ROCK HILL, S.C., Oct. 28, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- 3D Systems (NYSE:
DDD) today announced it has been awarded a contract to conduct
research and development of a Corrosion Performance Design Guide
for Direct Metal Printing of Nickel Alloys. 3D Systems received the
award based on its ability to thoroughly collect corrosion data and
apply its expertise on the effects of various production practices
associated with parts built via direct metal printing (DMP).
The company's particular technology is ideal for shipbuilding
and munition fabrication due to its low oxygen content and superior
part quality control. On this project effort, 3D Systems will
collaborate with industry leaders - Newport News Shipbuilding and
Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems - as well as nationally
recognized corrosion experts at the University
of Akron.
"We believe that post-processes for additively
manufactured components can be designed to limit corrosion in
a saltwater environment," said Dr. Jared
Blecher, principal, aerospace & defense engineering, 3D
Systems. "Through our research and development efforts, corrosion
rates will be quantified for additively manufactured parts, so end
users will have better data for deciding when parts should be
inspected or replaced. Additionally, we'll explore the value of
heat treatment to help improve the mechanical properties of the
part and mitigate corrosion and ultimately cost."
America Makes Executive Director John
Wilczynski added, "There's no question that the DoD's need
for rapid qualification and certification of additive manufacturing
processes like DMP using metal materials like Nickel alloys is
great. The creation of a performance design guide by 3D Systems and
its project partners will be of tremendous value to the DoD. With
qualified empirical data on how to minimize saltwater corrosion of
additive manufactured components used in weapon systems, defense
supply chains can accelerate their adoption of additive
technologies to manufacture these critical components."
As a producer of powder bed fusion additive manufacturing (AM)
systems, 3D Systems will ensure that machine parameters and related
software are appropriately taken into account to address phenomena
observed in the corrosion analysis. 3D Systems, Newport News
Shipbuilding and Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems will identify
the specific corrosion mechanisms that form the bulk of key Nickel
alloy corrosion difficulties common to naval sea system platforms
and high-speed weapons. The companies will support 240 corrosion
tests with four different surface finishes, and four different heat
treatments evaluating crevice, stress corrosion cracking, and
galvanic corrosion modes. Surface finish and post-build annealing
time will also be varied to simulate the range of surface
conditions, elemental micro-segregation, and deleterious secondary
phases found in deployed components.
According to a 2018 study by Logistics Management Institute
(LMI) (Estimated Impact of Corrosion on Cost and Availability of
DoD Weapon Systems, March 2018),
corrosion costs the U.S. Navy more than $8.5
billion annually, which is more than 20% of total
maintenance costs. Corrosion is accelerated with traditional
manufacturing methods that require expensive heat treatment and
machining steps. These additional steps cause stress to the metal,
which weakens its properties and opens the finished parts up to
accelerated mean time between failure (MTBF). If additive
manufacturing is used in lieu of traditional manufacturing,
production and delivery times can be reduced while maintaining
corrosion resistance and potentially improved MTBF. Obtaining a
better understanding of corrosion of additively manufactured
components could enable cost-effective production of more durable
final parts, thus leading to longer times between inspections and
maintenance.
3D Systems has contributed additive manufacturing expertise to
the Department of Defense for decades with 3D printing being used
for everything from aircraft parts to submersible components. The
company's technologies are also used extensively for the production
of aerospace components.
"We're excited to partner with 3D Systems on this important
effort," said Charles Southall, vice
president of engineering and design for Newport News Shipbuilding,
a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries. "Last year, we
collaborated to qualify metal additive manufacturing technologies
to build naval warships, and installed 3D Systems' DMP technology.
We're looking forward to expanding that work by developing design
standards to help create more durable parts, and ultimately improve
the quality of our armed forces' fleet."
3D Systems was selected for this project in a competitive
process by America Makes, the National Additive Manufacturing
Innovation Institute, and the Department of Defense. The program is
a Directed Project Opportunity on Advanced Tools for Rapid
Qualification (ATRQ), funded by the Manufacturing and Industrial
Base Policy Office within the Office of the Secretary of
Defense.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements made in
this release that are not statements of historical or current facts
are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking
statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other
factors that may cause the actual results, performance or
achievements of the company to be materially different from
historical results or from any future results or projections
expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. In many
cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terms such
as "believes," "belief," "expects," "may," "will," "estimates,"
"intends," "anticipates" or "plans" or the negative of these terms
or other comparable terminology. Forward-looking statements are
based upon management's beliefs, assumptions, and current
expectations and may include comments as to the company's beliefs
and expectations as to future events and trends affecting its
business and are necessarily subject to uncertainties, many of
which are outside the control of the company. The factors described
under the headings "Forward-Looking Statements" and "Risk Factors"
in the company's periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, as well as other factors, could cause actual results to
differ materially from those reflected or predicted in
forward-looking statements. Although management believes that the
expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are
reasonable, forward-looking statements are not, and should not be
relied upon as a guarantee of future performance or results, nor
will they necessarily prove to be accurate indications of the times
at which such performance or results will be achieved. The
forward-looking statements included are made only as of the date of
the statement. 3D Systems undertakes no obligation to update or
review any forward-looking statements made by management or on its
behalf, whether as a result of future developments, subsequent
events or circumstances or otherwise.
About 3D Systems
More than 30 years ago, 3D Systems
brought the innovation of 3D printing to the manufacturing
industry. Today, as the leading AM solutions company, it empowers
manufacturers to create products and business models never before
possible through transformed workflows. This is achieved with the
Company's best-of-breed digital manufacturing ecosystem - comprised
of plastic and metal 3D printers, print materials, on-demand
manufacturing services and a portfolio of end-to-end manufacturing
software. Each solution is powered by the expertise of the
company's application engineers who collaborate with customers to
transform manufacturing environments. 3D Systems' solutions address
a variety of advanced applications for prototyping through
production in markets such as aerospace, automotive, medical,
dental and consumer goods. More information on the company is
available at www.3dsystems.com.
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