One of many markets that must be a dependable supply of progress properly into the longer term for the additive manufacturing (AM) business is semiconductor capital gear (semicap). When Additive Manufacturing Analysis (AMR) revealed a report on the 3D printing marketplace for semicap in early 2024, the consultancy forecast that it might be a virtually 10x progress alternative over the following decade.
A number of completely different processes, largely metal-based, have been lined in that report, largely powder mattress fusion (PBF) and directed power deposition (DED). Chilly spray AM (CSAM) can now be added to the record: Australian authentic gear producer (OEM) Titomic has introduced that the corporate has acquired its first low-rate preliminary manufacturing (LRIP) order for semicap parts.
In accordance with Titomic, the corporate expects to ship the primary parts to the undisclosed buyer by the tip of Q1 of subsequent yr. The corporate expects to extend its exercise to full-scale manufacturing “all through 2026,” which is able to happen at Titomic’s superior manufacturing facility within the Netherlands.
The information follows Titomic’s announcement from final week that a thrust chamber for strong rocket motors, which the corporate produced in partnership with Northrop Grumman, had achieved a profitable hot-fire take a look at. As with the semicap parts, manufacturing of the thrust chamber represents entry into a brand new marketplace for Titomic.
In a press launch about Titomic’s LRIP order from a semicap firm for supply by finish of Q1 2026, the corporate’s CEO and Managing Director, Jim Simpson, mentioned, “This order is a crucial milestone for Titomic as we advance our place inside the semiconductor sector. The profitable validation of our TKF course of underscores the aptitude and reliability of our expertise, significantly in industries the place precision and efficiency are important. We’re proud to assist our buyer by the LRIP part and stay up for scaling into full manufacturing in 2026. This achievement displays continued momentum and demonstrates the rising business momentum behind our expertise, and reinforces Titomic’s technique of servicing high-value, technologically-demanding markets.”
Picture courtesy of ASML
As I alluded to above, AM for the semicap market is presently dominated by PBF and, to a lesser extent, DED, with Norsk Titanium producing provider trays for what’s sometimes called a very powerful tech firm on the planet, ASML. The one firm that makes Excessive Ultraviolet (EUV) lithography methods, ASML, is amongst a handful of linchpins on which the worldwide semiconductor market depends on to operate.
The bottlenecks that consequence from ASML’s de facto monopoly are sometimes dangerous for the worldwide economic system, however the identical state-of-affairs is what makes the semicap market good for the AM business. Alongside these traces, semicap is among the industries that almost all intently resembles protection: each industries are unusually delicate to geopolitical situations and surprising lengthy lead occasions.
Whereas there’s no proof of who Titomic’s buyer occurs to be, it might be value mentioning that ASML is headquartered within the Netherlands, the place Titomic will probably be producing the parts. ASML is understood for exercising tight geographic management over its provide chain. In any case, whatever the buyer, the addition of CSAM to the AM course of portfolio serving semicap OEMs ought to solely additional AM’s progress trajectory in that market.
As all the time, in terms of CSAM, what’s good for Titomic may very properly be good for SPEE3D, as properly (and vice versa). I do know from talking to SPEE3D’s CEO, Byron Kennedy, that semicap is a market the corporate is all in favour of. I’ll be watching intently to see if Titomic offers an replace in some unspecified time in the future on who their buyer is and what element they’re making, which ought to shed way more gentle on the character of the semicap alternative for CSAM.
Featured picture courtesy of Titomic
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