VELO3D to supply 3D-printed aftermarket part system to Chromalloy

VELO3D will supply additive manufacturing (AM) services to Chromalloy, a manufacturing and repair solutions provider for gas turbine engine manufacturers and operators. VELO3D’s “Sapphire” AM line will be installed at Chromalloy’s manufacturing and repair services environment.

Chromalloy is installing the VELO3D Sapphire in its manufacturing and repair services environment. “Saphire” is an industrial AM technology designed to help manufacturers offset the high costs of low-volume, direct-part replacement for conventionally produced parts when demand and long-term forecasting are uncertain.

“Chromalloy continues to seek innovative alternatives for our customers to extend the life of their engines and reduce their MRO costs,” said John Green, Vice President, Engineering & Technology, Chromalloy in a press release. “The VELO3D additive manufacturing equipment provides a unique, practical solution for our proprietary LifeX customer solutions.”

According to Chromalloy’s Jim Whitton, Director, Innovation Strategy, “For Chromalloy, 3D printed parts must provide inherent value because they are 3D printed. Otherwise, the printing itself is just a novelty. VELO3D’s unique build capability and material density create high value by reducing post-processing requirements.”

VELO3D will qualify Chromalloy’s machine for 3D printing nickel-based superalloys, including HastelloyX, which is designed for strength and durability in high temperature environments.

VELO3D offers what it calls “geometric freedom” through its “SupportFree” process. The capability to produce practically unlimited geometries eliminates the need to redesign legacy parts in order to produce them with AM. This reduces the barrier of transitioning legacy parts, produced historically by casting, welding or brazing, to additive manufacturing.

All Sapphire machines come standard with VELO3D's highly automated, user-friendly “Flow” pre-print software and “Assure” quality assurance and control system.

“As an industry leader in the aviation MRO space, Chromalloy is an excellent partner for us,” says Benny Buller, VELO3D founder and CEO. “They have the expertise to open up a whole market category of parts. With the flexibility to produce high value, high mix, low-volume parts, AM allows the supply chain to be scaled to market- and customer-specific requirements.”

Said Whitton, “For complex gas turbine combustor components that have limited aftermarket availability or high replacement cost, the Sapphire system will allow Chromalloy to produce hardware on-demand, negating high NPI (new product introduction) tooling costs and lead-times of other methods.”