Additive layer manufacturing for direct part production continues to grow and is fast becoming a significant part of the overall ALM industry. The many benefits of this process have seen the technology embraced by a number of manufacturing sectors, not least the aerospace industry. The ability to produce components in a wide range of materials including hot work steels, stainless steel, cobalt chromes, inconel plus titanium and aluminium alloys, presents the aerospace industry with immense potential for direct part production using ALM.
Additive Layer Manufacturing has already proven its capability to produce small and medium sized aerospace components, and having realised the potential of the process, aerospace manufacturers are now seeking to produce larger and more complex parts.