{"id":28285,"date":"2021-03-19T00:01:25","date_gmt":"2021-03-19T00:01:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.3dnatives.com\/en\/?p=28285"},"modified":"2021-03-18T21:48:33","modified_gmt":"2021-03-18T21:48:33","slug":"metal-3d-printing-eos-and-audi-190320214","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.3dnatives.com\/en\/metal-3d-printing-eos-and-audi-190320214\/","title":{"rendered":"Metal 3D Printing: EOS and Audi Reach Another Milestone"},"content":{"rendered":"

The automobile manufacturer Audi has been using additive manufacturing to build prototypes and to manufacture auxiliary tools for years.\u00a0For example, in the Audi\u00a0ramp-up and analysis center\u00a0in Neckarsulm,\u00a0plastic 3D printing<\/a>\u00a0has been an integral part of the production process for some time.\u00a0The automobile giant, part of the Volkswagen Group, opened its own\u00a0metal 3D printing<\/a> center in Ingolstadt in\u00a02017.\u00a0There the focus was initially on the manufacture of spare parts – today the company\u00a0already<\/strong>\u00a0produces some\u00a0tool<\/strong>\u00a0parts\u00a0exclusively using the SLM process<\/strong>.\u00a0The company relies on\u00a0EOS M 400 models <\/strong>which has enabled it to completely abandon traditional manufacturing methods such as injection molding for some parts.<\/p>\n

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\"EOS

Audi uses the EOS M 400 industrial 3D printer to manufacture tool segments (Photo Credit: AUDI AG).<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

EOS and Audi\u00a0have been working together for years on the further development of additive manufacturing within the company.\u00a0In 2016, EOS advised the automobile manufacturer on the construction of the metal 3D printing center.\u00a0Since then, tools and components made of metal powder have been\u00a0produced\u00a0there using the\u00a0laser sintering process<\/a> . In the past few years, the Audi experts in Ingolstadt have been able to manufacture more than 100,000 parts, which have been installed in selected models and gradually found their way to series production. According to EOS, the current change represents an important milestone in the cooperation between the two companies. Audi only additively manufacture selected tool segments for hot forming and according to EOS, EOS technology is currently used in twelve segments of four tools for hot forming. The printing of significantly more segments is planned. The tool segments are currently used to manufacture body parts, including for the Audi A4. However, additive manufacturing should also support the construction of electric vehicles<\/a> in the future.<\/p>\n

The switch from traditional manufacturing processes to additive manufacturing offers numerous advantages for\u00a0automobile manufacturers<\/a>.\u00a0An essential factor is the ability to produce tools internally. This not only significantly reduces delivery times, but also\u00a0increases the flexibility, efficiency and individualization of the products be achieved.\u00a0However, additive manufacturing can also be used, for example, to produce individual spare parts that are no longer produced in series today.\u00a0In addition, 3D printing enables the integration of highly complex, component-specific cooling channels, which ensure more homogeneous cooling in the tools.\u00a0This ensures shorter cycle times and ensures that the vehicle parts can be produced in excellent quality for series production.\u00a0The EOS M 400 is used to manufacture tool segments with a length of up to 400 mm and a weight of up to 120 kg.<\/p>

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\"Audi

Representation of a topology-optimized, 3D-printed tool segment with optimized cooling.\u00a0(Image rights: Audi AG)<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Matthias Herker, technical project manager at the Audi 3D printing center metal, commented: \u201cFrom initial qualification by EOS to internal further development and refinement of the entire process chain through to standardization of a new production method, we are now reaping the fruits of years of development within Audi\u2019s production organization. Whenever conventional manufacturing methods reach their limit, we use additive manufacturing \u2013 which lets us meet quality standards and comply with production times,”<\/em><\/p>\n

What do you think about the use of additive manufacturing in the automotive industry? Let us know in a comment below or on our\u00a0Linkedin<\/a>, Facebook<\/span><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Twitter<\/span><\/a>\u00a0pages! Sign up for our free weekly\u00a0Newsletter here<\/span><\/a>, the latest 3D printing news straight to your inbox!<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The automobile manufacturer Audi has been using additive manufacturing to build prototypes and to manufacture auxiliary tools for years.\u00a0For example, in the Audi\u00a0ramp-up and analysis center\u00a0in Neckarsulm,\u00a0plastic 3D printing\u00a0has been an integral part of the production process for some time.\u00a0The…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6075,"featured_media":28286,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28285","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.3dnatives.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28285","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.3dnatives.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.3dnatives.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.3dnatives.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6075"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.3dnatives.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28285"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.3dnatives.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28285\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28288,"href":"https:\/\/www.3dnatives.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28285\/revisions\/28288"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.3dnatives.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28286"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.3dnatives.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28285"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.3dnatives.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28285"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.3dnatives.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28285"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}