MPIF announces Special Technologies Category winners in 2020 PM Design Excellence Awards
July 25, 2020
The Metal Powder Industries Federation (MPIF) has announced the winners in the Special Technologies Category of its 2020 Powder Metallurgy Design Excellence Awards.
The Special Technologies Category awards prizes to parts made using ‘special’ Powder Metallurgy technologies such as Metal Injection Moulding (MIM) and metal Additive Manufacturing.
Grand prizes
Special Technologies–Aerospace/Military/Firearms Category for MIM
The grand prize in this category was awarded to Advanced Powder Products Inc. for a trigger mechanism housing for a new 9 mm sub-compact pistol produced for O.F. Mossberg & Sons Inc.
The component originally comprised two pieces (metal and plastic), and was redesigned as a single MIM part. Over 5,000 rounds were fired to test the part and no failures were observed.
Special Technologies–Medical/Dental Category for MIM
Advanced Powder Products Inc. also received a grand prize in this category for a guide tube used in dental surgery.
This extremely small part has very thin wall sections and a built-in impingement plate on the inner diameter of the tip. This impingement plate has a Gaussian curvature that can only be formed economically by Metal Injection Moulding.
Awards of distinction
Special Technologies–Aerospace/Military/Firearms Category for MIM
An Award of Distinction was given in this category to Alpha Precision Group – Metal Injection Moulding for a shroud that houses the firing pin and firing pin collar in a bolt-action rifle.
A further Award of Distinction was given in this category to ARC Group Worldwide for lever actuators for vanes in a turbo-prop engine. The actuators control the angle of the variable inlet guide vanes and the variable stator vanes.
Special Technologies–Aerospace/Military/Firearms Category for Metal AM
An Award of Distinction was given to 3DEO in this category for an anchor link used in a firearms application. A hybrid sinter-based metal AM process is used to make the parts.
Special Technologies–Medical/Dental Category for MIM
In this category, an Award of Distinction was given to MPP and its customer Coracoid for a buckle used in an implanted shoulder repair device.
Several technologies were considered for making the part but MIM processing was the only one that produced a part that could withstand the stresses induced during the cinching of the device during surgery and the placement of the cleat.
A second award was given in this category to OptiMIM and its customer Atricure for one of two jaws of a surgical device for deploying a clip around a heart’s left-atrial-appendage. The mould produces two parts that are mirror images of one another.
Special Technologies–Electronic/Electrical Components Category for MIM
An Award of Distinction was given to ARC Group Worldwide and its customer Cutsforth Inc. in this category for a lower beam EZ change holder for removable brush holders.
These parts are used in brush excitation maintenance on turbine generators in the nuclear, gas, coal, wind and hydro industries.
