MIM2024, the International Conference on Injection Molding of Metals, Ceramics, and Carbides, was held in Raleigh, North Carolina, from February 26 to 28, 2024. Attended by more than a hundred delegates from ten countries, this latest event in the well-established series was deemed to be an innovative success. This year was – to the relief of both attendees and the Metal Powder Industries Federation (MPIF) – an in-person only event. Dr Animesh Bose, CEO, Optimus Alloys, reviews some of the highlights from the technical programme.
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For twenty-five years, INMATEC Technologies GmbH has been producing market-leading feedstocks for both Ceramic Injection Moulding (CIM) and Metal Injection Moulding (MIM). Dr Georg Schlieper recently visited the company for PIM International and, in this article, reports on its history, current activities and expectations for the future of engineered ceramics. What is clear is that following strategic investments from luxury goods house Chanel, which now owns a majority stake in the business, the future for CIM and ceramic Additive Manufacturing looks brighter than ever.
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Despite the success of Ceramic Injection Moulding (CIM) in multiple end-user sectors, from luxury watches to automotive interiors and industrial engineering, there remains considerable scope for process optimisation to advance part quality, productivity and overall process capability. As part of the ‘CIM++’ research project, Ceramaret, Primaform and the iRAP institute investigated the potential of a variotherm control system for the CIM process and, as the results presented here demonstrate, significant improvements were achieved.
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Additive Manufacturing’s high geometric flexibility, when combined with the optimised properties of multi-material components, opens up new possibilities for designers and manufacturers. Recently, innovations in the design of the interfaces between different materials presents further opportunities with regard to the functionalisation and miniaturisation of components. In this article, Uwe Scheithauer, Fraunhofer IKTS, and Robert Johne, AMAREA Technology GmbH, explore the potential in the area of ceramic-based components produced using Multi Material Jetting (MMJ) technology.
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The 4th Workshop on Sinter-based Additive Manufacturing, organised by Fraunhofer IFAM, in Bremen, Germany, took place from September 13-14 2023. It convened global experts to discuss advancements and challenges in the field. The workshop explored the maturation and potential applications of sinter-based AM technologies and highlighted the latest technical advances. Sonja Böske da Costa reports on the workshop’s presentations and discussions.
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The Japan Powder Metallurgy Association’s (JPMA) annual statistics report on Metal Injection Moulding provides unique insight into the ongoing evolution of the country’s MIM industry. As well as revealing a continued upsurge in production in 2022, changes in the applications and materials mix offer visibility into growth areas for the industry. We present the published data along with insight from the JPMA into wider factors that influenced the broader Japanese PM industry in 2022.
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Formlabs, based in Somerville, Massachusetts, USA, has relaesed Alumina 4N Resin for Additive Manufacturing as well as a new Open Platform option that allows for third-party materials, customisable build settings, and open material manufacturing.
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Sustainability is a topic that concerns all of us, from individuals to societies and industries. As we face increasingly difficult environmental challenges, discussions about sustainability and our contribution towards it are ongoing in many areas of our daily lives. This is, of course, also true for the Metal Injection Molding industry. Whilst MIM is already considered a green technology compared to alternative processes, there are still considerable opportunities for improvement that can be identified through life cycle assessment and carbon footprint analysis. Dr Frank Petzoldt and Dr Sebastian Boris Hein consider the complex task of evaluating Metal Injection Molding as a green technology within this context.
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This is a story from what once looked like the edge of the metal Additive Manufacturing universe. A decade ago, the idea of a Metal Injection Molding feedstock-like filament for Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) was the stuff of beer talk, but then things started to happen. Through a Facebook group called ‘FFF Metal 3D printing’ I discovered what felt like an underground community, driven by the seemingly impossible prospect of ‘printing metal’ on a shoestring budget. Amongst the dramatic images of failed builds and small piles of melted steel, posts by Sascha Lenze stood out. Here, he shares the story of L.B. Bohle Maschinen und Verfahren GmbH’s journey towards the Material Extrusion (MEX) of metal-containing filaments for industrial applications. Welcome to the new frontier!
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This study analyses the potential for large-scale production of Metal Injection Molding (MIM) F75 Co-Cr-Mo alloys using low-carbon atomised powders sintered in industrial-scale continuous furnaces under various atmospheric combinations. The goal was to achieve the required properties without the need for Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP) or conventional heat treatments, promising MIM a competitive advantage for the high volume production of parts for consumer electronics and beyond. Hao-Ming Chen and colleagues, from Chenming Electronic Technology Corp. (UNEEC), Taiwan, present their findings.
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