Are You Too Late to Adopt Additive Manufacturing?
Matthew Parker, Director of Additive Manufacturing Engineering at Senior Aerospace SSP, explains how the company transitioned from conventional manufacturing to adopting industrial 3D printing for production. Parker details the strategic decision to invest in multi-laser systems five years ago, which achieved cost parity with machining for titanium components, and highlights the NASA X-59 aircraft program where AM enabled ducting designs impossible with traditional methods. He emphasizes the importance of building internal data and expertise to overcome customer skepticism and the necessity of educating engineers to identify viable AM applications rather than assuming all parts are suitable.