APWORKS and TOYAL Partner to Further Develop and Distribute Scalmalloy Additive Manufacturing Powder

November 27, 2017 by Clare Scott 3D Printing 3D Printing Materials Business

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Some time ago, Airbus subsidiary APWORKS developed Scalmalloy. The metal additive manufacturing powder is an alloy of aluminum, magnesium and scandium, compatible with all SLM machines and offering several of the characteristics of titanium as well as aluminum. It’s lightweight but strong, with high ductility and a stable microstructure at temperatures up to 250ºC. Scalmalloy is highly weldable with good corrosion resistance and can easily be machined. It lends itself well to numerous applications, including automotive (both cars and motorbikes), aerospace, robotics and more.

Scalmalloy has proven itself to be a highly effective material for additive manufacturing, but it still has room to be further developed, and that’s what APWORKS is planning to do through a new partnership with aluminum pigment producer TOYAL. Under the terms of the partnership, TOYAL will produce Scalmalloy and will work with APWORKS to further develop the alloy’s composition or create optimized production processes. TOYAL will also distribute the powder through its own distribution channels.

“We are convinced that TOYAL is a cooperation partner with whom we can ensure a continuous development of the material composition and the production process of our unique material for our customers,” said Sven Lauxmann, Head of Sales and Marketing at APWORKS. “The close collaboration creates an excellent synergy between TOYAL’s decades of experience in the production and global marketing of aluminium based products and APWORKS’ more intensive experience in processing Scalmalloy in 3D printing. Our common goal is to market Scalmalloy by the global presence of TOYAL for numerous customers and a wide range of applications ranging from aerospace to automotive up to robotics.”

[Image: APWORKS]

TOYAL is a leader in the production of aluminum and other pigments for automotive coatings, plastic and industrial coatings, inks, plastics and cosmetics. It has four production facilities, in the United States, Japan, China and France. The corporation is a major player in the metal powder market; TOYAL America, for instance, is the leading supplier of spherical aluminum powders to the solid rocket motor industry. Scalmalloy will join a lineup of other aluminum powders that TOYAL manufactures and, in some cases, customizes for a wide variety of industries.

“The partnership with APWORKS will strengthen the value Toyal brings by adding a reference material, Scalmalloy, to the existing portfolio of high quality aluminium based alloy powders for Additive Manufacturing applications,” said Jun Kusui, Head of the Powder & Paste business unit of TOYALGroup.

APWORKS and TOYAL both have expertise in major industries such as automotive and aerospace, and Scalmalloy is an optimal material for such industries with its high strength to weight ratio, stability and ductility. Working together, the two companies will be able to further develop the powder and maximize its effectiveness for some of the most important applications in manufacturing.

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