Dr. Ing. Geert Verhaeghe, Project Coordinator for IMPALA, TWI Ltd, Cambridge (UK)

Intelligent Manufacture from Powder by Advanced Laser Assimilation.
To develop a flexible and efficient rapidmanufacturing process that is powder-based and uses laser technology to produce customised and small-to-medium volumeparts, with features as small as 20μm.

Aluminium: New chances with laser based generative fabrication

Reiner Götzen / Andrea Reinhardt, microTEC Gesellschaft für Mikrotechnologie mbH, Germany

PowerPoint shows overview of RM based products in medical, consumer electronics and industry, also RMPD-technologies and 3D-CSP for mems packaging are explained.

Jeffrey DeGrange, Boeing, USA

Good overview of Boeings vision towards improvement of RM, presented during EuroMold 2006.

Igor Movchan, Ecole Nationale d'Ingénieurs de Saint Etienne, France

Janne Kyttänen, Freedom Of Creation, the Netherlands

Unique presentation of this company, fully dedicated on RM. They do research and design on all kind of commercial products in three business lines: Interior Products, Accessories & Design projects for 3rd Parties. The presentation covers for instance the company profile, vision & mission, the FOC collection, their projects and research areas.

Andrzej Grzesiak, Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation, Germany 

The project investigates and evaluates the possibility to replace parts of a new gripper by laser-sintered components. Using EOSINT P and pusuing new design ideas the optimal solution is realised directly in CAD. After considering test results, the final design is an award-winning innovation in gripper technology.

Festo AG&Co. KG, Stahl- und Aluminiumteile: Praktische Erfahrungen mit generativem Prototyping (German).
Klaus Mueller-Lohmeier, Festo AG&Co. KG, Germany

Mehrere Fallbeispiele für und Ergebnisse aus dem industriellen Einsatz des Laserschmelzens für metallische Funktionsprototypen. Dies beinhaltet metallo­gra­phi­sche und mechanische charakterisierungen sowie Hinweise auf die geometrische Ge­nauig­keit und die erzielbare Oberflächentopographien. Neben der Nutzung für Stahlfunktionsteile, auch erste Erfahrungen mit Aluminiumteilen. Swiss Rapid Forum, St. Gallen (CH), 19. Mai 2005.

Gideon N.Levy, Ralf Schindel, Peter Schleiss, Adriaan Spierings, FHS University of Applied Sciences St. Gallen, Switzerland

Presented during Euro-uRapid 2006, all aspects covered of TQM for RM. Contents: Introduction, What is Rapid Manufacturing, The Rapid Manufacturing Process, TQM Matrix Overview, Some Specific Requirements, SLS in line quality Examples (Materials, Layering, Components, Post processing), Conclusions.

TNO, From Ink-jet printing to Rapid Manufacturing R.J. Houben M.Sc., TNO Science and Industry, The Netherlands

Printing techniques are commonly used nowadays. If processing material by means of an ink-jet system is the goal, this conflicts with the viscosities which can be jetted using standard ink-jet equipment. The presentation will give an insight in the research at TNO on jetting high viscous materials

ASERM is established in 2004, with the aim of becoming a meeting point of Spanish business enterprises, technological centres, research centres, and universities.

This presentation gives a good picture of their scope and activities.

Econolyst Ltd, Dr Phil Reeves, UK 

Integrating additive manufacturing into mainstream production “The need for middle layer intelligence”
Within this presentation Dr Reeves discusses the need for product designers and engineers to have information at their 'finger tips' about RM materials and process capabilities, for manufacturing engineers to understand the process capabilities and constraints of RM technologies, for purchasing and procurement engineers to have confidence in the capability of their supply chain and for quality engineers to have the tools to ensure both part traceability and conformance from additive manufactured components.

IMNR, Dr. Radu Robert Piticescu National R&D Institute for Non-ferrous and Rare Metals, ROMANIA

Research, development and technolgy transfer in the field of advanced metallic and ceramic materials, nanostructutred composite and inorganic-organic hybrid nanomaterials, environemental friendly technologies in non-ferrous metals metallurgy and advanced materials. Rapid manufacturing of thin nanostructured films of nanobiomaterials and functional applications using a unique hydrothermal-electrochemical method.