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AddUp Deploying 8 Metal 3D Printers to Zeda: A Conversation with CEO Rush LaSelle https://ift.tt/RXyZg8e In the first post in this series, I gave an overview of some of the operations and automation that will take place at thenew 73,000-square-foot facility being launched by Zeda. The company, formed through the acquisition of Vertex Manufacturing by PrinterPrezz, combines the aerospace, space, and industrial expertise of Vertex with PrinterPrezz’s medical device specialty. In Part 2, I went into greater depth about how the site was planned and how it fits into the larger idea of re-shoring manufacturing to the United States. Now, I’m focusing on the eight AddUp 3D printers that will be deployed at the facility, the first of which is already there.
Rush LaSelle, CEO of AddUp, agreed, saying it was “destiny” to partner with industry veterans.
One of AddUp’s printers is already onsite at the Zeda facility, and prints with Inconel 718. I asked LaSelle when the next FormUp 350 laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) 3D printer would be deployed at Zeda, and the short answer was “within the first six months” of the facility being fully operational.
In fact, two machines have already been staged, the other of which is a titanium printer at AddUp’s nearby facility that’s currently being run and qualified for medical applications and will soon be at the Zeda factory; LaSelle said that “it’s in effect delivered, just at the wrong facility.” A separate room is being built on the floor at Zeda specifically to house titanium 3D printers, which will help ensure traceability, and as soon as that is built out, AddUp will install this second FormUp 350 inside. A third printer will be used for DoD opportunities in stainless steel, and in about three to four months, an aluminum tool from AddUp will arrive to the Zeda facility as well, for aerospace applications.
I’d previously asked Morris how much automation Zeda anticipated using at the facility, and he said it would be a fair amount; I saw some of it on my tour. LaSelle and I continued this conversational thread inside the standalone room where the AddUp printers will be kept, with the exception of the titanium system. I asked if AddUp’s previous work with the AZO Group in automating powder handling for metal 3D printing would be on display at Zeda, and he said that the system has matured since 2021, and was actually already integrated and factory-ready to control the powder.
He explained that one of the two “primary benefits” of the automated powder handling system is improved operator safety, and the other is more consistency of material for processing, both of which are obviously of paramount importance.
I asked LaSelle what was coming for AddUp in the immediate future, and he said the company was working on “some interesting developments” within the healthcare space, though potentially with a partner other than Zeda. Since my visit to Zeda, the company has released one major healthcare-related piece of news—the establishment of a medical advisory board, as well as the appointment of three industry leaders to the board. These founding members are Sam Onukuri, Jan Triani, and Severine Valdant, each of whom has plenty of expertise in medical devices and healthcare. The mission of the board is to give AddUp a holistic, non-biased view of the medical industry, specifically as it relates to using metal 3D printing, and these new board members will certainly deliver. Most recently the Global Head and Senior Fellow for Johnson & Johnson’s 3D Printing Innovation and Customer Solutions divisions, Onukuri has worked to speed up commercialization of 3D printing, specializing in both digital customer delivery models and healthcare applications. Triani is a subject matter expert for FDA audits, having authored 510(k)s, HDE, complete Quality Management Systems, 483 and Warning Letter responses. She founded Triani Consulting, developed and established initial QMS for two startup medical device companies, led Stage I and Stage II assessments with BSI, achieved 13485 certification with no major non-conformities, and much more. Finally, Valdant was most recently the President at Oxford Performance Materials, Inc. (OPM) and helped it evolve from a polymers company to an additive and medical device manufacturer, after which it became the first—and only—company to receive FDA approvals for 3D printed polymeric permanent implants. She is currently Chief Commercial Officer for QuesTek Innovations LLC.
The other piece of news AddUp recently released is its expansion into Germany, as it will soon officially open the doors to a new Tooling Competence Centre, located in Aachen within the WBA Tooling Academy, a leading partner of the tool and die industry in industry consulting, further education, and research.. This is the company’s second AM facility outside its home country of France, and a new office in Aachen will also serve as its Germany subsidiary AddUp GmbH. The company has plenty of experience developing applications and materials within the tooling industry, as PBF technology makes it possible to produce tools with multiple parts more quickly, and with complex geometries and cooling channels as well. The new Tooling Competence Centre will be a useful resource to help tooling manufacturers validate their applications, and the facility is already equipped with a FormUp 350 printer. Tool makers will be able to submit applications cases for evaluation, and study every aspect of their project, including design, profitability analysis, and series production study.
AddUp will celebrate its new AddUp Tooling Competence Centre at a Grand Opening on May 10th, 2023. The event is free and open to the public and local businesses, and will feature a ribbon-cutting ceremony, facility tours, technical presentations, and local food and drinks. If you can’t make it to Germany in May, you can come visit AddUp at next week’s RAPID+TCT in Chicago at Booth #4636. The post AddUp Deploying 8 Metal 3D Printers to Zeda: A Conversation with CEO Rush LaSelle appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing. Printing via 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing https://ift.tt/CZKLnxG April 26, 2023 at 08:27AM
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