CompositesWorld
Issue link: https://cw.epubxp.com/i/620463
JANUARY 2016 6 CompositesWorld COMPOSITES: PAST, PRESENT & FUTURE » We editors here at CW see a lot of what the composites industry has to ofer. We go to trade shows, we visit companies, we talk to people, we listen, we take pictures, we take notes, we research, we write. And each of us is expected to be well-versed enough about composites to write intelligently about almost every aspect of the industry: Resin, fber, tooling, processes, software, machining systems, structures, aircraft, cars, trucks, boats, wind blades, pipe, surfboards, golf clubs, satellites, manhole covers . . . you get the idea. Given this, we are launching this year a new report (annual, I hope), called CW Ideas in Action. Why "in Action"? Because anybody can think of a new way to do something. But ideas are just ideas until someone does the hard work of putting them into action and seeing practical, real-world results. Tat's really the only thing that counts. So this year, I've asked each editor to look back on the year that was (2015) and ofer her/his opinion on the most promising, innovative or just plain interesting composites- related idea or concept that is fnding its way into useful form. Te result is below, and I think you'll fnd our assessments as diverse and thought-provoking as the people who wrote them. Let us know what you think, and have a good 2016. — Jef Sloan, Editor-in-Chief; jef@compositesworld.com Ideas are just ideas until someone does the hard work of putting them into action and seeing results. CW Ideas in Action 3D printing adds an exciting new dimension By Heather Caliendo, CW Managing Editor – Electronic Products hcaliendo@gardnerweb.com I've watched this year as 3D printing has moved from a relative curiosity to what looks increasingly like a serious contender for real-world indus- trial applications. Here are two of the many reasons why: Arevo Labs (Santa Clara, CA, US) has introduced a scalable Robot- based Additive Manufacturing Platform (RAMP) for industrial fabrication of 3D-printed composite parts. The frst-of-its-kind ofering consists of a standard commercially available robot, composite deposition end-efector hardware and a comprehensive software suite. Arevo's ofering is tailored to ABB's (Auburn Hills, MI, US) smallest 6-axis robot, the IRB 120, but the scalable software can support larger ABB robots. The additive end-efector hardware consists of a deposition head with advanced thermal-management technology for processing continuous or chopped carbon fber-reinforced thermoplastics. The platform's multi-axis toolpaths enable production-quality parts constructed with 3D surfaces in variable orientations. Local Motors (Chandler, AZ, US) got the auto industry's attention by using the Big Area Additive Manufacturing (BAAM) machine, built by Cincinnati Inc. (Harrison, OH, US) with help from Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL, Oak Ridge, TN, US), to build the world's first 3D printed car (photo at left) at the IMTS show last year (see "Learn More," p. 13). Local Motors is now moving into intensive testing and development that will culminate in a road- ready series of cars, under the name LM3D, built using direct digital manufacturing (DDM). About 70% of the LM3D will be 3D-printed, including body panels and chassis, which will be carbon fiber- reinforced ABS plastic. SABIC (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia) provides the materials used to build the LM3D and Siemens (Munich, Germany) developed the software. Industrial, automotive … we're well past the novelty stage. Getting past lifecycle cost to cost parity By Sara Black, CW Technical Editor sara@compositesworld.com I see suppliers who are, fnally, fnding ways to optimize products and processes to create a viable value proposition that puts composites at or very near cost parity with conventional materials. Instead of touting composites' benefts to justify the greater material cost, companies are now increasingly able to say, "This composite product costs about the same as [insert steel, aluminum, or…] and provides incredible benefts." Some great examples come to mind: The first is a basalt fiber-reinforced rebar product from Neuvokas (Ahmeek, MI, US), which CEO Erik Kiilunen says costs