Manufacturing Technology Centre becomes Additive Manufacturing Centre of Excellence partner
05/06/2018
ASTM International has announced that the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC), based in Ansty Park, Coventry, UK, is joining ASTM International’s recently-announced Centre of Excellence in Additive Manufacturing. MTC will be the first non-US founding partner and is supported by leading research organisations across Europe.The UK government established the MTC in 2010 as part of a major investment in research centres
called the High Value Manufacturing Catapult. The MTC now employs over 600 people who help to bridge the gap between academia and industry by supporting research and development (R&D), training and more. The MTC is home to the UK’s National Centre for Additive Manufacturing (NCAM) and hosts the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Additive Manufacturing Benchmarking Centre (AMBC).
“We are thrilled to bring on board one of the world’s most exciting new leaders in additive manufacturing (AM),” said Dr Mohsen Seifi, ASTM International’s Director of Global Additive Manufacturing Programmes. He noted that MTC’s proposal was one of the highest-ranked among dozens of proposals submitted last year: “Clearly, MTC will play a key role in achieving the vision of filling industry gaps in AM standardisation and driving innovation on a global scale.”
Professor Ken Young, MTC’s Technical Director, said: “We are excited to join this vitally important effort to build a strong technical foundation for the future of AM. Standards are critically important to enable industry to exploit AM technology. To be recognised by ASTM International for our AM capability and to be included as the first non-US partner is a great honour.”
MTC’s National Centre for AM includes an industrial-scale end-to-end facility encompassing metals, polymers and ceramics technology. The MTC has expertise in materials testing, process simulation, design and part inspection, all of which support robust AM process chains.
The announcement coincides with a significant expansion of the centre, including a US$20 million UK-government funded project to develop the next generation AM factory for aerospace parts.
Professor David Wimpenny, MTC’s Chief Technologist, noted that the MTC also has strong links with research and industrial partners worldwide, which will help strengthen the activities and amplify the investments made through ASTM International. In addition, Professor Wimpenny said that MTC is interested in supporting the development of training courses to foster a workforce pipeline that will, in turn, support rapid industry growth.
The announcement was made at the first meeting of the Centre of Excellence’s R&D Team at Auburn University in Alabama, USA. Professor Wimpenny participated in the meeting, along with the Centre of Excellence’s other founding members: EWI, Auburn University and NASA – who were jointly announced in March.
The team discussed how it would plan priorities with respect to R&D projects that could be funded by ASTM International, industry consortia and external sources. In addition, the US Federal Aviation Administration, the Federal Drug Administration and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) shared regulatory perspectives on the certification of 3D printed products.
www.astm.org/industry/additive-manufacturing-overview.html
