Additive Manufacturing Studio

The state of the art Additive Manufacturing Studio allows TDI to support the manufacturing industry with building 3D prototype models from a variety of materials and new scanning capabilities.

K-State Technology Development Institute was awarded a retooling grant as part of the CARES Act Recovery Assistance program through the U.S. Department of Commerce. As part of this grant, TDI was able to purchase a variety of additive manufacturing equipment to enhance and expand our capabilities:

		Stratasys J850 Process: Polyjet		Build Volume: 19.3” x 15.3” x 7.9” in Polyjet printing precisely jets and then UV cures ultra-thin layers of liquid resin to create highly detailed, full-color, multimaterial parts with smooth surfaces used for final prototype models.
		Stratasys F170 Raise3D Pro2 Plus Terabot 4 Process: FDM		Build Volumes: 10” x 10” x 10” up to 36” x 36” x 39.3” FDM printing is the type of printing most seen in homes, offi ces, and schools. These printers melt plastic 􀃶 lament from a spool, and deposit it onto a build platform in layers. They are most useful for making cost eff ective prototypes, and have the ability to print with PLA, ABS, and other common printing filaments.
		Markforged Mark Two Process: FDM with continuous fiber		Build Volume: 12.6” x 5.2” x 6” In addition to standard FDM capabilities, this printer also lays continuous fibers within each layer to reinforce the printed part giving it similar strength to a part made of aluminum.
		Formlabs Form, 3BL, & 4 Process: SLA		Build Volumes: 5.7” x 5.7” x 7.3” up to 13.2” x 7.9” x 11.8” SLA printing uses UV light to selectively cure layers of liquid resin creating highly detailed and smooth parts. The wide range of resins available produce functional parts with desired characteristics such as tough, flexible, clear, heat resistant, or rigid that mimic production materials.
		Formlabs Fuse 1 Process: SLS		Build Volume: 6.5” x 6.5” x 11.8” SLS printing uses a laser to selectively melt powder layer by layer, forming a durable part that is then pulled from a vat of unfused loose powder. Thus, no support structures are needed.
		Hexagon Absolute Arm 8525		7-axis arm with 2.5m reach This arm uses a point probe or laser scanner to precisely measure objects for quality inspection and reverse engineering. The points gathered from the object are processed to create a 3D CAD file.
		JuggerBot 3D Tradesman P3-44		Build Volume: 36” x 48” x 48” Extrusion rates up to 15 lbs/hr Pellet 3D printing is much like FDM printing, and is useful for creating large tools, fixtures, prototypes, and even end use parts.