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Precision gear manufacturer
sees future of business in
Additive Manufacturing
Indiana Technology and Manufacturing Companies
(ITAMCO), based in Plymouth, Indiana, USA, specialises
in precision gear manufacturing, with capabilities
ranging from mining gearing to production runs of
CBN-ground transmission gears. The company, which
this year celebrated its 60th anniversary, is a member
of a team researching optimised support structures for
metal Additive Manufacturing and recently received a
funding award from America Makes.
The newly funded research project “Parametric
Design of Functional Support Structures for Metal Alloy
Feedstocks” is led by the University of Pittsburgh in
conjunction with Johnson & Johnson, ITAMCO and the
University of Notre Dame. The aim is to develop parametric
designs of functional support structures for metal
alloy feedstocks. Specifically, the project team aims to
codify the design rules for support structures used in
Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS) to inform and then
automatically recommend the optimal part orientation
and the designs for optimised supports.
While acknowledging the company will always offer
subtractive manufacturing like gear grinding, ITAMCO
believes that Additive Manufacturing is the future of their
business. Prior to receiving the America Works funding
award, the company was pursuing the development of
Additive Manufacturing through its “Strategic Technology
Initiative for Additive Manufacturing.”
ITAMCO delivers precision-machined components to
OEMs worldwide in mining, off-highway vehicles, marine
and aviation. “I believe the success of ITAMCO is due to
uncommon perseverance and a true spirit of innovation.
Embracing technology while holding to solid and proven
principles has given us an atmosphere that is creative, yet
built upon a foundation that can be relied upon,” stated
Gary Neidig, ITAMCO’s President.
“The R&D award and subsequent results will go a long
way to bringing Additive Manufacturing into our offerings,”
stated Joel Neidig, Engineer and lead IT developer at
ITAMCO. “As a gear manufacturer, we will always do
subtractive manufacturing, but we recognise that Additive
Manufacturing is the future of our business.”
www.itamco.com
Award for innovation in laser
technology announced
The Innovation
Award Laser
Technology offers
a winning prize
fund of €10,000 and
is presented to European
researchers
in recognition Finalists in the 2014 awards
of outstandingly
innovative work in the field of laser technology. Organisers
of the award, the Arbeitskreis Lasertechnik e.V. and
the European Laser Institute ELI, have issued a call for
proposals with a closing date of January 15, 2016.
The award addresses laser manufacturers, laser
users and researchers who have successfully conceived
and implemented an innovative idea relating to laser
technology, following the project through from application
oriented research to ultimate industrial application. The
closed scientific and technological projects in question
must centre on the use of laser light in materials
processing and the methods of producing such light, and
must furthermore be in their practical implementation of
demonstrable commercial value to industry.
A shortlist of the best candidates will be compiled by an
international jury consisting of members recruited from
industry and the research community. The official presentation
of the award will take place at the International
Laser Technology Congress AKL´16 on April 27, 2016 in
Aachen, Germany.
www.lasercongress.org
www.innovation-award-laser.org
20 Metal Additive Manufacturing | Autumn/Fall 2015
© 2015 Inovar Communications Ltd Vol. 1 No. 3