Azoth receives first XJet Carmel 1400M machine
March 21, 2022
XJet Ltd, Rehovot, Israel, has announced that Azoth, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA, has received delivery of XJet’s Carmel 1400M metal Additive Manufacturing machine. The 1400M is said to enable easy and safe production of high-density metal parts for wide-ranging applications and industries.
“We have a huge wealth of experience in metal manufacturing – with both additive and subtractive processes. XJet’s metal system delivers capabilities that are in high demand in the market, but are not achievable with other technologies,” stated Scott Burk, Azoth CEO. “Parts with fine features, high resolution, good surface finish right off the printer – at a level we have not seen before. The ease-of-use and safety working with the XJet system, that does not involve handling powders, is another important factor for us.”
Azoth is supported by the EWIE group of companies (EGC), specialists in high-volume metal manufacturing for manufacturers including Ford, Chrysler, John Deere and Rolls Royce. Azoth was established when EGC leaders realised that, to keep up with the changing industry, they needed to establish a focus on Additive Manufacturing.
Burk and Cody Cochran, General Manager and co-founder of Azoth, were screening the market for a solution to serve the demand for small, complex, high-definition parts that they felt couldn’t be achieved with existing Powder Bed Fusion (PBF) or Binder Jetting systems. After testing XJet’s technology, the Azoth team were reported to have said that they were the best they’d seen.
“What we really liked were the small holes, very sharp corners, very refined surface finish without needing any post-processing,” added Cochran. “We’re also impressed with the science behind XJet’s NanoParticle Jetting™ technology. It prints with very small particles, smaller than other technologies. These characteristics allow for process advantages, smaller layer heights and smaller features.”
Hanan Gothait, CEO of XJet, added, “We have developed the only metal AM technology available today based on the concept of direct material jetting. After an amazing success with the XJet ceramic systems, we are now ready for the bigger dream, bringing to the market our metal solution. It gives me great pleasure to know that our first user of the metal AM system is Azoth, with so much experience in metal manufacturing and in metal AM. Getting the recognition from such a market leader for the quality of parts we can make has made the entire journey, and the long wait for this system, worthwhile.”
In addition to the quality of parts, Azoth expects to see operational advantages with the XJet Carmel machine.
“One of the main advantages of Azoth’s approach is going from prototype to production with the same process, which XJet technology is perfectly suited to support,” asserted Cochran. “We will be able to take parts from a multitude of industries, such as automotive, medical, tooling, etc., and prototype them, refine them into end-use components and bring them to production with the same machine. No expensive additional tooling or lengthy lead times.”
Dror Danai, XJet CBO, added, “Azoth is all about pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in Additive Manufacturing, so they’re the perfect customer for our first metal AM system. Azoth is a unique operation that already has extensive experience in metal – both traditional and Additive Manufacturing – and is deeply involved in the manufacturing of the parts made for its customers, selecting the most appropriate technology and developing the applications. I’m eager to see how they will use the system and the new groundbreaking applications they already tested and are eager to further develop.”
“Making end-user parts, requires precision, accuracy and repeatability from part to part. By almost automating the entire workflow, as XJet does, we think we can achieve true repeatability,” Cochran concluded.
On May 16, 2022, just before the Rapid+TCT show opens its doors in Detroit, interested parties can see the XJet Carmel 1400M live, producing stainless steel parts, at an open house hosted by XJet at Azoth’s Ann Arbor facility (a forty-five-minute journey from Detroit). Further details will be posted to XJet’s site.
