3D printer manufacturer SPEE3D announced the launch of its Expeditionary Manufacturing Unit (EMU), a complete mobile solution for on-site additive manufacturing.
The EMU will be presented at the European Defense Agency’s AM Village 2024 workshop in Tournai, Belgium. There, together with the British Army, SPEE3D will demonstrate its technology to military personnel from over 25 EU and NATO countries.
The EMU is a mobile manufacturing solution that combines SPEE3D’s metallic 3D printer XSPEE3D with the SPEE3Dcell post-processing and testing unit. This innovative unit consists of two 20-foot containers and enables the production of metallic components in a short time directly on site.
The biggest advantage of the EMU is the drastic reduction in the production time of metal parts. While conventional methods can take days or weeks, parts can be replaced in just a few hours with the EMU. This minimizes downtime and the associated costs. Unlike other additive manufacturing solutions, EMU does not require dangerous and expensive lasers or inert gases and does not require extensive prior knowledge of additive manufacturing.
“The launch of our Expeditionary Manufacturing Unit addresses the current state of the global supply chain, which is fragile and increasingly under pressure,” said Byron Kennedy, CEO of SPEE3D. “Part of the issue for defence and other heavy industries is getting critical equipment up and running quickly to avoid costly production delays. EMU will enable the British Army and others to take control, giving them the ability to print and post-process parts very quickly from anywhere.”
The system consists of two 20-foot containers with twist locks, a robust mobile metal 3D printer capable of producing high-density metal parts from a range of materials, and a fully equipped post-processing workshop with a heat treatment furnace, CNC three-axis mill, tooling and test equipment. As a truly mobile unit, the EMU can be transported on a single truck trailer, ship or airplane.
“Through its continual programme of modernisation, the British Army embraces new innovative manufacturing solutions to keep it at the forefront of emerging technology and at a tactical advantage over its potential adversaries,” said a UK Army spokesperson. “Our collaboration with SPEE3D has produced the world’s first fully field deployable 3D cold metal printing capability, heralding a step change in deployable engineering capabilities for our forces deployed overseas.”
SPEE3D works closely with defence organizations around the world, including the Japanese, US, British and Australian armed forces. Last fall, a team was in Poland to train Ukrainian military personnel in the use of the technology. In the future, SPEE3D will also work with the UAE Ministry of Defense.
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