OEMs Showcase Hybrid Manufacturing Applications

In October 2023, Mazak hosted its Discover 2023 technology and education event at its iSMART Factory at the company’s North American headquarters in Florence, Kentucky. To demonstrate Mazak’s latest subtractive and additive machining capabilities, David Wilson, applications engineer and hybrid processes specialist, created a part — a widget that resembles a flowmeter — using both traditional machining and additive manufacturing (AM) techniques to serve as an example of challenging geometry for a casting application. Wilson produced the part on a Mazak VC-500A/5X hybrid machining center, which combines five-axis machining with hot wire deposition (HWD) 3D printing.

Combining Subtractive and Additive Processes

The featured part showcased the machine’s ability to replace or supplement low-volume casting operations. This is because the part’s finished, internal geometry would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to machine with conventional methods, which would require long-reach tooling, multiple setups and complicated programming. In operation, the HWD arc torch and laser melt wire directly onto a base material or part, while the machine’s milling spindle removes excess material to achieve tolerance. This combination of additive and subtractive processes enables the user to produce parts with complex internal geometry in a single setup, as shown in the demo.

“Because the machine is a hybrid machine, we were able to interweave the CAM and AM processes,” said Wilson. “So, the process was to build a little, then machine; build a little more, and then machine. The internal geometry was processed throughout, rather than at the end, making it possible to do so without a machine with a larger envelope and without the headaches involved in that.” Those headaches, of course, being the myriad challenges of machining internal geometry through small entry holes.

Mazak used Mastercam CAD/CAM software from CNC Software and APlus software from CAMufacturing Solutions to program and manufacture the part on the VC-500A/5X. Mastercam could interweave those processes, using APlus for additive steps and standard Mastercam for subtractive steps. This method provides a simplified workflow, alternating between the two processes.

As a hybrid five-axis machine tool, the VC-500A/5X AM HWD offers multiple process capabilities, including laser hotwire technology. With wire speed of 1000 inches per minute, the machine can add ferrous materials — in this case, standard welding wire — at a rate of four-to-seven pounds per hour. Additionally, the machine maintains its capability as a milling machine. “We lose none of the capability of subtractive technology,” says Wilson.

Mastercam APlus is a specialized add-on designed by CAMufacturing Solutions which unlocks hybrid manufacturing for Mastercam users. It works with the CAD/CAM software’s Mill, Lathe, and Router solutions and runs in its normal interface. Users can program, backplot, and simulate additive manufacturing tool paths the same way they do with traditional subtractive tool paths. By combining additive and subtractive capabilities, APlus users can program 3D printing and finishing milling tool paths in one place.

“It was exciting to learn something new, be part of the implementation, and test and witness the realization of a leading-edge solution as APlus with Mastercam was coming together,” said Karlo Apro, Mastercam special projects/strategic technical specialist. “It required extensive testing and working closely with the AM software development team, led by Bob Hedrick, who was one of the original architects of Mastercam years ago.” Hedrick also serves as the president and co-founder of CAMufatcuring solutions.

When it came to selecting hybrid manufacturing software, ease of use was a huge selling point for Wilson. “Mastercam and APlus are my preferred CAM and AM programming,” he said. “Programming the additive side with APlus is every bit as easy and intuitive as programming the subtractive side. I could teach you how to use APlus in an afternoon if you’re familiar with Mastercam.”

Wilson believes solutions such as this will help make hybrid machining more accessible. “Many people see this hybrid technology as inaccessible for a number of reasons, one being the assumption that they have to learn another programming language,” he says. “That’s not the case. It’s a heck of a lot easier than you might think.”

Developing the Demo

To produce the Discover 2023 stainless steel widget, Wilson started with a simple, off-the-shelf, weldable pipe flange and used it as a substrate. The Mazak machine, unlike powder bed machines, always requires a substrate. “You have to build on something — you can’t build blind,” he says. He chose a substrate that would become part of the finished component rather than something that needed to be removed later, in part to demonstrate efficient design choices for hybrid manufacturing. 

Highlighting the capabilities of the machine, Wilson used the pipe flange, which is not a flat surface, as a base and built up lantern-shaped geometry from there. With the exception of the original flange, everything on the finished part, including the secondary flange, was created using additive manufacturing. By adding a slight bend in the flange, Wilson made the internal geometry even more difficult to process. “We did a Waterline toolpath to finish and specifically made it more difficult just to show the capabilities of the machine, especially for interweaving,” he said.

Wilson built everything from the flange in sections, starting with the gussets and the bottom cone up to the bend, or elbow, of the part. The inside of the flange was finished before building the elbow. He used the APlus Spine Slice tool path to run the sliced planes around the spine and curvature of the part, then adjusted process parameters to control layer widths, allowing for a more cohesive build around the bend. Determining the correct speeds required some experimentation, but now that the Mazak team has established successful process parameters for stainless steel, they can be implemented in future jobs that require the Spine Slice operation.

The programmers and machinists at Mazak created the demo in part to challenge themselves and push their machine capabilities to a new level. In the process, they learned exactly what the machine and its accompanying software systems can do. “We are very impressed with the software because we did not have to change our design for want of an easier process. It was able to do everything we needed it to do,” Wison says.

The featured part effectively demonstrated that the machining/AM combination is ideal for replacing or supplementing low-volume casting operations. Mazak customers typically use the hybrid machine for repair operations such as cladding and finishing operations, but Wilson’s demo showed his customers the machine’s ability to produce large, homogenous parts as well.

Real-World Uses

Hybrid manufacturing with combination CAM/AM software is a new technology, but it is catching on within the manufacturing industry. In fact, Mazak has hybrid manufacturing platforms at several facilities, including Oak Ridge National Laboratories in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and Idaho National Laboratory (INL) in Idaho Falls, Idaho. While some might suspect that these are purely for research, INL uses hybrid machines to support its more than 50 nuclear reactors, many of which are nearly 50 years old. “Making and finding parts for these legacy, one-of-a-kind experimental reactors is not easy,” said Wilson. “So, INL is using hybrid technology to help recreate these parts in an economical manner.”

While witnessing the advent of new technology is exciting, watching that technology evolve and become more mainstream is especially rewarding for those who helped create it. According to Wilson, Mazak has offered its hybrid machine for five years; the company has five VC-500A/5X AM machines in the field right now. “We expect its use to grow exponentially because of the interest in the technology that is being generated,” said Wilson.

For those who view hybrid manufacturing as a niche process or just a distant possibility, Wilson says they are missing the point. The technology is capable of more than repairs. He believes that with a greater understanding of the technology, more companies will adopt it and make it mainstream.

“I’m not suggesting for a moment that this technology is going to replace conventional machining, certainly not for large-volume operations,” Wilson says. “It can be used to supplement it and change our way of thinking. Design for hybrid manufacturing will increase your capabilities as a shop or as a company.”