HP recently launched its Metal Jet, which it describes as the world’s most advanced 3D printing technology for the high-volume manufacturing of production-grade metal parts.
“Providing up to 50 times more productivity at a significantly lower cost than other 3D printing methods, HP Metal Jet is being deployed by manufacturing leaders GKN Powder Metallurgy and Parmatech for the factory production of final parts,” the company said in a statement.
Customers who have placed orders include Volkswagen, Wilo, Primo Medical Group and OKAY Industries who will use the printer to rapidly iterate new 3D part designs and produce final parts in volume, eventually integrating the system into their long-term production roadmaps.
“We are in the midst of a digital industrial revolution that is transforming the $12 trillion manufacturing industry. HP has helped lead this transformation by pioneering the 3D mass production of plastic parts and we are now doubling down with HP Metal Jet, a breakthrough metals 3D printing technology,” said David Rozzio, Managing Director, HP Africa.
“The implications are huge – the auto, industrial, and medical sectors alone produce billions of metal parts each year. HP’s new Metal Jet 3D printing platform unlocks the speed, quality, and economics to enable our customers to completely rethink the way they design, manufacture, and deliver new solutions in the digital age.”
According to the company, the printer boasts a bed size of 430 x 320 x 200mm, 4x the nozzle redundancy and 2x the printbars, and significantly less binder by weight. It will start with stainless steel finished parts, delivering isotropic properties that meet or exceed ASTM and MPIF standards.
In an industry-first collaboration, HP is partnering with GKN Powder Metallurgy to deploy HP Metal Jet in their factories to produce functional metal parts for auto and industrial leaders including Volkswagen and Wilo.
GKN Powder Metallurgy is a leading producer of materials and products using powder metallurgy technologies and includes the brands of GKN Sinter Metals, GKN Hoeganaes, and GKN Additive Manufacturing. The company produces more than three billion components per year and expects to print millions of production-grade HP Metal Jet parts for its customers across industries as early as next year.
“We’re at the tipping point of an exciting new era from which there will be no return: the future of mass production with 3D printing. HP’s new Metal Jet technology enables us to expand our business by taking on new opportunities that were previously cost prohibitive,” said Peter Oberparleiter, CEO of GKN Powder Metallurgy.
“Our DNA and our expertise in powder production and metal part processing using digitally networked systems will enable us to drive industrialization across the whole additive manufacturing value stream. By combining the forces of HP and GKN Powder Metallurgy, we will push the productivity and capability of our customers to unprecedented levels based on the economic and technical advantages of HP Metal Jet technology.”
Volkswagen is integrating HP Metal Jet into its long-term design and production roadmap. The collaboration between Volkswagen, GKN Powder Metallurgy and HP has resulted in the ability to move quickly to assess the manufacturing of mass-customizable parts such as individualized key rings and exterior-mounted name plates.
Volkswagen‘s multi-year plan to use HP Metal Jet also includes the production of higher performance functional parts with significant structural requirements, such as gearshift knobs and mirror mounts. As new platforms such as electric vehicles enter mass production, HP Metal Jet is expected to be leveraged for additional applications such as the lightweighting of fully safety-certified metal parts.