HP launches metal 3D printing technology

According to HP, the technology can provide up to 50 times more productivity at a lower cost when compared to other 3D printing methods.

“We are in the midst of a digital industrial revolution that is transforming the USD 12 trillion manufacturing industry. HP has helped lead this transformation by pioneering the 3D mass production of plastic parts and we are now doubling down with HP Metal Jet, a breakthrough metals 3D printing technology,” said Dion Weisler, CEO and president, HP. “The implications are huge – the auto, industrial, and medical sectors alone produce billions of metal parts each year.  HP’s new Metal Jet 3D printing platform unlocks the speed, quality, and economics to enable our customers to completely rethink the way they design, manufacture, and deliver new solutions in the digital age.”

HP stated that its Metal Jet is a groundbreaking, voxel-level binder jetting technology leveraging HP printhead and advanced chemistries innovation. With a bed size of 430 x 320 x 200mm, 4x the nozzle redundancy and 2x the printbars and significantly less binder by weight. HP Metal Jet will start with stainless steel finished parts, delivering isotropic properties that meet or exceed ASTM and MPIF standards.

In an industry-first collaboration, HP is partnering with GKN Powder Metallurgy to deploy HP Metal Jet in their factories to produce functional metal parts for auto and industrial leaders including Volkswagen and Wilo.

“We’re at the tipping point of an exciting new era from which there will be no return: the future of mass production with 3D printing. HP’s new Metal Jet technology enables us to expand our business by taking on new opportunities that were previously cost prohibitive,” said Peter Oberparleiter, CEO of GKN Powder Metallurgy. “Our DNA and our expertise in powder production and metal part processing using digitally networked systems will enable us to drive industrialisation across the whole additive manufacturing value stream. By combining the forces of HP and GKN Powder Metallurgy, we will push the productivity and capability of our customers to unprecedented levels based on the economic and technical advantages of HP Metal Jet technology.”

HP also launched the Metal Jet Production Service, which will enable customers around the world to rapidly iterate new 3D part designs, produce final parts in volume, and integrate HP Metal Jet into their long-term production roadmaps.