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SEMINAR: UK expert talks on Additive Manufacturing

Dr Paul Colegrove of Cranfield University in the UK will present a seminar on Additive Manufacturing today at the University of Wollongong in New South Wales.

Additive manufacture (also referred to as Rapid Prototyping, Near Net and Direct Manufacturing) is a technique for converting CAD data into a solid three dimensional object.

The Welding Research Group at Cranfield University pioneered a version of this technique using offline programming and robotic weld metal deposition in the early 1990s.

Its feasibility was established for the manufacture of complex components for aero engines in high temperature nickel alloys.

Considerable interest is currently being shown in the use of similar techniques as an alternative to forging and extensive machining for the fabrication of titanium alloy parts for aircraft.

Dr Colegrove will describe the activities in this area and the current status of the research at Cranfield.

Dr Paul Colegrove’s main research interest is welding and the modelling of welding processes.

Beginning as lecturer in Welding Engineering at Cranfield University with a focus on projects on Stress Engineering, Friction Stir, Laser and Arc Welding, he is now the course director of the Welding Engineering MSc course.