Bodycote, England, announces that its hot isostatic pressing (HIP) facility at Sint Niklaas, Belgium, is awaiting delivery of a new “Mega-HIP” unit, a high-pressure, high-temperature unit that is Nadcap capable. It is expected to aid the company in meeting growing demand from the European aerospace market over the next five years and beyond.
This investment is expected to significantly increase Bodycote’s Nadcap HIP capacity globally, and follows an increase in Nadcap-capable HIPing capacity, which it completed in 2017. These recent investments highlight the company’s commitment to expanding its global HIP capacity to meet market requirements. The “Mega-HIP" unit is to be operational by the end of 2018.
Having established its HIP expertise over several decades, Bodycote has over fifty HIP vessels of varying sizes in multiple locations. Its processing capabilities can reportedly accommodate components that are nominally up to two meters in diameter by 3.5 meters high, and weighing from 0.1 kg to over 30,000 kg. In addition to standard quality and environmental accreditations, Bodycote’s HIP facilities also hold ASTM and NORSOK accreditations.
Bodycote HIP serves clients around the world in markets as diverse as the medical, power generation, marine, nuclear, automotive and electronics industries, with both HIP services and its Powdermet technologies.
The recently launched Powdermet technologies incorporate new, patent-pending techniques that combine additive manufacturing with well-established net shape and near net shape (NNS) techniques. This new hybrid technology is said to dramatically reduce the manufacturing time and production cost of a part compared to producing the same part by AM alone.
