In the fast-paced commercial space industry, consistency, scalability, and design freedom are key factors that determine success. Velo3D, a leading provider of metal additive manufacturing (AM) solutions, has developed a fully integrated metal additive manufacturing solution that addresses these critical needs.
With Velo3D metal AM technology, engineers and space companies can manufacture critical parts and engine components with consistent geometric accuracy, surface finish, and material properties.
Read on for an overview of how Velo3D is helping today’s most ambitious commercial space companies achieve success at near warp speeds. And if you’d like to delve deeper into the capabilities of Velo3D’s fully integrated metal AM solution, we invite you to download our whitepaper: We Have Liftoff: Get to Orbit Faster with Metal 3D Printing.
Achieving Consistency through Integration
Velo3D’s integrated solution consists of the Sapphire family of printers, Flow pre-print software, and Assure software, which ensures layer-by-layer quality control. The seamless integration of Flow with Sapphire printers results in pre-validated build instructions.
These conformal instructions, combined with Sapphire’s automated calibration routines, enable the creation of “Golden” Print file—a persistent, unmodifiable, secure, digital print file that can be transmitted to a Velo3D-enabled global print facility and recreated to match original specifications.
The “Golden” Print file is the true enabler of success for customers. It enables them to manufacture parts with confidence, knowing that the parts they print will meet their expectations in terms of geometric accuracy, surface finish, and material properties—every time, regardless of where the machine printing the part is physically located.
Scalability and Agility
In the fiercely competitive commercial space industry, speed and scalability are paramount. Velo3D’s fully integrated solution enables space companies to accelerate their design concepts and move swiftly into full production. The integration of design software, printing hardware, and quality assurance software ensures a streamlined process.
As previously mentioned, once a part is successfully designed and sliced within Velo3D’s Flow print preparation software, engineers obtain a “Golden” Print file. This file contains the proprietary print settings that ensure consistent results across any Velo3D Sapphire printer worldwide.
Site to Site Variability of Printed Holes
The above data is from a high-performance space launch and hypersonics propulsion provider. The organization’s combustion geometry is highly sensitive to dimensional and surface finish variation, which in turn affects part and system performance. Current supply chain (single laser) AM machines produce inconsistent results outside of acceptable limits. This caused the organization to trial the Velo3D fully integrated metal AM solution and its “Golden” Print File capability to successfully produce consistent results within a single machine across multiple machine S/N vendors. As a result of its successful trials, the customer is moving its entire AM supply chain to Velo3D technology for scalability, consistency, and security.
Whether utilizing a network of contract manufacturers or handling production in-house, companies can achieve the same geometric accuracy and material properties with every subsequent print. This level of repeatability allows for on-demand production of replacement parts or efficient scaling of large part runs with remarkable agility.
Unleashing Design Freedom for Optimal Performance
Conventional metal AM systems often require compromising on part performance due to design limitations. Engineers are forced to make changes that sacrifice functionality for manufacturability, particularly in complex space applications with intricate internal channels and structures. Velo3D’s advanced metal AM solution offers a groundbreaking solution. By integrating Flow pre-print software with Sapphire printers, engineers can now execute even the most complex designs without compromise.
The solution provides design freedom and encourages engineers to build parts without scaling back their original intentions. This means that high-pressure tanks, turbines, heat exchangers, and other intricate geometries can be manufactured with precision and optimal performance.
Time for Liftoff
To explore the full capabilities of Velo3D’s fully integrated metal AM solution in revolutionizing the commercial space industry, we invite you to download the complete white paper.
Discover how Velo3D’s technology unlocks consistency, scalability, and design freedom, empowering space companies to thrive in this competitive landscape.
Gain insights into the extended range of controlled parameter sets, enhanced geometric features, and intelligent application of optimal processes.
Interested in learning more about how Velo3D’s brand of advanced metal additive manufacturing can impact the space industry? Download our whitepaper today.
