Norman Noble Inc., Highland Heights, Ohio, announces that it can now produce additively manufactured, 3D printed parts from alloys such as titanium, stainless steel, and cobalt chromium. The ability to produce AM parts from magnesium and Nitinol also is currently under development.
Norman Noble will use the 3D printing technology for a variety of customer needs, including shape-setting fixtures for Nitinol-based rapid prototypes, prototype-to-production manufacturing for next-gen medical implant designs, and the rapid manufacture of aerospace and commercial parts.
As engineers conceive new products or designs, they may be uncertain about how it can be manufactured. However, Norman Noble can produce the conceptual product on our 3D printer, then X-ray it on our CT scanner, and email a virtual part within minutes after it is printed, including full metrology data. Thus the manufacturing capability is designed into the product upfront, and the design for manufacturability cycle becomes shortened dramatically. The company says that this is a service no other contract manufacturer can provide.
To support its additive 3D printing capabilities, Norman Noble has also purchased a state-of-the-art computerized tomography inspection system that provides complete dimensional analysis of all internal and external part features. In addition, this technology enables the dimensional inspection of very complex geometries that conventional systems are unable to accomplish.
“Given our long history of developing internal laser cutting and laser welding systems, I strongly believe we have the laser experience and expertise that can be leveraged and applied to the metallic laser sintering printing process,” said Chris Noble, vice president and chief operating officer at Norman Noble. “We plan to take the current 3D printing capabilities to another level – including finer finishes, finer feature detail, and new materials not currently commercially available. We will combine these with our new CT scanner, which instantly provides complete external and internal metrology data of our 3D printed products. With these new capabilities, we are going to work hard to provide a service that will surpass our competition.”
