EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing in Additive Manufacturing

During my 4-day visit to the UK in July this year, I had the opportunity to get a tour of the EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing in Additive Manufacturing at the University of Nottingham. Inaugurated in March 2013, the centre carries out both – fundamental and translational research in additive manufacturing.

In March this year, the centre launched the Centre for Doctoral Training in Additive Manufacturing. The research projects carried out at this centre focus on four fundamental themes – deposition, graded, control, function – necessary for the successful implementation of additive manufacturing and 3D printing. To find out more, read here.

Several projects are currently underway at the Centre. These include additive manufacturing of tailored magnetic materials for applications such as health and safety checking, Aluminium Lattice Structures via Additive Manufacturing (TSB project) to create lightweight structures for automotive applications, and jetting of reactive inks for use in 3D printing, among others. The Centre is engaged in several industrial and academic collaborations. The massive laboratory at the Centre houses pretty advanced instrumentation such as a Renishaw – SLM250 selective laser melting system, a Stratasys – FDM400mc fused deposition modelling system, and others. If you’re a UK researcher, there’s funding available to support your travel to the Centre for meetings and use of the Centre’s facilities.

ADD3D, a portal funded by the Centre, serves to bridge the gap between academia and industry by helping to advance lab scale technologies to the marketplace. It is “the hub for Additive Manufacturing research in the UK.” For instance, if you’re interested in finding UK researchers working in the area of additive manufacturing, then try this ADD3D Research Finder tool. It’s fantastic. You can use five filters to refine your search – process, provider type, sector, materials, research areas. The search result displays the university name, research group, specialism, and contact information.

You can keep abreast of upcoming events here and if you want to be up to speed with the latest goings-on at the Centre, join the mailing list!