3D printing from Formula 1 inspires road and rail

Pat Warner from the BWT Alpine Formula One Team will provide an exclusive insight behind the scenes of Formula 1 racing in his keynote speech to the specialist forum. The team's Advanced Digital Manufacturing Manager will show how the use of additive manufacturing generates speed and innovation both on and off the racetrack. The team has continuously expanded the use of additive technologies over the course of 25 years. Today, AM impacts almost every aspect of their vehicles. The current race cars feature over 200 printed components.

Time as a currency in Formula 1 is also the topic of Victor Sousa, Head of AM Plastics & CNC for AM at Sauber Motorsport. He provides an overview of the production setup and highlights two use cases. Firstly, he will show how stereolithography ensures shorter throughput times in production - with a direct impact on aerodynamics development. Secondly, he demonstrates how direct metal laser sintering supports chassis development and frees up valuable time.

"We are delighted to have the AM experts from the two Formula 1 teams as speakers. Both teams have discovered additive manufacturing over decades and have become profiteers in their own applications. Participants at the congress can take a lot from this for their everyday industrial work," says Frank Cremer, Direct Sales Manager DACH 3D Printers at 3D Systems and member of the rapid.tech 3D advisory board. Together with Dr. Maximilian Binder, Innovation Management Transfer and Network at BMW and also a member of the advisory board, he is responsible for the content of the Mobility Forum.

Additive manufacturing for hydrogen engines

Jochen Wagner, Head of Sales and Business Development at M&H CNC Technik, will demonstrate that hydrogen and additive manufacturing in engine technology are not a contradiction in terms. Mann & Hummel uses the advantages of AM, such as greater design freedom, to make necessary changes to engine components and thus ensure safe operation with hydrogen. This applies, for example, to intake manifolds, which are usually made of plastic but have to be made of aluminum for hydrogen operation. M&H uses metallic 3D printing processes such as selective laser melting and powder-bed-based laser melting for this purpose. The additively manufactured parts are used in two engines: a high-performance hydrogen racing engine and a 1.4-liter car engine.

Railroad industry and automotive value chain

New technology meets traditional approval is the title of Dr. Maximilian Kunkel's presentation. The R&D project manager and leading key expert for AM technologies at Siemens Mobility describes the experiences, implications and next steps in the approval of 3D-printed metal components in an extremely strictly regulated area of application in passenger transportation: the rail industry.

Matthias Schmidt-Lehr, Managing Partner of AMPower, will provide the audience with a compass for navigating the complex AM value chain in the automotive industry. The presentation will provide a market overview based on the AMPower report and several technology studies. Among other things, it will highlight market developments and growth rates for AM at car manufacturers and suppliers, as well as fields of application from prototyping to series production and challenges in terms of costs and scalability compared to conventional processes.

Innovative manufacturing processes are a building block for shortening development times and ensuring competitiveness in the automotive industry. AM opens up potential in toolmaking, for example. Eike Tim Koopmann, PhD student in Technology Development Toolmaking at Mercedes-Benz, reports on the conditions under which hybrid-additively manufactured tool components lead to greater flexibility and efficiency in the series production of body parts.

Creating the right mindset for AM

In order to use AM successfully, you need the right mindset in addition to the technical requirements. The iwis Group is convinced of this. Pascal Kranich, Team Leader Design at iwis e-tech, presents the activities that have created awareness within the company for a growing interest in this topic and a departure from familiar paths. Starting with a core team, training courses, events and an application competition are being used to encourage all employees to get to grips with additive manufacturing and to consider these manufacturing processes in their day-to-day work in future.

Presentations, exchange with exhibitors and deep dive tours

Product and service demonstrations as well as discussions in small groups are the focus in Hall 2 - individually at the exhibitors' stands or on guided technical deep dive tours, at "expert tables" and at the AM Science Poster Slam directly in the hall.

The 3D Pioneers Challenge also provides inspiration for completely new applications of additive and digital technologies. The international competition is coming to rapid.tech 3D for the tenth time this year. The anniversary show gives all previous finalists and winners the chance to face the jury once again and thus become the "Pioneer of the Decade".