single part. One example is a small planetary gear made of metal which, to date, has been made up of several individual parts. Thanks to these possibilities, there is great potential for new as well as existing assemblies, as we are no longer bound to a rigid shape due to manufacturing process restrictions such as we know it from casting operations,” says Matthias Melzer, Project Manager at OSB AG in Munich.

Overall, the participants rated the workshop positively, stating that it was extremely informative, enriching and innovative. OSB AG is pleased that the discussions with the company and with the experts from EOS were so well received. So, what’s next? OSB AG is continuing to keep an eye on future trends for its customers and is happy to provide information exchange during productive workshops in future, too.