Carpenter Technology Corp. is making a multi-prong advance into the additive manufacturing sector, starting with a new partnership with metal processor/distributor Samuel, Son & Co. to provide supply chain services for AM producers and customers. This will include customized turnkey additive manufacturing programs.
According to Carpenter, its specialty powder metals and specialty wire for additive manufacturing, combined with Samuel’s manufacturing, metal processing, and distribution expertise, and the additive manufacturing design and development capabilities of Burloak Technologies (recently purchased by Samuel), will offer “a collaboration of expertise across all aspects of the additive manufacturing spectrum.”
Tony R. Thene, Carpenter CEO said, “Samuel and Carpenter have added a new dimension to additive manufacturing in terms of end-to-end capabilities. With the ability to now offer customers the powder of their choosing, material qualification, design, prototyping, production, and delivery, is truly remarkable.”
“It’s comparable to one-stop shopping for our customers,” said Bill Chisholm, Samuel president and CEO. “What we are providing is an integrated supply chain solution in an industry with unbelievable potential.”
In a separate move, Carpenter established a supply relationship with Burlington, Mass.-based Desktop Metal, Inc.: it will provide more than 20 CarTech® alloy grades in premium materials cartridges for use in Desktop Metal’s metal 3D printing systems.
Desktop Metal’s office-scale 3D printer will cost about $50,000, and is installed with an “office-safe” heat-treating furnace to complete the metal fusion process, costing about $60,000. The office-scale system will be available for shipping this fall.
The company’s production-scale printer is will be available in 2018, with a starting cost of $360,000 (and priced according to production volume.)
“As we develop technology for next generation manufacturing solutions, it is essential to collaborate with innovative partners,” stated CEO Thene. “Leveraging the combined capabilities of Desktop Metals and Carpenter Technology, we will undoubtedly bring enhanced value to this rapidly growing market.”
In addition to its additive manufacturing venture and partnership, Carpenter announced it has started producing the first “high-strength, low-oxygen titanium powder,” called Cartech® Puris 5+™. This custom composition of Ti-6AI-4V meets all Grade 5 specifications, and is described as “a breakthrough in additive manufacturers’ ability to better control oxygen content inherent to their processes, without compromising powder strength.”
