Complex tool geometries from the 3D printer

• AddUp establishes a new competence centre within the WBA Aachener Werkzeugbau Akademie GmbH
• AddUp GmbH: Founding of German subsidiary
• The Tooling Competence Centre provides tool manufacturers with a resource to validate their applications
   

Aircraft parts, houses, and even human organs – just about anything can be made with a 3D printer these days. Michelin recognised the potential of this technology early on and founded the AddUp joint venture with the French technology developer and plant manufacturer Fives in 2015. The start-up specialises in the additive manufacturing (AM – Additive Manufacturing) of metal parts and can manufacture very complex workpieces based on steel, nickel, titanium or aluminium alloys. Metal 3D printing is one of the sectors in which the Michelin Group is expanding its business beyond the tyre segment.

AddUp is now opening a new competence center for toolmaking in Aachen: the Tooling Competence Centre is located within the WBA Aachener Werkzeugbau Akademie GmbH. In addition to the additive manufacturing site, the German subsidiary – AddUp GmbH – is also being set up there with a local team of specialised engineers who support companies in the industrialisation of additive manufacturing. Aachen is AddUp's second location outside of France after Cincinnati, Ohio.

AddUp specialises in two types of additive manufacturing (AM) technologies: Powder Bed Fusion (PBF) and Directed Energy Deposition (DED). Their machine portfolio includes the FormUp range of robust and open-architecture PBF machines, as well as the BeAM Modulo and Magic lines of industrial DED machines. AM is a key technology in digital manufacturing and offers many advantages and opportunities for the tooling industry. Specifically, PBF enables tools with multiple parts to be produced more quickly than with conventional technologies. AM allows tools to be designed with complicated geometries to improve performance and efficiencies. For example, in the case of plastic injection moulding, PBF technology can create complex cooling channels to optimise cooling and cycle times. The WBA is a technical reference centre for the tooling industry. The WBA offers consulting, training, and research activities to promote all innovative technologies applicable to mould and tool production. For this reason, the WBA’s state-of-the-art workshop was chosen as the perfect location for AddUp to enter the tooling ecosystem within Germany with their Tooling Competence Centre.

AddUp has extensive experience in the tooling industry developing applications and materials best suited for mould and tool production. The Tooling Competence Centre provides a resource for tooling manufacturers to validate their applications and partner with an expert in PBF technology. The facility is equipped with a FormUp 350 PBF machine and tool makers will have the opportunity to submit application cases for evaluation beyond a simple proof-of-concept. They will be able to study all aspects of their project, from the design applied to PBF, to the profitability analysis and the study of series production.