Australian Digital Manufacturing Solutions company, Titomic Ltd has announced that it has entered into an agreement with mining and mineral processing equipment major FLSmidth, headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark. Under this production trial, Titomic will utilise its proprietary Titomic Kinetic Fusion™ (TKF) additive manufacturing process to build high-wear resistant parts at a preliminary cost of A$12,275 per part. The aim of this prototype is to validate improvements for high-wear resistant mining equipment using Titomic Kinetic Fusion™.
Titomic has the exclusive rights to commercialise CSIRO’s proprietary and patented process for the application of cold-gas dynamic spraying of titanium or titanium alloy particles onto a scaffold to produce a load-bearing structure. This technology forms part of what is being marketed by Titomic as Titomic Kinetic Fusion™. It is described as “within the industry of 3D printing” but is more broadly described as additive manufacturing, and the company says there are some key differentiators to Titomic’s technology. “All 3D printing processes involving titanium must be conducted in an inert gas environment to mitigate oxidation which occurs when titanium is melted. The Titomic Kinetic Fusion process is the first additive manufacturing process to mitigate oxidation issues because there is no melting involved as the titanium particles impact to mechanically fuse.”
In addition, current 3D printing machines restrict manufacturers to smaller components with low production volumes. The Titomic Kinetic Fusion process allows product customisation without size constraints. The Titomic Kinetic Fusion process enables bespoke automated production lines which do not require tooling, welding, folding or bending thus simplifying the supply chain. This results in less design iterations so you can spend more time innovating and less time troubleshooting.
Titomic also says its machines have build rates that are exponentially faster than conventional metal 3D printers currently available. “Titomic enables you to cut production lead time from days to hours. Create and test prototypes allowing quicker response to market changes, shorten design cycles and benefit from first mover advantages.”
Titomic’s TKF unique additive manufacturing capability for metallurgical fusion of dissimilar metals surpasses the current capability of traditional manufacturing, enabling Titomic to introduce higher performing materials to the mining industry which are pivotal to minimising downtime and significantly improving productivity. On the successful completion of test trials, Titomic will negotiate a contract to supply OEM production of high-wear resistant parts to FLSmidth from its TKF Melbourne Bureau for the global mining industry.
Jeff Lang, Titomic Managing Director commented: “Titomic is proud to partner with FLSmidth, the global leader in sustainable productivity to the mining industry to deliver TKF additive manufactured parts with real economic value to mining operations. The mining industries’ equipment breakdowns are timely and expensive setbacks for operations and Titomic is well positioned, as the global leader in industrial scale metal additive manufacturing, to partner with FLSmidth to provide next generation technologies for improved commercial benefits of their customers.”
