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IPFS News Link • 3D Printing

Adding 3D Printing to the Machine Shop: Lessons From A&M Tool

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Speed has always been linked with success for production environments. In an ever-changing technology landscape, manufacturers and machine shops have the opportunity to add new tools to increase efficiency, but face the challenge of choosing tech that can reliably and cost-effectively scale modernization.

A&M Tool and Design has witnessed the evolution of this standard for precision and efficiency for over 65 years. In 1948, the company started as a family-owned, precision single source machine shop. Today that description still holds, but of course looks a bit different; alongside highly-skilled operators running classic Bridgeport CNC mills stand eight-sided tombstones for a Mazak PALLETECH System that can run unattended 24/7.

The shop has modernized over the years to introduce a range of new equipment in addition to reliable traditional technology and retrofitted solutions to produce parts and custom machines for aerospace, optics, and robotics. Customers include Boston Dynamics, LinkNYC, NASA, Goodrich, and Corning.

In addition to large-scale manufacturing automation equipment like the PALLETECH, last year the shop added an industrial-grade desktop stereolithography (SLA) 3D printer to expedite projects and open capacity to supplement an understaffed engineering team. They've since scaled 3D printing applications from prototyping and communications models to quick-turn production tools and end-use parts for custom machinery.

"3D printing has become a priceless tool in our toolbox," said Guido Jacques, vice president of operations at A&M. "It's kind of a cliché, but it's really allowing all of us to think completely outside the box."


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