White Paper identifies opportunities for emerging AM technology
The use of additive manufacturing or 3D printing provides major new opportunities in the UK ceramics industry according to experts at the National Centre for Additive Manufacturing and Stoke-on-Trent based materials consultancy Lucideon Limited.
Now NCAM, based at the Manufacturing Technology Centre in Coventry, and Lucideon have produced a white paper which defines a route for the UK to create a globally competitive supply chain to service the growing ceramic additive manufacture market.
The white paper identifies challenges facing the industry and offers a number of development areas and opportunities for investment to position the UK at the forefront of ceramic AM technology.
Dr Tom Wasley who leads NCAM's ceramic AM capability development said that ceramics are arguably the most versatile materials on the planet, featuring in every industry and with a breadth of application covering everything from decorative ornaments and tableware to technical ceramics for harsh environments ranging from oil drilling to earth-orbiting satellites and beyond.
"Processing constraints limit the further application of ceramics and this is driving growing interest in additive manufacture for companies looking to unlock a wider range of uses. In particular the introduction of new systems designed to produce high-density technical ceramics is beginning to generate publicity that will, in turn, stimulate interest and ultimately trigger a rapidly-growing global market.
The ceramic AM white paper gives an overview of ceramic AM technology, adoption challenges and solutions as well as providing a number of industrial case studies.
The white paper can be downloaded here:http://www.the-mtc.org/news-items/ceramic-additive-manufacturing-whitepaper-launched.
Dr Wasley can be contacted at [email protected].
The National Centre for Additive Manufacturing at the MTC brings together one of the most comprehensive combinations of additive manufacturing equipment and capability in the UK. It is also home to the European Space Agency's Additive Manufacturing Benchmarking Centre.
The MTC was founded by the University of Birmingham, Loughborough University, the University of Nottingham and TWI Ltd. The MTC’s industrial members include some of the UK’s major global manufacturers.
The MTC aims to provide a competitive environment to bridge the gap between university-based research and the development of innovative manufacturing solutions, in line with the Government’s manufacturing strategy. The MTC is part of the High Value Manufacturing Catapult, supported by Innovate UK.