Jan 9, 2019 | By Thomas
Global standards organization ASTM International is partnering with Innovate UK, BSI (British Standards Institution) and the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) to create technical standards needed by the additive manufacturing industry.
ASTM International's Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence – in which the UK-based Manufacturing Technology Centre (the MTC) is a founding partner – identified three potential areas for standardization.
BSI will coordinate the development of the three standards, which are focused on directed energy deposition (DED), one of seven categories of additive manufacturing as defined by ASTM International and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO/ASTM 52900). DED uses focused thermal energy (e.g., laser, electron beam, plasma arc) to fuse materials by melting as they are being deposited.
ASTM International's global additive manufacturing director, Dr. Mohsen Seifi, notes that DED technology offers unique advantages related to speed and build-envelope limitations. However, he adds, "DED is not as widely used nor understood as some of the other additive manufacturing processes. Lack of standards are quite evident."
"Among their many benefits, these new standards have the potential to help manufacturers and suppliers make products with consistent and reliable quality," he said.
The three DED standards under development are:
- a specification for using wire as a DED feed-stock, helping address key requirements including composition, dimensional tolerances, contamination, packaging, handling, and storage;
- a standard for nondestructive testing (NDT) which aims to address typical causes and natures of DED defects while also reviewing traditional test methods for applicability to DED;
- a standard for DED wire-and-arc additive manufacturing (WAAM), which aims to cover terminology, material opportunities and restrictions, geometrical constraints, finishing requirements, inspection, and more.
The effort will be supported through a £300,000 investment from Innovate UK, to BSI in partnership with ASTM International.
The MTC, home of the UK's National Centre for Additive Manufacturing, will continue to provide support through the development of the Publicly Available Specifications and subsequent international standards. Additionally more than a dozen private companies are supporting the collaboration, including Airbus, GE, GKN, BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce, and many others.
After the Publicly Available Specifications are created through BSI, ASTM International's committee on additive manufacturing technologies (F42) plans to develop international standards based on each through a new licensing agreement.
Posted in 3D Printing Technology
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