SABIC’s carbon fiber-reinforced material used to produce the world’s first
3D-printed vehicle at IMTS 2014
SABIC delivered the innovative
materials and processing expertise needed to create a first-of-its-kind concept
vehicle using advanced 3D printing (also known as additive manufacturing)
during the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) in Chicago this
week. This fully functional vehicle being printed from scratch and assembled by
automotive design firm Local Motors, is expected to be driven off the tradeshow
floor on Saturday.
This
ground breaking event showcases a long-awaited solution to a major
manufacturing challenge: how to avoid the significant investments in tooling
and time necessary to produce large free form designs. Local Motors
collaborated with Cincinnati Incorporated, a large-scale manufacturing system
builder; Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), a pioneer in advanced materials
research; and SABIC to develop and validate the technology and materials needed
to deliver large format 3D printing technology.
“When the team was choosing our
partners to produce the world’s first 3D-printed car, SABIC was an obvious
choice because they would quickly and reliably deliver the proper materials
needed to bring the Strati to life,” said John B. Rogers, Jr., Local Motors
CEO.
SABIC’s LNP™ STAT-KON™ carbon
fiber-reinforced compound was chosen for its excellent strength-to-weight ratio
and high stiffness, which minimizes warping during the 3D printing process,
enabling enhanced aesthetics and performance. Additionally, SABIC’s expertise
in this emerging technology, including material selection and validation,
equipment specification and processing, were instrumental throughout the
development process.
“Involving SABIC at the inception,
with their experience in advanced processing technology and material
validation, was critical to the project’s success,” said Andrew Jamison, CEO
for CINCINNATI. “Visitors will get a first-hand look at the future of
additive manufacturing and its possibilities to transform the industry with our
Big Area Additive Manufacturing (BAAM) machine running SABIC material and
printing polymer components 200-500 times faster and 10 times larger than
today’s additive manufacturing machines.“
Tony Cerruti, Marketing Director,
Americas, for SABIC’s Innovative Plastics business commented, “SABIC’s materials and processing knowledge together with this
advanced additive manufacturing technology will help to address the
manufacturing challenges our customers are facing – the high cost to
innovate. We believe that this technology has far-reaching
potential for applications across the multiple industries that SABIC serves,
bringing designs to market faster and enabling mass customization.”
The concept
vehicle event stemmed from a Local Motor’s Design Challenge which resulted in
the submission of over 200 entries from 30+ countries. The winning
concept, Strati, inspired the full sized 3D-printed prototype.
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