DMG MORI, a leading machine tool manufacturer, has launched its new hybrid additive manufacturing system, named the LASERTEC 125 3D hybrid. 

 

It was launched at the Formnext 2019. The LASERTEC 125 is a five-axis laser deposition welding (LDW) system designed for the maintenance, repair and production of significantly larger parts, including workpieces up to 1,250 x 745 mm and 2,000 kg. 

 

Its powder bed systems, branded under LASERTEC SLM, includes the LASERTEC 12 and the LASERTEC 30 3D printers. In its powder nozzle-based LASERTEC 3D line, DMG MORI has developed the LASERTEC 65, and two hybrid systems combining powder nozzle and turn-mill machining manufacturing in one work area. These are known as the LASERTEC 65 3D hybrid and the larger LASERTEC 4300 3D hybrid. 

 

In November 2018, the company announced plans to expand its global presence in metal additive manufacturing by acquiring a 30 per cent stake in INTECH, an India-based developer of 3D printing software. Additive manufacturing was also listed as a leading solution in the company’s collaboration with Porsche, where DMG MORI acted as the exclusive partner of the Porsche FIA World Endurance Championship team. 

 

Further expanding its LASERTEC 3D hybrid series, DMG MORI’s new LASERTEC 125 system uses LDW technology, a form of direct energy deposition (DED) 3D printing, which deposits metal through a powder nozzle. As it forms the 3D part through the LDW process, the system automatically switches over to five-axis simultaneous milling in a single setup. By machining the 3D printed part as it is produced, DMG MORI claims the LASERTEC 125 3D hybrid can reduce processing times by up to 80 per cent. Users can now skip post-processing steps like heat treatment, as the system can deposit material with a hardness of up to 63 HRC.

 

The hybrid capabilities of the system also enables the production of new part geometries and lightweight structures, reportedly minimizing the weight of parts such as turbine blades by up to 90 per cent. 

 

DMG MORI also states that the machine is particularly effective for repairing parts, an application often used for DED-based 3D printing by the likes of Optomec with its laser engineered net shaping (LENS) technology. With the LASERTEC 125 3D hybrid, the damaged area of a part is first prepared by milling, before the repair is carried out using LDW, and then finished with a final milling process. This can help reduce maintenance times, making the machine suitable for industries such as oil and gas, as well as chemical, pharmaceutical and energy. 

 

The LASERTEC 125 3D hybrid also comes equipped with DMG MORI’s AM Assistant software, which allows users to monitor the manufacturing processes including melt pool size, temperature, the clearance between nozzle and component and continuous thermal monitoring. Process parameters can also be observed and adjusted using the software. AM Assistant will additionally display stored 3D process data from the production process for evaluation purposes, and generate reports for quality assurance.