Wohlers Associates and America Makes Offer Course on Design for Additive Manufacturing for Managers and Executives

Wohlers Associates and America Makes are partnering to offer a one-day design for additive manufacturing (DfAM) course for managers and executives. Following the success of previous DfAM courses conducted for engineers and designers on four continents, this course is the company’s first foray into educating management on wide ranging issues associated with DfAM. The October 24, 2019 course will follow the two-day Members Meeting and Exchange (MMX) held at America Makes’ headquarters in Youngstown, Ohio. The course is open to the public, with members of America Makes enjoying discounted pricing.

“AM is an inherently multidisciplinary technology,” said Ray Huff, associate engineer and DfAM instructor at Wohlers Associates. “Just as product development teams must rethink the way a product is designed, company management must also gain an appreciation for the new methods, software tools, and considerations that AM presents. Unlocking the vast potential of AM requires a broad understanding of both the opportunities and challenges.”

According to Wohlers Report 2019, the largest application of AM in 2018 is the production of end-use parts, as shown in the following chart. Jigs, fixtures, and other forms of tooling—a combined 18.5%—represent an important range of applications that can save companies a tremendous amount of time and money. End-use parts and tooling rely heavily on designing in a way that optimizes for the AM process. Managers and executives considering the adoption of AM for production applications will gain an advantage over others if they attend this course.

Course presentations, discussions, and hands-on exercises cover the economics of AM, consolidating many parts into one, and topology optimization, which is letting mathematics decide where to place material to optimize the strength-to-weight ratio. The course also covers lattice/mesh structures, the important of DfAM rules and guidelines, and distortion modeling and simulation. The course includes considerations for metal, polymer, and composite materials, the creation of custom products, and reducing the need for expensive support material. Those attending the course will receive Wohlers Report 2019 at no additional cost. Details on the course are available at this web page.