Additive Manufacturing Research Day

On October 31^st CCAM hosted Additive Manufacturing Research Day at its facility in Prince George County, Virginia. Over 130 participants from industry, government and academia came together to learn about cutting edge research in additive manufacturing and discuss important topics and challenges.

The day kicked off with an overview of current opportunities and challenges in additive manufacturing by Dr. Richard Martukanitz, Head of the Additive and Laser Manufacturing Division of the Applied Research Laboratory at Penn State and Director of the University’s Center for Innovative Materials Processing through Direct Digital Deposition (CIMP-3D). It was announced that Dr. Martukanitz will join CCAM on January 2, 2019 as Additive Manufacturing CCAM Fellow.

Speakers from MELD Manufacturing Corporation, Rochester Institute of Technology and Virginia Tech shared presentations on novel technologies including non-melt based processes for metals, additive manufacturing via magnetohydrodynamic droplet jetting, and additive manufacturing of multifunctional metamaterials and devices.

One of the highlights of the day was the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research’s (IALR) Inspiration Lab. The lab travels all over the Commonwealth visiting schools, neighborhoods, and community events to promote STEM (Science Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education.

A panel during the morning session addressed workforce challenges in additive manufacturing. It was a lively discussion that focused on training students with a hybridization of skillsets, including soft skills, to make them more adaptable to the constantly evolving needs of manufacturers. Participants from Aerospace Industries Association, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 3D Systems, Penn State University, and Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (IALR) participated in the panel.

An afternoon panel on cyber-physical security challenges in additive manufacturing included subject matter experts from Siemens PLM Software, NIST, Office of Naval Research, and Identify 3D.

Throughout the day, participants got to tour the facility, see demos of current CCAM research, and learn about some of the newest advances in the field from an impressive group of speakers and panelists. Additionally, in a special session, CCAM members were able to identify areas of common interest which will lead to targeted CCAM research projects designed to help tackle the issues required for factory implementation.

The event was sponsored by Oerlikon Metco.