Siemens, Stratasys Form Partnership to Incorporate AM into Traditional Production
The companies argue that additive manufacturing ought to occupy an increasingly familiar role in volume production environments.
Stratasys Ltd. and Siemens have announced a formal partnership to integrate Siemens’ Digital Factory solutions with Stratasys’ additive manufacturing solutions. The partnership is intended to lay the foundation for the two companies to fulfill their shared vision of incorporating additive manufacturing into the traditional manufacturing workflow, helping it to become a universally recognized production practice which can benefit multiple industries including aerospace, automotive, transportation, energy and industrial tooling.
This announcement also builds on Siemens’ recently announced end-to-end solution integrating digital design, simulation and data management with conventional and additive manufacturing.
The two companies have already been collaborating on multiple projects including the direct link from Siemens’ NX software for CAD/CAM/CAE to Stratasys’ GrabCAD Print platform, enabling a seamless design-to-3D print workflow, and the recently previewed Stratasys Robotic Composite 3D Demonstrator that incorporates Siemens’ product lifecycle management (PLM) software and its motion control and CNC automation technologies to produce strong, lightweight performance parts.
In their joint press release, the companies argue that while additive manufacturing technology has made great strides over the past years, additional criteria are required for it to take its place in volume production environments and become as commonplace as CNC. Ideally, the companies say, additive manufacturing solutions should deliver robust, repeatable and reliable operational performance with predictable properties across a broad portfolio of materials that are certifiable for specific applications and that are driven by a seamless, digital integration from design to production. Together, Stratasys and Siemens plan to address these challenges.
Dan Yalon, executive vice president of products for Stratasys, says that the technology coming out of this partnership is intended to enable large-scale manufacturers to take advantage of additive manufacturing in traditional production environments, with the aerospace, automotive and tooling industries expected to benefit first.
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