The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) has awarded a contract to Phase3D, a Chicago-based startup specializing in in-situ monitoring (ISM) solutions for powder-based additive manufacturing (AM), to develop a quality assurance (QA) system specifically for cold spray platforms. By the end of the two-year, $1.25 million contract, Phase3D will install the new system at Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota.
In the last few years, the Department of Defense (DoD) has shown increasing interest in cold spray AM (CSAM), due to its unique potential for deployability, its relative quickness compared to other AM technologies, and the fact that it has shown particular viability for use in repairs. Phase3D will work with VRC Metals, an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) of CSAM machines based in South Dakota, to adapt Phase3D’s Fringe inspection system to the VRC platform.
VRC makes a broad range of machines — including multiple systems that can be deployed in the field — as well as a variety of materials and post-processing solutions. Lockheed Martin recently gave the company an Exceptional Small Business Award, so Fringe’s compatibility with VRC should add to Phase3D’s reputation as a favorite in the ISM market for the AM sector. That reputation is borne out by Fringe’s use at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), as I wrote recently in a post about the 2nd ASTM International report on ISM for 3D printing.
I’m very optimistic about CSAM precisely because I think the relative simplicity of the hardware’s underlying technology compared to other metal AM techniques, should, in the long run, make QA a much easier task for CSAM than for powder bed fusion (PBF) and binder jetting platforms. At the same time, the ability for the CSAM to work in combination with those two other classes of AM hardware should allow each technique to become optimized more quickly than would be possible for any of the individual techniques, on their own. That is, the ideal scenario could be something along the lines of using PBF for castings and forgings, binder jetting for small parts, and CSAM for repairs.
Of course, that’s one of the primary factors that makes the role of a company like Phase3D so important: none of the technologies can “talk to each other” unless they’re all integrated at similar paces into the same AM software ecosystem. The larger is the scale of the contracts involved — and I think announcements like this one already hint that the scale of AM contracts is starting to hit expansion mode — the more important data becomes, to ensure that the money spent is being allocated as effectively as possible. Phase3D is certainly ahead of the curve in the race for the best data.
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
Precision at the Microscale: UK Researchers Advance Medical Devices with BMF’s 3D Printing Tech
University of Nottingham researchers are using Boston Micro Fabrication‘s (BMF) 3D printing technology to develop medical devices that improve compatibility with human tissue. Funded by a UK grant, this project...
Nylon 3D Printed Parts Made More Functional with Coatings & Colors
Parts 3D printed from polyamide (PA, Nylon) 12 using powder bed fusion (PBF) are a mainstay in the additive manufacturing (AM) industry. While post-finishing processes have improved the porosity of...
3DPOD Episode 194: Product Design and the Additive Journey with PADT Hardware Director David Dietrich
David Dietrich‘s journey in 3D printing spans from materials engineering roles at Boeing and ORNL to his position as an engineering fellow at Honeywell, showcasing his extensive experience in metals...
ORNL’s 3D Printed Neutron Device Could Improve Physics Research, Medicine, and Nuclear Energy
In a novel approach to solving complex challenges in neutron scattering experiments, researchers at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have applied 3D printing to develop a...