Optomec, Albuquerque, New Mexico, announces that the U.S. Air Force has awarded it a million-dollar contract to deliver a high volume production machine for refurbishing turbine engine components, including titanium parts.
The equipment will include a range of state-of-the-art capabilities, including an automation system for batch processing, an oxygen-free controlled atmosphere, and an adaptive vision system. This automated additive repair system will be capable of tens of thousands of repairs per year, with an initial focus on tip refurbishment for turbine blades.
Optomec will also assist the U.S. Air Force in developing optimal process parameters for a range of target repairs. The solution will be installed at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma City, which already hosts a world class comprehensive aircraft engine overhaul capability.
Optomec’s metal additive repair solution is based on its proprietary LENS technology, which was first commercialized more than 20 years ago. LENS uses a process called Directed Energy Deposition (DED) in which a highly concentrated stream of metal powder is jetted into a molten pool created by the focus of a laser beam. By precisely controlling the melt pool and the powder flow, a high performance metal structure is built up, either in the form of a fully printed part or as a local deposit onto an existing component to repair it.
