Arridex Buys and Installs CEAD Unit

Lagos-based Arridex has purchased and installed a CEAD Flexcube LFAM system at its Omnifactory. Previously, oil and gas MRO firm Arridex expanded its network to Ghana, worked with BLT, got polymer 3D printed parts approved, and did digital MRO. Now the company will move more into large-format material extrusion through its CEAD system.

The CEAD Flexcube is a CEAD S25 Pellet Extruder in an enclosure that comes with Siemens Sinumerik One control, a removable heated bed, an enclosure, and a dryer. The Flexcube is meant to be modular so it can be expanded if your needs grow and you want to add spindles or other tools. The gantry-based system has a 120C heated bed and a build volume from 3550 × 1950 × 1190 to 11550 × 1960 × 1190, depending on the size.

Arridex wants to be the go-to 3D printing specialist in Nigeria and beyond throughout the region. Considering the immense amount of energy assets in the region and the need for MRO, the business case is there. Meanwhile, a few companies outside of Africa are looking at 3D printing in Africa. So Arridex has a head start and may get more of a lead.

Arridex is targeting defense, energy, and industry with the system, and is also looking at tooling and molds. There could be many interesting applications. Large jigs and fixtures, for example, are a great business case for LFAM. The ROI is quite quick, and often tools can’t be made in any other way or are prohibitively expensive through other methods. At the same time, jigs and fixtures can save companies a lot of time and money. Tooling and molds require a lot of machining, and things like CTE are critical. That would be much harder to do. Large signage is also a surprisingly good application for LFAM. In defense, we’re seeing a lot of boats, drone bodies, and kinetic components.

In energy, there’s a lot of formwork, fittings for various industrial goods, repairs, and adding new sensors or electronics to existing infrastructure happening right now. One interesting application I got from AES, the leading US LFAM service, is tonnage jigs. These are large, often custom-made jigs used to move large industrial goods. If you’ve ever seen a wind turbine blade on a truck, for example, it often has custom jigs to aid transport. Think of an industrial turbine that has to go to a specific power plant; for that, and for the particular truck, a custom jig can be made.

Arridex CEO Kayode Adeleke said,

“The significance of this installation goes beyond the machine itself. We are building the capability to move from a requirement on paper to production of large composite parts, moulds, tooling and structural components here in Nigeria, particularly where the scale and complexity of the components have traditionally pushed manufacturing offshore.

“Industrial resilience is built through capability, and capability is built through technology, people and the ability to apply both repeatedly. The Flexcube adds another important layer to what the Omnifactory can do, while the certification of our engineers ensures that the knowledge required to operate that capability remains here and can be transferred to the next generation.

“This is what we mean when we talk about building industrial capacity in Africa. We are not simply acquiring technology. We are putting the technology to work, developing the people to operate it, and creating the conditions for more of what industry needs to be designed and manufactured closer to where it is needed.”

CEAD helped install the system and train the Arridex team. Another step forward for Arridex here. I really think this could lead to some interesting local applications. We often see that when people learn of large-format material extrusion and its costs, new applications and use cases emerge. We have a lot of people making many different parts for many different industries with large-format. It will be interesting to see what kinds of clients and parts Arridex will unlock with this machine and its new capabilities.