6K Additive is famend for manufacturing sustainable additive manufacturing (AM) powder, and gives a large portfolio of premium steel and alloy powders that embrace titanium, copper, stainless-steel, and nickel, and refractory metals like niobium, rhenium, and tungsten. With its signature UniMelt course of, the corporate produces these powders from scrap materials, which helps allow the round financial system. They lately shared some very thrilling information—Honeywell has certified its Nickel 718 for aerospace and protection components. I spoke to 6K Additive’s Chief Advertising Officer Bruce Bradshaw and Brian Morrison, Vice President of Gross sales – Powder, to be taught extra.
“It’s taken some time to get qualification in an organization like Honeywell, and it’s been fairly a course of,” Bradshaw informed me.
This course of really started again in 2023. 6K Additive, well-known within the market for its nickel-based alloy powders, already knew the Honeywell crew fairly properly. Along with its website in Phoenix, Arizona, Honeywell additionally does some 3D printing work by way of contract producers, that are authorised to provide the corporate’s components. Considered one of these companions mainly vouched for 6K Additive, and that’s when Honeywell reached out.
“We provided some materials, they printed it, and did numerous thorough testing at their website in Phoenix,” Morrison defined. “Then after that, there have been onsite audits at 6K, the place they’d a few of their provide chain engineers come onsite and do an intensive walkthrough of our course of.”
6K Additive Ni718 powder SEM
There was numerous follow-up after the testing and audits, together with manufacturing agreements, however even that wasn’t the top of it. After 6K obtained suggestions from Honeywell that the fabric examined properly, there was nonetheless additional administrative work to finish, because the powder has potential to be used in protection purposes. Ni718 is a standard nickel superalloy, providing high-temperature energy and corrosion properties, which makes it a fantastic alternative for all kinds of various purposes, together with aerospace, oil and fuel, power, and protection.
Honeywell has loads of expertise with AM, having earned FAA certification for its first flight-critical 3D printed engine half again in 2020. However this information remains to be a giant deal, as a result of as Morrison defined, it could have been far simpler for the corporate to stay with conventional gas-atomized powder supplies for these sorts of purposes.
“For them to go and really qualify a brand new course of, a essentially completely different means of constructing powder, says loads. For an aerospace firm to make that change and are available do the audits and all of the due diligence work they should do, it’s not insignificant. I feel that’s what’s most fun to me, is that you’ve an organization as important as Honeywell that’s keen to department out and do one thing otherwise.”
One more reason it is a good move by Honeywell is that 6K Additive is a U.S.-based firm. As we take a better have a look at the home provide chain, there aren’t too many powder producers producing steel powder in North America. I introduced up the worldwide uncertainty surrounding tariffs lately, and Bradshaw stated that this really “goes two methods” for 6K Additive.
“One is that numerous our opponents import their feed inventory, both in a wire format or an ingot from abroad, both Russia or China or Ukraine, that are all locations which have points doubtlessly,” he continued. “However for us, with scrap materials, our supply of feedstock is right here. So we’re avoiding tariffs primarily based on feedstock and lead occasions and provide chain.”
Morrison concurred, noting that 6K Additive has “taken a unique strategy to how we’re producing this versus the normal provide chain.”
“So not solely from a sustainability standpoint, however to have the ability to safe the uncooked supplies that we’re utilizing. The ensuing powder is a really spherical powder and flows higher within the system in numerous instances. So I feel all in all, it was resolution for Honeywell ultimately.”
Picture courtesy of Honeywell.
Due to this qualification, any of Honeywell’s contract producers around the globe, together with Europe and the U.S., at the moment are capable of buy this Ni718 powder from 6K Additive as a professional supply.
“That is nice, as a result of if you concentrate on it from an aerospace standpoint, provide chain threat is a large factor,” Morrison defined. “So it’s often very normal for aerospace OEMs to have redundancies, you understand, twin sources. And I feel this was one other step in that course to cut back their threat within the provide chain, which in fact, this present day, all through COVID, however now much more lately with numerous the tariff conditions, has turn into extra necessary.”
Ni718 rocket nozzle, 3D printed utilizing 6K Additive Plasma spheroidized powders at Castheon on a Idea Laser M2.
Honeywell hasn’t publicly mentioned any particular 3D printed aerospace and protection purposes for which it’ll use 6K Additive’s Ni718 powder, nevertheless it has shared use instances like bearing housings and a brake element.
“They’ll make the most of our powder for manufacturing components, but additionally much more importantly, as they proceed to develop this expertise internally, these subsequent technology engines and different purposes that they’re engaged on at Honeywell will have the ability to make the most of our materials for the event of these additive components,” Morrison stated.
6K Additive is regularly including new clients and purposes, and receiving inquiries about new supplies like tungsten and C103, so keep tuned!
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