Taiyo Nippon Sanso announced that it concluded a business alliance with the US 3D printer manufacturer Velo3D on December 17 last year. Accordingly, the company acquired sales rights of Velo3D’s 3D printer for small components (- 40cm square) modeling, making them with Optomec’s 3D printer for large components (- 3m square) which they have been deploying sales since 2017 be able to provide 3D printer for wider range of sizes of components. Metal additive manufacturing uses nitrogen and argon mixed gas as shield gas.

Velo3D is the venture company which was established in 2014. They developed 3D printer Sapphire using powder bed fusion (PBF) system and have begun to sell Sapphire since last year, already having achieved a sales record of more than 15 units in the US mainly in the aerospace industry. PBF system is a method to weld or solidify parts formed by spreading metal powder and applying a laser or electronic beam heat source. Its strength is high precision production of parts with complicated forms.

Optomec’s 3D printer is not using PBF system but direct energy deposition (DED) system which involves a coaxial feed of powder or wire to a laser to form a melted or sintered layer on a substrate under inert gas atmosphere. PBF system is slower additive manufacturing than DED system due to more process is needed. But PBF is suitable for complicated additive manufacturing of integral structure of products. Amount of gas consumed is 100 liters par minute for purge as start up and 10 liters for gas shield during additive manufacturing (20 liter per minute for DED system).
Along with these move, Taiyo Nippon Sanso will post a specialist 3D printing technician at the Yamanashi Laboratory, in which they will install Velo3D’s Sapphire and to launch technical support and demonstration services.

Regarding future. Taiyo Nippon Sanso will continue to use alliances with ventures such as this to acquire new products and new technologies to further expand its business portfolio and actively engage in the energy, gas application and electronics fields.