DED technology is also used in the aerospace and defense industry for repairing and refurbishment of the parts. It is a particularly important application given the long life cycle of aviatic systems and the high cost and long lead time associated with the replacement of the parts. As a result of a 2020 survey conducted by Optomec, one of the leading manufacturers of DED systems, from over 100 of their customers in the aviation market, it is claimed that over 10 million turbine blades have been repaired using DED systems. Repairing parts using DED has a lower thermal impact on the part in comparison with traditional methods such as welding. As a result, the parts will have a more favorable microstructure and mechanical performance after the repair using DED [23].
1.5.3 Communication
Developing advanced AM‐made antennas is an area of growth in the communication industry because telecommunication devices on earth continue to require more and more bandwidth. Higher wave frequencies need to be used to meet these demands; however, these higher frequencies are more difficult to control. To broadcast these complex frequencies, intricately shaped antennas are required. AM processes can enable the manufacture of complex‐shape metal and plastic antennas from different alloys and dielectrics, opening tremendous opportunities to the communication industry. Advanced AM‐made RF antenna structures have the potential to revolutionize the design, supply, and sustainment of such devices. An AM design process can be fully integrated in the antenna design platforms to support not only customization but also antenna's performance enhancement in the field. It is reported by Optisys that the company has been able to reduce the number of parts through parts consolidation, the antenna weight through topology optimization, lead times, and production costs [24]. Figure 1.16 shows a small‐size, complex, and lightweight RF antenna made by LPBF. The surface roughness of metal parts printed by LPBF is a challenge for some frequencies; thus, efforts are underway to improve the surface roughness such that the printed antennas will be useable without any need to post‐processing.
Figure 1.16 Small‐size, lightweight, one‐piece, AM‐made antenna.
Source: Courtesy of Optisys [25].
1.5.4 Energy and Resources
AM‐made parts have been utilized by the energy industry to harness the natural resources of our planet for many years; however, they have not been in the media radars as widely as their counterparts in the aerospace industry. Some of these applications in this sector are revolutionary when AM is used in deep underground and oceans. As mentioned before, AM has been advanced to be more efficient through the introduction of lightweight components, cost‐efficient services, and environmentally friendly materials. Several companies such as Chevron, Shell Global, BP Global, and GE Oil & Gas (Baker Hughes) have published stories about the AM adoption for prototyping and production in the energy industry. With pressure to make innovative solutions rapidly, engineers and designers in this industry use the rapid prototyping feature of AM as a key step in design verification. AM has also become an increasingly mainstream operation in the energy industry to fabricate end‐use functional parts at a low‐volume level. When AM‐made parts need to tooling, it can offer to make lightweight structures with complex internal features. Thus, next generation of energy, oil, and gas components are being benefited from the AM features substantially, especially parts that need to exhibit performance and environmental standards. Dense, corrosive‐resistant, and high‐strength components can be mainly developed by DED for demands in this industry. One crucial application of AM in this industry is seen in the development of spare parts. As mentioned before, DED‐based AM processes provide solutions through rapid, on‐demand printing and repairing of legacy components.
So far, there are reports that AM has been used for either prototyping, low‐volume production, or repairs of these parts: gas turbine nozzles, sand control screens, hydraulic components, nozzles for downhole cleanout tool, sealing accessories, liner hanger spikes, drill bits, and many more. Figure 1.17 shows multiple parts made for hydraulic devices used in the oil and gas industry.
Figure 1.17 Hydraulic parts made for the oil and gas industry.
Source: Courtesy of aidro [26].
1.5.5 Automotive
The automotive industry's interaction with AM goes back to 1980s. Today, some customized plastic parts used in the interior of cars, specifically luxury and highly personalized models, are 3D printed. In addition, plastic AM processes have been widely used to develop jig and fixtures and prototypes for design verification. The application of metal AM in this industry, however, has been mainly in the area of producing prototypes, heritage parts for obsolete models, and spare parts and tools. AM‐made tools are an important area that has been used for mold production and tooling. In the luxury or race car sectors, however, many examples of production of end‐use metal parts exist. For example, Ford Motor Company (FMC) (Detroit, MI, USA) has used the LPBF process from EOS to fabricate anti‐theft wheel locks by converting the owner's recorded voice into a circular pattern, which will form the indentation needed to design a locking mechanism and a custom key. DS Automobile designers have also used EOS systems for the production of custom car accessories such as titanium door handle frames. Ford wheel locks and DS Automobile door handle frames are shown in Figure 1.18.
Even though the automotive industry has not reached the level of using AM directly for the production of final metal parts in serial production vehicles yet, a new trend for reaching that goal has already started. Many automotive companies such as Volkswagen (Berlin, Germany), BMW Group (Munich, Germany), Porsche (Stuttgart, Germany), General Motors (GM) (Detroit, Michigan), Toyota (Toyota City, Japan), etc. have entered the AM market either through investing in the improvement of their in‐house AM capabilities or through making alliances with machine developers, 3D software companies, AM material producers, or research centers to expedite the adoption of metal AM. A project called “Industrialization and Digitization of Additive Manufacturing for Automotive Series Processes (IDAM)” was kicked off in 2019 in Germany for this purpose [30]. The automotive industry would be able to take advantage of the various commercial PBF and BJ systems producing final parts with properties similar to those of wrought or injection molding, respectively. A lower level of certification required by the automotive industry than aerospace and aviation should make such a transition easier.
In general, AM will be a key for supply chain transformation in the automotive industry. AM has the tremendous ability to reduce overall lead time, thus fostering market responsiveness. AM features resulting in less material usage, lightweight components, on‐demand and on‐location production, and decentralized manufacturing at low to medium volumes will be driven force to significantly change the supply chain in terms of cost reductions, improved ability to locally manufacture parts, reduce complexity, and promoting consumer segments and markets satisfaction without any extensive capital deployment/investment.