MASSIVIT 3D PRESENTS A LARGE COMPOSITE MOLD 3D PRINTER RUNNING ON ‘CAST IN MOTION’ TECHNOLOGY.
Massivit 3D,
an Israeli 3D printer maker,
has released a new machine that is designed to
speed up the production of large-format composite moulds.
The Massivit 10000, which is powered by the company’s
Cast-In-Motion (CIM) technology,
allows users to manufacture complex tooling in a four-step gel
dispensing and casting procedure, which streamlines the moulding process.
Adopters, notably those in the automotive, aerospace,
energy, and marine sectors,
will benefit from better throughputs and shorter tooling iteration cycles
as a result of the system.
Massivit 3D CEO Erez Zimerman remarked during the CAMX 2021 expo,
“We are happy to reveal our innovative Cast-In-Motion technology to the
composite manufacturing arena.”
“This market is starved for innovation
that will change the mould-making paradigm,
allowing manufacturers to reduce lead times from many weeks to just a few days.”
Gel Dispensing Printing on a Large Scale
Massivit, which was founded in 2013,
specializes in the manufacturing of large-format machines for clients
in the engineering, academic, architecture,
and visual communications industries.
Every one of the company’s systems is based on its unique Gel Dispensing Printing (GDP) technology,
which is a hybrid of FFF and material jetting in which gels are extruded at high speeds
and hardened into layers.
Massivit’s flagship 3D printer, the 1800 Series, is a 145cm x 111cm x 180cm machine
capable of producing super-sized models and moulds at a rate up to 30 times
faster than existing technologies. It’s available in normal and ‘Pro’ incarnations.
This scalability has allowed the systems to handle a variety of applications throughout the years,
including thermoforming moulds and large advertising displays.
The business decided to debut a new machine,
the Massivit 5000, in April 2021, based on the success of its 1800 3D printer.
The unit has a unique Dual Material System
that allows two parts to be 3D printed
simultaneously with various materials and levels of resolution if needed.
It was designed to fulfil the needs of providers
creating big photopolymer
parts for automotive, maritime, and railway customers.
The firm has also released two new materials to support its growing portfolio of printers,
including the flame-resistant Dimengel 20-FR and the translucent design verification and architecture-oriented UL94-V0,
and it has now continued to expand on its offering with the Massivit 10000,
following its IPO earlier this year that saw it raise $50 million.
Massivit gets a’massiv’ makeover.
The massive 1.2 x 15 x 1.65-meter 10000 3D printers,
which was unveiled at the CAMX 2021 expo,
is designed to address what Massivit perceives
as the pain points
of making huge composite parts: cost, lead time, and complexity.
The machine can address these issues in large part due to its built-in CIM technology,
which reduces a typical 19-step moulding workflow to a four-stage process by removing the need for an initial ‘plug.’
Instead of starting with a typical master design, the CIM process starts with users designing
the desired tooling pattern out of UV-curable gel, which can subsequently be 3D printed
from a variety of thermoset engineering materials.
These pieces are printed
and then immersed in water,
where the patterned sacrificial material breaks away,
leaving a mould that is immediately ready for use after curing and polishing.
This method, according to Massivit, produces parts with
“increased accuracy, consistency, and higher reliability” while being less wasteful than standard equipment for big composite assemblies.
The Massivit 10000, according to the company, is 80% faster and takes 90% less labour to run than traditional part design machinery, making it a “revolutionary mould-making solution” that “shifts the tooling paradigm.”
“We’re able to provide manufacturers a solution to drastically minimize their expenses and associated material waste by automating the mould creation process,” Zimerman explained.
“The burgeoning demand for this digital moulding solution demonstrates the critical need for this technological milestone,
and we are happy to make it available to the CAMX community in the run-up to
the Massivit 10000 launch.”
This method, according to Massivit, produces parts with “increased accuracy,
consistency,
and higher reliability” while being less wasteful than standard equipment for big composite assemblies.
A better alternative to conventional design machinery
The Massivit 10000, according to the company, is 80% faster and takes 90% less labour to run than traditional part design machinery,
making it a “revolutionary mould-making solution” that “shifts the tooling paradigm.”
“We’re able to provide manufacturers a solution to drastically minimize their expenses and associated material waste by automating the mould creation process,”
Zimerman explained.
“The burgeoning demand for this digital moulding solution demonstrates the critical
need for this technological milestone, and we are happy to make it available to the CAMX community in
the run-up to the Massivit 10000 launch.”
Molds of colossal size can be 3D printed.
Moulds may appear to be a minor component of the manufacturing process outside of the industry,
but their precision and durability are critical to the success or failure of their end products.
Multiple commercial and academically funded initiatives have been
commissioned to 3D print these moulds instead, to enhance the speed, size,
and sustainability with which they can be made.
Thermwood Corporation teamed up with Bell Aviation to 3D print a 20-foot helicopter blade
mould as part of one such endeavour. The temperature and elevation pressure-resistant equipment is
specifically created for use in the shaping and manufacturing of durable chopper
parts and is believed to be the
largest autoclave capable
tool of its kind ever manufactured.
Researchers at ETH Zurich, on the other hand, have created a prototype
metal facade using 3D printed sand moulds to address similar
architectural applications to those of Massivit.
The 3.5-meter-tall ‘Deep Facade’ design was made
from large-scale moulded aluminium
elements and was made up
of 26 distinct sections.
