OECHSLER expands additive manufacturing capacity in Germany and brings powder-based printing processes into series production
- Establishment of powder-based additive serial production in Germany
- Bundling of AM competencies and strategic alignment at the Ansbach-Brodswinden site
- Development of a new automated post process in cooperation with Additive Manufacturing Technologies (AMT)
Ansbach, March 02, 2022 --- OECHSLER AG ("OECHSLER"), a leading polymer technology company with a global presence and headquarters in Ansbach/Middle Franconia, is expanding its service portfolio in the field of additive manufacturing and enlargens its capacities for series production using the powder-based 3D printing process. For this purpose, OECHSLER is investing a seven figure amount in the expansion of the infrastructure at the Ansbach-Brodswinden site. The Franconian medium-sized company is bundling its additive manufacturing capacities at the site in Ansbach Brodswinden, including production, research and development. Thus OECHSLER is creating the prerequisites for expanding additive manufacturing into the company’s second major business area alongside injection molding.
Expansion of series production with MJF technology from HP
For this purpose, OECHSLER is expanding the production capacities of Additive Manufacturing in Brodswinden by an additional 800 square meters. In the future, Multi Jet Fusion ("MJF") 3D printers from HP in particular will be used for series production. In addition, state-of-the-art quality assurance and an air-conditioned measuring room were each created on 150 square meters. OECHSLER's customers already include leading industrial companies, automotive suppliers and key players in the sporting goods industry.
Matthias Weißkopf, Senior Vice President Global Product & Technology Development "We have entered new product categories and markets with additive manufacturing and have thus been able to further diversify our portfolio of offerings. The expansion of series production with printers from HP reflects our strategy of establishing OECHSLER as a manufacturer-independent development and production partner in the field of additive manufacturing. With our optimized infrastructure, we can support our customers with even more tailored solutions in development and production."
Automated end-to-end post processing from AMT
In addition to the actual 3D printing of components, multi-stage post-processing is a key success criterion for industrialized production. At this step of the additive process, the parts receive their defined mechanical, haptic and optical properties. In recent years, OECHSLER has built up comprehensive expertise in the post-processing components of additive series production. Thus, OECHSLER is one of only a few companies worldwide that is able to offer series production in 3D printing on a global scale. To further industrialize powder-based 3D printing processes, OECHSLER has partnered with leading AM post processing company, Additive Manufacturing Technologies ("AMT") to develop, and integrate a fully automated end to end post-processing cell into production. The 1.5-year project also includes a seven figure investment and is expected to conclude in 2023 with the commissioning of a full end to end production workflow capable of running 24/7 with limited user intervention. Each automated cell will have the capacity of finishing parts from 10 industrial printers at once.
Mr. Joseph Crabtree, CEO and Founder of AMT: “We are proud that OECHSLER has partnered with AMT to integrate the fully automated end to end post processing cell that we are developing. We are confident that this solution will enable OECHSLER to industrialize their additive manufacturing capabilities on a global scale.”
Dr. Claudius M. Kozlik, CEO of OECHSLER: "Polymer-based additive series manufacturing has established itself as another innovative production technology at OECHSLER. We are already realizing veritable high-volume projects in the key industries of automotive, sporting goods, medical technology as well as manufacturing
with our globally more than 150 installed 3D printers. Thanks to the expansion of our site in Ansbach-Brodswinden and the fully automated end-to-end post processing by AMT, we will be able to offer our customers an even broader technology portfolio in the future."
Additive manufacturing is one of the fastest growing production technologies. Already today, OECHSLER takes a globally established position in the market with quite a few prestigious projects realized in collaboration with innovative pioneers in their industries. The increasing demand across industries for lighter components, flexible designs and the most sophisticated functions opens up dynamic growth prospects for OECHSLER. The group sees itself as a technology-independent solution provider for its customers. Today, OECHLSER produces well over one million components and systems annually and ranks among the largest producers of additive series production with locations in Ansbach, Brodswinden and Taicang (China).