The roots of the Swiss tech group Oerlikon date back to the 1850s, when the first pieces of the business were being established, including Leybold Vacuum in Cologne and the F. Saurer-Stoffel foundry in Switzerland. Now, OC Oerlikon Corporation AG (SIX: OERL) is a $3.3 billion materials processing company with over 12,000 employees around the world. Key to its ongoing strategy is additive manufacturing (AM), with which it has built up expertise using a wide variety of technologies, like Nanoparticle Jetting from XJet, and applications, like serial satellite production.
Among them is laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) and Oerlikon AM’s North Carolina facility has just added its fourth DMP Factory 500 system from 3D Systems (NYSE: DDD). The two firms have partnered to apply their respective backgrounds in surface engineering and AM to 3D printing for such industries as semiconductor and aerospace manufacturing. With its North American site, Oerlikon will be better suited to supply customers in the U.S. market with 3D printed aluminum parts.
The latest machine was the result of a collaboration between 3D Systems’ Application Innovation Group (AIG) and Oerlikon AM’s Application Engineering department. Together, the partners aim to offer a validated, certified production process for Oerlikon’s customers. The system features a vacuum chamber for low oxygen content, as well as three lasers for producing parts up to 500mm x 500mm x 500mm in size.
As 3DPrint.com Macro Analyst Matt Kremenetsky has pointed out, the issue of supply chain resilience is now so built into AM’s value proposition that it no longer needs to be mentioned explicitly. Right now, re-shoring efforts are being made worldwide to both reduce energy costs related to shipping and avoid supply chain disruptions as much as possible.
This new supply chain shakeup is not entirely nationalist, however. Instead, it involves multinationals reinforcing their operations around the world with digital production techniques, including AM, robotics, and artificial intelligence. So, while Oerlikon may maintain its headquarters in Switzerland, its North Carolina facility will serve as supply chain insurance in North America. Meanwhile, 3D Systems is selling machines globally such that, in Saudi Arabia for example, it can localize digital production. We’ll likely see Oerlikon expand its 3D printing footprint at its facility in Michigan, the Midwestern hub that is home to other AM companies like Materialise.
Subscribe to Our Email Newsletter
Stay up-to-date on all the latest news from the 3D printing industry and receive information and offers from third party vendors.
You May Also Like
Union-Private Company Alliance to Transform Construction 3D Printing in the Pacific Northwest
Construction 3D printing pioneer Alquist 3D has forged a strategic partnership with a consortium of industry leaders, including the Cement Masons and Plasterers’ Local 528, a union based in the...
Saving the New Zealand Fairy Tern: 3D Printed Eggs on Easter Sunday
In honor of Easter Sunday today, we’re bringing you a special story about 3D printed eggs, but this isn’t your typical Easter Egg piece. The Department of Conservation (DOC) in...
3D Printing Unpeeled: 3D Printing Endangered Bird Eggs, Polymer Satellite Bus, QIDI
The New Zealand Department of Conservation (DOC) is using 3D printing to help protect the endangered fairy tern. The New Zealand variant is critically endangered with only about 40 of...
US’s Largest Homebuilder D.R. Horton Invests in Construction 3D Printing Startup Apis Cor
Apis Cor, a manufacturer of robotic construction 3D printing technologies, has recently announced a new partnership in its journey towards evolving the global building sector. The company revealed that D.R....