Desktop Metal Acquires Metal AM Manufacturer Aidro

Desktop Metal has acquired Aidro, a producer of hydraulic and fluid power systems across a wide range of industries, including oil & gas, agricultural equipment, aerospace and mobile and industrial machinery, among others. Aidro produces its parts and components  through an metal additive manufacturing (AM) process.

Based in northern Italy, Aidro has almost 40 years of experience in the design and production of valves, manifolds and various hydraulic components and fluid power systems. Aidro’s finite element analysis simulation and topology optimization techniques enable its engineers to redesign traditional hydraulic components for AM production. According to the company, they use complex geometries to reduce weight, save space and consolidate multiple components into one, which eliminates assembly and welding requirements. Aidro’s hydraulic components allegedly improve performance versus conventional manufacturing by optimizing flow channel placement and geometry to increase flow capacity and decrease pressure drops.

Aidro’s dedicated AM department features metal 3D printers, 3D scanning technologies and ISO9001 and AS/EN9100 certifications. The company says its processes reduce production lead times for volume quantities of end-use components, spare parts or on-demand rapid prototypes.

Ric Fulop, founder and CEO of Desktop Metal, says, “Aidro brings a talented team with decades of experience in hydraulics and fluid power systems and a passion for leveraging AM to deliver performance advantages to their customers. We’re excited about the acquisition and look forward to advancing AM 2.0 for high-volume production of hydraulics, valves, fluid power systems and many more end-use parts in development with Aidro.”

Valeria Tirelli, co-CEO and president of Aidro, adds, “This partnership is the next step in our AM evolution, and now, with access to Desktop Metal’s scale and industry-leading AM 2.0 technology portfolio, including its volume production-focused metal binder jetting solutions, we’re thrilled at the growth potential for Aidro.”