At first glance, the line of cheerfully colored plastic skulls atop professor Laurent Lantieri’s bookshelf might be out-of-season Halloween decorations. But a closer look reveals something less than cheery: jagged holes, missing jaws and crumpled eye sockets. The skulls represent something very real — injuries that Lantieri has fixed.

Only the most seriously injured — whether by trauma or disease — end up in Lantieri’s office at Paris’ Georges Pompidou Hospital. The plastic surgeon has been repairing deformities since 1994. In 2010, he and his team carried out the world’s first full face transplant.



Lantieri does more than mend broken bones; he tries to help his patients look as close to normal as possible. In the past, he spent long hours in the operating room, opening hundreds upon hundreds of boxes of generic plates, casts and screws, searching for the best fit for patients. Despite his painstaking work, he often felt frustrated because of the off-the-shelf parts he had to use: “Before we were just guessing, trying to do it with the CT scan and using standard material … it was complicated, we never had the correct, perfect shape.”

That’s starting to change. Today, when Lantieri heads into the OR, he has a customized repair kit tricked out with titanium plates that are exact replicas of the patient’s own bones and screws that have been hand-fitted to secure existing bones to the new replacement parts.

Since 2008, he has been working with Materialise, a Belgian additive manufacturing and design company, to build better parts. Using a 3D CAT scanner, Lantieri creates a 3D scan of a patient’s face. Materialise clinical engineers then use a virtual 3D model of the patient’s undamaged bones, based on a CT scan, as a guide to build patient-specific implants that replace the damaged bones. A shattered cheekbone on the left side of a person’s face is replaced with a mirror image from the right side. A destroyed orbital socket can be made whole by matching it to the remaining socket.

Once the model is approved, Materialise uses Concept Laser 3D-printing machines to “print” the new implants — first as a prototype that Lantieri can measure against a 3D model of the skull to ensure a perfect fit, and then as the final product.

“In the past, I was just guessing,” Lantieri says. “We never had the correct shape. But using 3D-printed skulls — to have them in my own hands — to determine what are the difficulties, where are the impediments in advance, it makes a huge difference.”

Laurent Lantieri, a plastic surgeon at Paris’ Georges Pompidou Hospital, says the custom-built parts help him achieve his ultimate goal: “We’re trying to give back normalcy to the patient.” Image credit: Materialise

The 3D printers build the parts from titanium powder. Lasers melt the powder and shape it into each patient’s one-of-a-kind “bone.” No matter how jagged the edge of the remaining bone is, the printer can make an exact match. Some replacement pieces are extraordinarily complex, such as those made to replace bones ravaged by disease. Because the pieces are going into human bodies, they need to be flawless.

“We are trying to be as close as possible to the original face,” Lantieri says. “We’re trying to give back normalcy to the patient.”

Concept Laser’s LaserCUSING machines use multiple lasers, which enable them to print faster and more cost-effectively than other 3D printers.

Last year, GE acquired a controlling stake in Concept Laser, and the company is now part of GE Additive, a new business dedicated to supplying 3D printers, materials and engineering consulting services.

Once removed from the printer, the pieces are hand-finished before being matched with screws, and even screwdrivers, in a specialized kit.

“The OR nurses love them (the kits),” Lantieri says. “They just have to open the box and we have all the different elements in order of use. No more boxes. We save time because we know exactly what we have and where it goes. Everything is exactly what I want and what I need for each step.”

“In the past, I was just guessing,” says Lantieri. “But using 3D-printed skulls — to have them in my own hands — to determine what are the difficulties, where are the impediments in advance, it makes a huge difference.” Image credit: Materialise

Although the 3D-printing method means spending more time in the planning stages, it makes the operation itself much quicker. That’s good for the patient, the doctors and the pocketbook. Less time in surgery means less expense.

The use of 3D printing for reconstructive surgery will only grow in the future, Lantieri says. “The outcomes are so superior,” he says.

EN ISO 15614-5 titanium Grade 5

Lasklus Netherlands (Amersfoort, The Netherlands) recently successfully completed the first of many to come welding procedure qualifications for welding Titanium Alloy Grade 5 (Ti-6Al-4V). All welding was done by the owner of the company, Patrick Wouterse, who is a certified welder himself. The qualification, based on EN ISO 15614-5, was monitored by customer representatives and independent welding engineer (IWE) Dimitri De Spiegeleer.

The welding procedure involves welding titanium according to the highest specs and was performed in a purge chamber at values below 10 PPM Oxygen, which is a fact on the qualification.
Where others can achieve this qualification with a bigger cup, Lasklus Netherlands truly believes in highest quality and has been given a unique position in the high tech market by qualifying titanium in an purge chamber.

With this prestigious qualification, Lasklus Netherlands further expands its already impressive welding capabilities and becomes an even more unique company specialised in Titanium welding.

Airbus is on a mission to 3D print as much of an aircraft as possible and it’s pulling in a number of aerospace manufacturers and additive manufacturing (AM) companies into its massive project. Among them is Arconic (formerly Alcoa Inc.), which recently pulled off a first in 3D printing for aerospace when a 3D-printed titanium bracket was installed on the airframe of an Airbus A350 XWB commercial plane.


The Airbus A350 XWB will have a number of 3D-printed parts, including a titanium bracket produced by Arconic. (Image courtesy of Airbus.)

Unlike other metal and plastic 3D-printed parts flying on test planes, such as the Airbus A320 neo and A350 XWB test aircraft, this is the first to be installed on a series production Airbus commercial aircraft.

To learn more about the project and Arconic’s overall history in AM for aerospace, ENGINEERING.com spoke with Don Larsen, Arconic Vice President of R&D and General Manager of Advanced.
3D Printing Airframe Parts

Right now, we’re in the early stages of adopting AM to produce end parts for use in aircraft. Numerous companies are making their marks, manufacturing engine components and pieces for inside the airplane cabin. Perhaps most famous in this regard is GE, which is 3D printing fuel nozzles for its LEAP engine.


The 3D-printed titanium bracket assembly, produced by laser powder bed fusion and installed on a commercial A350 XWB aircraft. (Image courtesy of Airbus.)

During these early stages, we’re seeing a lot of step-by-step work being done in which businesses perform a battery of tests on a given 3D-printed part before it is installed on a test aircraft. The Arconic news is particularly interesting in that the part has been installed on the actual airframe of the A350 XWB. Given the structural nature of airframes, this may be a significant step toward producing structurally critical components for aircraft.

“What’s significant about making this component with 3D printing is the fact that it proves we can pass all of the qualification tollgates necessary to get a part on an airframe. For example, you have to pass many mechanical property tests, physical tests and chemical tests to make sure that you can make a repeatable part,” Larsen said. “Basically, the installation of this part on a series production aircraft paves the way so that Airbus can design other classes of 3D-printed parts, including structural and flight critical components.”

The bracket was printed on a laser powder bed fusion system for a few different reasons, Larsen said. Of prime importance was the buy-to-fly ratio made possible with the part. Titanium is an expensive metal. When a part is machined from a titanium block, for instance, there is a lot of wasted material. With AM, only a little more than the material needed goes into the manufacturing process.

“The part we’re replacing was machined from a titanium block, so you’re looking at buy-to-fly ratios of five to one or 10 to one,” Larsen said. “Whereas you’re looking at maybe 1.2 or 1.5 to 1 when you make it via AM.”

On top of that, using the laser powder bed fusion system, makes it possible to produce multiple parts very quickly. This will allow Arconic to produce batches of brackets for the A350 XWB. Under two additional agreements, the company will produce other titanium and nickel 3D printed parts for the A320 as well.

The bracket differs from previous metal 3D-printed parts installed on test planes in terms of use and composition. Not only is the bracket on the airframe and not within the engine, as is the case with the fuel nozzle from GE, the bracket also is made from titanium, a difficult metal to work with, according to Larsen.

“Frankly, it’s a little tougher to print a titanium part than it is cobalt and nickel parts. The material is much more sensitive to the atmosphere it’s printed in and the parameters you print it with,” Larsen said.

As we’ve heard from other industrial AM users, such as Aerojet Rocketdyne, Arconic couldn’t simply take a stock 3D printer and begin producing parts. Instead, there was significant tweaking to the machine and its parameters—such as laser power and the laser scan pattern—to ensure the proper quality and repeatability for the bracket and other components being made by the company.

“You can feed a perfect model into a 3D printer and when it’s done printing what comes out of the other side isn’t a perfect model dimensionally. As you print these parts, there are slight movements that occur that can cause issues with the dimensions,” Larsen said. “We do a lot of modeling and testing of prototype parts before we go into production and we understand how to manipulate the CAD file so that we can actually print a part that  when fully processed  meets our customer’s specifications.”
3D Printing at Arconic

In 2016, Arconic was formed as the result of a split, which saw the Alcoa Inc. parent company change its name to Arconic and take over the company’s Engineered Products and Solutions, Global Rolled Products, and Transportation and Construction Solutions businesses. Its bauxite, alumina and aluminum operations are now housed under a new company called Alcoa Corp.

Arconic has been involved with 3D printing nearly 20 years. Larsen recounted the experience when the first resin systems were installed at his site in Michigan. “It’s funny, I remember when the first 3D printing machine arrived during my first position in R&D at the research center in Whitehall,Mich. It was amazing to watch this laser scan the polymer and see this part rise out of the liquid. And, then, after all of that, to have this 3D-printed part.Previously to prototype   investment casting patterns, people had to lay up sheets of wax by hand and they took forever to make.”

The company began using the technology to make patterns for investment casting. Since then, Arconic has added AM capabilities in metal and plastic at sites in Texas, California, Georgia, Michigan and Pennsylvania, for 3D printing patterns, tools, molds, prototype and production hardware. In 2015, the company boosted its AM capabilities with the acquisition of RTI International Metals.



“With the acquisition of RTI in 2015 we gained significant additive manufacturing expertise,” Larsen said. “RTI had extensive experience in plastic production parts, as well as  experience on the metal AM side. So, it was a great segue for us to move from what we would call indirect AM into direct AM, directly making a part.”

With the RTI acquisition, Arconic added titanium 3D printing to its capabilities. Then, in 2016, the company opened a 3D printing metal powder production facility within the Arconic Technology Center. There, Arconic is producing proprietary titanium, nickel and aluminum powders optimized for aerospace 3D printing.

It’s also worth noting that Arconic owns one of the world’s largest hot isostatic pressing(HIP) complexes in aerospace. HIP is often necessary for strengthening 3D-printed metal parts during the post-production process.

While Arconic has a 100-year history in producing aluminum powders, it now has about 20 years of history in 3D printing. Combined, according to Larsen, this gives the company the expertise required for 3D printing quality and repeatable parts for aerospace.
The Future of Metal 3D Printing at Arconic

Through partners like Arconic, Airbus is laying the groundwork for a future in which 3D printing is a regular part of manufacturing end components for aircraft. However, there is still a lot of work to be done.

Larsen believes that some of the improvements made to metal AM will come from new technologies. “The machine technology will change such that we can probably print more parts per machine and do it faster. We might be able to eliminate putting supports on the parts as we print them,” he said.

The elimination of supports could be achieved from five-axis deposition technologies or the ability to produce removable supports, which has been demonstrated by XJet and Desktop Metal.

It’s also possible, according to Larsen, that machine manufacturers will become better about supplying the necessary parameters for ensuring quality and repeatability.

“I suppose that eventually the machine builders will get better at giving stock parameters out; however, you really need to have  deep metallurgical expertise and background to be able to get it right,” Larsen said.“If you look at Arconic, we’re experts in aluminum, titanium and nickel. There are subtleties in all of this that we address every day in production.There is an expertise we have that machine builders may never have—and that  allows us to develop parameters that are most likely superior to anybody else.”

Arconic will also be contributing to the future of metal 3D printing through its own AM technology. Arconic’s Ampliforge™, for instance, is a process that combines Sciaky’s large scale electron beam AM (EBAM) with forging. The process uses EBAM to quickly produce a near-net-shape before forging is applied to obtain the proper strength.


The Ampliforge process from Arconic. (Image courtesy of Arconic.)

“With the typical forging process, you might take six to eight steps to go from a billet to an actual part,” Larsen said. “With the Ampliforge process, we 3D print a preform and then forge it just once to achieve the same microstructure as a traditionally forged part. You’re going to save a lot of material and time. This will obviously allow much more efficient and less expensive production of parts.”
You can learn more about Arconic’s 3D printing capabilities at the company website.

Aan de Rice Universiteit in Amerika is een materiaal ontwikkeld dat de rol van titanium bij knie- en heupoperaties zou kunnen overnemen. Wetenschappers hebben ontdekt dat door toevoeging van goud aan titanium een niet-toxisch materiaal ontstaat dat vier keer sterker is dan titanium zelf. De toepassingen zijn veelzijdig en te vinden in alle omgevingen waar duurzaamheid en slijtagebestendigheid een vitale rol spelen.

De ontdekking vond min of meer toevallig plaats tijdens het uitvoeren van experimenten op magnetisch materiaal dat van niet-magnetische elementen is gemaakt: een titanium/goud-mengsel in de verhouding 1:1. Voor het onderzoek worden het materiaal onder meer vermalen tot poeder om er röntgenfoto’s van te maken en zo de samenstelling, structuur en zuiverheid te herleiden. Dat bleek bij deze samenstelling echter niet mogelijk. Vervolgens werden er verschillende titanium/goud-samenstellingen gemaakt en vergeleken. De verhouding 3:1 bleek daarbij het sterkst.

De samenstelling wordt bij hoge temperaturen gemaakt. Hierbij wordt een nagenoeg zuivere kristallijne vorm van de legering gevormd waarvan de hardheid ongeveer vier keer groter is dan die van titanium. Alhoewel deze samenstelling al bestaat komt men er eigenlijk nu pas achter deze bijzondere eigenschap. Er wordt nu onderzocht of het materiaal nog harder kan worden gemaakt door het chemisch te behandelen.

Aangezien wij elk metaal lassen zijn we ook al bezig met de R&D voor dit nieuwe metaal zodat we het lassen ervan kunnen aanbieden zodra het op de markt komt 

Pipeline manifold component from the Safer Plug Company an industry milestone.

Lloyd's Register (LR) today announces the first certification of a part produced through additive manufacturing (AM) for the oil and gas industry.
The part, a titanium gateway manifold for pipelines, was designed by Surrey, England-based Safer Plug Company (SPC) and built by the AM production company 3T RPD using powder bed fusion. The entire process was overseen and certified by LR using its framework, an industry first that guides manufacturers on AM processes to certify components.

"In taking on this initiative, LR's Additive Manufacturing group has truly opened a gateway to the future," said Ciaran Early, SPC Technical Director. "LR's pivotal role is to guide suppliers through the codes, standards, controls and best practices to manufacture AM parts, in order that end users will have full confidence that an AM part meets the required level of criticality for that part."

SPC approached LR more than a year ago in order to provide independent assurance of the manifold's manufacture, due to the innovative process it went through to design and produce it. The manifold is to be included in an assembly for a suite of pipeline isolation tools, which will include the world's smallest tool suitable for six-inch diameter pipework.

"This project is a great example of how innovative companies are making great use of additive manufacturing's benefits," said Amelia Stead, LR AM Surveyor and the primary technical lead on the project. "This part would have been nearly impossible to produce using traditional manufacturing techniques due to its complex internal channels."

LR's framework, produced alongside The Welding Institute (TWI), takes into account more than material standards. The manufacturing facility was also assessed by the LR team.

"3T RPD are delighted that certification has been issued," commented Luke Rogers, New Product Introduction Project Manager for 3T RPD. "We regularly work with clients in the aerospace, medical and motorsports industries to produce metal parts. Hopefully SPC will set the example and demonstrate how the oil and gas industry can realise the benefits of AM."

Going forward, LR will certify the next batch of 10 manifolds produced by SPC and 3T RPD. SPC is now working with LR on a Type Approval certificate which would allow it and 3T RPD to produce the manifolds on demand, as well as the pipeline isolation tools.

"From an industry and customer perspective this certification provides added confidence in parts produced by this new technology," said Dr. Claire Ruggiero, Director Innovation, Technical and Quality for LR. "This will undoubtily accelerate the adoption of AM into the oil and gas mainstream. The work we have done with TWI and research undertaken by the LR Foundation-funded PhD students has provided the robust basis for this certification and we look forward to further building our expertise and experience together with the industry pioneers like SPC."

"It's crucial that new technologies are embraced by the oil and gas industry," said Andrew Imrie, LR Global Product Launch Manager. "LR is at the forefront of supporting these new technologies, enabling the industry to bring certified products to market with the proper assurance and confidence."

LR is involved in several AM projects within the nuclear, marine and construction industries as well. It currently operates three joint-industry projects with TWI which are open to companies who'd like to learn more about the AM process.

For more information, please visit www.lr.org/additive-manufacturing.