Under the motto “Let’s advance Manufacturing,” Siemens and selected partners will demonstrate at Formnext 2024 how additive manufacturing (AM) is becoming an innovation enabler for industrial applications thanks to a functioning ecosystem, digitalization, and automation. Additive manufacturing has become an established production technology in which productivity, costs, quality, and availability are critical to long-term market viability. The Siemens Xcelerator strategy emphasizes the importance of innovation technology partnerships and open, interoperable technologies. They are essential for facilitating the integration of AM into conventional manufacturing technologies, meeting standardized quality and safety requirements, and accelerating the scaling of AM solutions. As a result, Siemens brings additive manufacturing offerings from additional partners in the Siemens Xcelerator Marketplace.
At Formnext, VLM Robotics presents a fully automated autonomous mobile robot solution based on Sinumerik One, Sinumerik CNC Robotics and Simove.
New offerings on the Siemens Xcelerator Marketplace
LEAM Technologies is revolutionizing large format additive manufacturing (LFAM) with light-based welding technology. In collaboration with CEAD, an expert in LFAM and a long-standing partner of Siemens, LEAM Technologies is opening up new possibilities in additive manufacturing. Using light to heat the material, LEAM enables extreme mechanical strength, even in difficult-to-print materials. This is of particular interest for applications in industries such as aerospace, defense, and energy. A temperature monitoring system from LEAM enables real-time temperature control during the additive manufacturing process. The edge-based solution, now available on the Siemens Xcelerator Marketplace, continuously checks and regulates the temperature at every position of the component to improve the quality of the printed parts. With LEAM, manufacturers can make their production processes more efficient, enhance product quality, and reduce reject rates simultaneously.
VLM Robotics, builder of XXL manufacturing machines, offers innovative and turnkey solutions for the railway, shipbuilding, aerospace, and energy industries. At Formnext, VLM Robotics will debut its new model CALYPSO, a fully automated autonomous mobile robotic solution based on Sinumerik One, Sinumerik CNC Robotics, and Simove for the first time, in addition to its well-known CNC robotic machines. The booth will also display its GEMINI machine for XXL hybrid additive manufacturing. VLM Robotics’ hybrid robotic solutions can perform printing (Directed Energy Deposition, Cold Spray), welding, control, and milling tasks. VLM Robotics’ range of CNC robotic machines can seamlessly integrate into the production environment, enabling agile repair and production work on large components. Digital threads play a vital role in this, as they are end-to-end digital twins of all data and information across the entire lifecycle of a product, machine, and process, enabling seamless integration and transparency from development to disposal. The complexity of controlling a highly scalable multi-technology robotic machine while meeting high precision and quality requirements requires a high level of industry, automation, and digitalization expertise. VLM Robotics is now represented on the Siemens Xcelerator Marketplace, where it offers customized digital solutions that enable the seamless integration and tracking of all relevant data and information throughout the entire production lifecycle.
Additive manufacturing with Siemens technology paves the way to a circular economy
Additive manufacturing is also an essential enabler of the circular economy. Designing products to be reused, recycled, or safely returned to the environment at the end of their lifecycle promotes a sustainable value chain, reduces waste, and conserves resources. Product design is vital since 80% of the environmental impact is determined in the design phase. Siemens uses industrial AI and metaverse to generate optimized designs and enable automated, intelligent workflows. Thanks to Siemens solutions, Toolcraft, for instance, can improve components’ design and engineering process by 30% for new designs and 85% for design modifications.
Haddy is building a global network of local microfactories equipped with hybrid Flexbot systems and recycling units that shorten the supply chain and help the environment by reducing waste.
Haddy is revolutionizing furniture manufacturing with advanced 3D printing and robotics, producing high-quality, sustainable products at a low cost and commercial scale. Haddy is building a global network of local micro-factories equipped with hybrid Flexbot systems from CEAD and recycling units that shorten the supply chain and help the environment by reducing waste. By collecting detailed data during manufacturing, the company can continuously optimize its robots for greater speed, accuracy, and efficiency. Committed to environmental responsibility, Haddy uses only renewable, recyclable materials. It also introduces a genuinely circular system for its products through Haddy Inside RFID chips and a scalable cloud API solution, allowing for responsible material tracing and recycling, enabling sustainable production and significantly reducing its environmental footprint.
AM I Navigator expands to include Stratasys
The AM I Navigator is entering the next round with Stratasys as a further partner. Since the initiative’s launch in November 2023, the framework has been continuously refined and updated with concrete application examples. With its framework, the AM I Navigator provides a structured approach to defining the status and the steps toward the target state of industrialized additive manufacturing. It builds on established frameworks for digital manufacturing, such as the Smart Industry Readiness Index (SIRI), which helps companies assess their current level of digitalization and readiness for Industry 4.0 and develop strategies for modernizing their production processes.
LEAM Technologies is revolutionizing large format additive manufacturing (LFAM) with light-based welding technology.
You may also like:
Filed Under: 3D printing • additive • stereolithography, Robotics • robotic grippers • end effectors
