Stratasys partners with MTC to drive technological change

IndPrint

Stratasys has announced that it has partnered with the UK’s Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) to spearhead the organisation’s objective to demonstrate new processes and technologies that overcome barriers and push the boundaries of traditional manufacturing on an industrial scale.

Working closely with its member ‘customers’, global manufacturing companies from multiple sectors, which include the likes of Airbus, BAE Systems, Rolls Royce and Siemens, the MTC focuses on delivering bespoke manufacturing system solutions.

The collaboration will see Stratasys work closely with the MTC to make additive manufacturing central to the projects undertaken in conjunction with its members, supporting the organisation’s role to research and advise industry on the technology’s capabilities across multiple platforms.

Operating from its facility in Coventry, the MTC is part of the High Value Manufacturing Catapult, which is supported by Innovate UK – the government agency tasked with identifying and driving science and technology innovations that will grow the UK economy.

‘We aim to inspire great British manufacturing on the global stage and central to achieving this are our partnerships with leading technology providers like Stratasys, through whom we are deploying some of the world’s most advanced, market disruptive 3D printing based technology solutions,’ said Ross Trepleton, group technology manager: component technology, MTC.

‘Working with Stratasys, we have a clear objective to demonstrate additive manufacturing technology’s existing capabilities to our members and explore the opportunity to push the envelope in other areas,’ he added. ‘This includes the ability to produce end use engineering components, as well as the capability to build complex parts with multiple materials and give multifunctionality to a single component, using 3D printing. We are also looking at the potential to functionally grade parts by material composition’

Stratasys’ collaboration with the MTC will see the organisation deploy some of the most market leading additive manufacturing technology available. This includes the Stratasys J750 full colour, multi-material 3D printer which breaks restrictive technology barriers by allowing customers for the first time to mix and match full colour alongside a wide range of materials. This enables the production of supremely realistic parts, in one print process, without the need for lengthy post processing, assembly or painting.

‘The MTC is the UK’s renowned epicentre for developing and proving innovative manufacturing processes and technologies that equip companies with the know how to compete on the global stage,’ said Andy Middleton, president, Stratasys, EMEA. ‘This partnership and the integration of our technology solutions at the MTC underscores the fact that, more than ever, the UK is committed to exploring ways to bring growth to the UK economy and promote the real business benefits achievable from transformational technologies like additive manufacturing.’