Developments in 3D printing

A sector-by-sector overview

This report explores developments in 3D printing across multiple industries and categories for the half year period June 2021 to December 2021.

Construction & Infrastructures

World’s first 3D printed steel bridge opens in Amsterdam (July 15th)

The world’s first 3D printed steel bridge, made of 4,500 kilograms of stainless steel, opened in Amsterdam. The 12 meter long MX3D bridge was built by four commercially available industrial robots using welding torches to build up the bridge structure layer by layer and took six months to print. Attached sensors will record stress, motion, vibration and temperature across the bridge and the sensors will be integrated into the digital model for engineers to study properties and apply machine learning to identify trends.

3D printing to help build the UK’s new HS2 high-speed rail link from 2022 (August 3)

The contractors behind the London terminal of the upcoming UK High Speed ​​Rail Network 2 (HS2) plan to start using 3D printing in 2022. The HS2 project will focus on on-site concrete slab preparation as well as concrete slab applications. test of graphene infused concrete for a sustainable and sustainable approach.

3D printing soon visible in the construction sector in Dubai (5 August)

Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed issued a decree in 2021 to regulate the use of 3D printing in the construction sector in Dubai. The decree aims to construct 25% of buildings using 3D printing by 2030. It will also promote Dubai as a regional and global hub for 3D printing technology.

Asia-Pacific will be the fastest growing 3D printing region (August 17)

The Asia-Pacific region (APAC) is expected to become the fastest growing market for 3D printing in construction, according to a report by P&S Intelligence. Research has found that this is mainly due to an increase in the number of construction companies using technology in their projects. The report also revealed that the region is rapidly becoming a global manufacturing hub due to the construction of numerous industrial and residential buildings, which is greatly increasing the popularity of 3D printing technology. The research also identified Japan and China as the two main countries that are increasingly adopting 3D printing.

World’s Largest Community of 3D Printed Homes to Enter Texas (November 4)

A new real estate development project in collaboration between Lennar and ICON and co-designed by the Bjarke Ingels group is expected to start in Austin, Texas. The project includes 100 one-story homes “printed” on-site using five of ICON’s 46-foot-wide “Vulcan” robotic printers, which produce a concrete mix called Lavacrete. According to the companies, each house will take about a week to complete. The cost of the project was not disclosed.

LafargeHolcim and CDC Group JV to Build Largest 3D Printed Affordable Housing Project in Kenya (December 6)

14Trees, a joint venture between building materials specialist LafargeHolcim and UK public impact investor CDC Group, is building Africa’s largest affordable 3D printed housing project in Kenya. The community of 52 houses will be located in the town of Kilifi, north of Mombasa, and will be part of the Green Heart of Kenya regeneration ecosystem. 14Trees supports the construction sector in Africa and develops 3D printing technology across the continent. 14Trees’ 3D printing construction project uses Holcim’s proprietary ink, TectorPrint, combined with a BOD2 robotic 3D construction printer supplied by Danish 3D printing construction company COBOD.

Manufacturing

Dewa unveils 3D printing lab in United Arab Emirates (August 4)

The government of Dubai has opened the world’s first 3D printed research laboratory, and the facilities of the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) will be used to design and create the rovers, drones, spare parts and prototypes of the Dubai government. 3D printing. Along with the printing activities, DEWA will install a Metal X system for efficient and productive earnings. Through this project, the government of Dubai aims to improve the 3D printing sector.

Stratasys becomes a founding partner of the New Emerging Technologies Center of Nfrontier (August 26)

The new Center for Emerging Technologies in Berlin will focus on preparing hardware and software applications for customers. In addition, the center will merge the ‘eight emerging technologies’, namely IoT, AI, additive manufacturing, extended reality, robotics, drones, quantum computing and generative design. in one place. Stratasys will supply 3D printers using FDM, PolyJet and P3 programmable light-curing technologies.

Laser beam to improve metal 3D printing (September 22)

The traditional laser beam in metal 3D printing can produce defects and poor mechanical performance. Therefore, researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory studied the shapes of optical beams known as Bessel beams and found that Bessel beams can reduce the problems of the powder-bed laser fusion technique, because these Beams dramatically improve the space of laser scanning parameters compared to traditional beam shapes.

Adapted 3D printing technique produces partially magnetic objects (October 26)

The Russian Institute of Science and Technology in Skolkovo, along with a consortium, developed a process known as directed energy deposition, in which a heat source such as a laser is used to melt the powder metallic when dispensed from a nozzle. This new technology allows the printing of unique objects with degraded magnetic qualities.

To read the full article, click here

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide on the subject. Specialist advice should be sought regarding your particular situation.

POPULAR ARTICLES ON: Technology around the world