On the heels of a less-than-stellar infrastructure report card, along with indications of a slower economic recovery, a proposed $2 trillion infrastructure plan by the U.S. government hopes to solve both problems. Companies like Roboze, a manufacturer of industrial 3D printing technologies, are ready to help with the challenge and bring additive manufacturing to the forefront of sustainable and reliable solutions. The company recently released Roboze Automate, which allows industrial 3D printing with super polymers and composites.
“As the need for strong, resilient infrastructure in the U.S. and around the world continues to climb, we are bringing 3D manufacturing to a new level of consistency, repeatability, and process control and production speed,” said Roboze CEO Alessio Lorusso. “Our components-as-a service approach is upending error-ridden manufacturing fluctuations and materials shortages to support true industrial-scale 3D manufacturing.”
While additive manufacturing has steadily become a force to be reckoned with, especially on a smaller scale, infrastructure needs have been slow to embrace the budding yet flourishing technology. From human error to temperature fluctuations and inconsistent production, sticking to the old standards has continued to be the standard. Roboze Automate aims to change that and streamline the entire manufacturing process.
According to the company: “We have created the Roboze Automate technology ecosystem, which finally brings 3D printing on par with conventional methods such as CNC machining and injection molding, in terms of consistency, repeatability and process control, perfectly integrating into the production workflow of manufacturing companies and positioning itself as a solution for custom manufacturing.”
Working with B&R Industrial Automation in Austria, an automation and process control technology company, the Roboze Automate system works with the ARGO 500— a printer capable of producing 3,000 parts in a series—to streamline and automate production from beginning to end, while also certifying every part that is made. Along with the integrated PLC system, it allows for remote control, diagnosis and predictive maintenance.
While sensors have always been a challenge in the additive manufacturing world, Roboze Automate has focused on fixing that problem. The ARGO 500’s modular design has made it possible to use highly advanced sensors for monitoring and reporting. From material loading and quality control, to logging extrusion temperatures and analyzing process data, every component meets the necessary standards.
The system also incorporates the Roboze Beltless System, which means increased speeds. Since the system uses no belts in the printing process, it enables better repeatability and precision. Its innovative heated chamber process allows for the use of super polymers and composites, eliminating the need for difficult-to-find metals while still being reliable and made to last. Using these super polymers and composites provides the option to produce end parts with leftover materials, which means precious metals can be recycled instead of wasted, and associated raw materials costs can be minimized.
As supply chains continue to be bottlenecked and infrastructure plans start coming to fruition, solutions like Roboze Automate just may be the wave of the future.
Interested in more ways technology is helping solve infrastructure issues? Check out Forging the Way for Drones in Construction and Collaboration Between Robots and Humans Makes Complex Bridge Building Easier.