Rapid Tooling - 20 Micron Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS)

The EOSINT 250 M Xtended Direct Metal Laser Sintering system ( DMLS ) has been successfully used by CRDM Limited over the last four years in generating tooling inserts for injection and blow-mould tooling, wax injection, press tooling and metal components.

The concept of ‘growing' components and tooling, rather than removing waste material to achieve your desired geometry, opens up endless possibilities of alternative manufacture and is more environmentally friendly.

During the building of an injection mould tool for instance, core and cavity, conformal cooling, gates and feeds, ejector pin holes and fixing details can all be included in to one operation. This has a marked effect on cost and lead-time as geometry, once dependant on only being formed by EDM, is now built layer by layer using DMLS , hence negating the need for electrodes and their additional cost and lead-times.

The two materials currently offered by CRDM are Nickel-Bronze (DM20), which is slightly harder wearing than hard tooling aluminium, and Steel (DS20), which is nearer to P20 steel in hardness.

In injection moulding terms the DM20 will produce 20-30,000 components before any significant wear occurs, and the DS20, which forms CRDM's medium-volume tooling solution, will produce 100-200,000 parts from a single impression tool.

The only limiting factor is size. The build area measures 250mm x 250mm in X &Y, and 185mm in Z. However, CRDM have overcome this by producing ‘Hybrid' tooling. This is where larger tools can be CNC machined in aluminium or steel, on one of our three machining centres, with individual pockets of detail requiring EDM etc, let in to the main tool as DMLS inserts. With both processes running concurrently traditional lead-times are still beaten.

Based on layer-build technology, the EOSINT 250 M Xtended Direct Metal Laser Sintering system is driven by a CAD model, and operates using a fine 20 m m metal powder evenly spread over the build area (A ground steel plate) in 20 m m layers. A powerful 250w CO² laser fuses or melts together the individual layers which are evenly delivered by a recoating arm. The end result is a 98% dense material, with an excellent surface finish, manufactured to a repeatable accuracy of +/-50 m m. Surface finish straight from the machine is a medium spark, highly polished surfaces etc can be achieved with traditional tool-finishing techniques. When the finished the unused powder is then added to virgin powder and reloaded into the machine for the next build with no waste.

A major advancement in the building of metal components, and the moving parts of tools, using DMLS, has been the release of the new ‘EOSTYLE' software from the system manufacturer EOS. The new generation software now allows the construct of very complicated part geometry, including undercuts and enclosed volumes, with minimal support structure interference. This development now makes the prototyping, and low volume manufacture, of metal components using Direct Metal Laser Sintering a real alternative to metal casting or machining, and much faster.

DMLS Rapid Tooling Service

Three Levels of Costing for DMLS
Inserts only – Tooling inserts supplied to your own or preferred toolmaker. (Built to your own specifications).
Delivery 3-5 days.

Mouldings only – Using CRDM's bolster kits and moulded in-house (Charge for inserts and mouldings only).
Delivery 2-3 weeks.

Complete Tool - Bespoke tool designed to fit your own press complete with bolster. (Tool proven and shipped)
Delivery 3-4 weeks.

• Direct Metal Laser Sintering DMLS

• Aluminium / Steel