California-based additive-manufacturing company Carbon (www.carbon3d.com) has announced its strategic partnership with Lamborghini, the Italian manufacturer of exclusive super-sports cars and super-sports utility vehicles.

Lamborghini’s first production parts using Carbon’s technology are a new textured fuel cap and a clip component for an air duct. Both parts are on Lamborghini’s Urus SUV, which was introduced in 2018.

Carbon is making advances in software, hardware and material science to “pave the way for a digital manufacturing revolution”. Its Digital Light Synthesis (DLS) technology uses light and oxygen to rapidly produce products from a pool of resin.

This “innovative approach uses over-the-air software updates combined with connected data-centric hardware and innovative materials to enable designers and engineers to produce previously un-makable products, both economically and at mass scale”.

Stefan Gramse, Lamborghini’s chief procurement officer, said: “Through our extensive procurement research, we found that many of our vehicle components were ideal candidates for digital manufacturing.

"By partnering with Carbon, we can produce more-durable products smarter, faster and more efficiently, while also substantially accelerating our time to market. We are looking forward to a sustainable and successful partnership with Carbon.”

Lamborghini, in close collaboration with Volkswagen’s Electronic Research Lab, is redesigning many components in its vehicle interior and mirror assembly, as well as accessories, to produce light-weight and durable parts.

Carbon’s Epoxy (EPX) 82 material has been proven to withstand the high pressures, temperatures and impact forces encountered in such applications.

Joseph DeSimone, CEO and co-founder of Carbon, said: “Carbon’s digital manufacturing solution gives companies like Lamborghini the freedom to design and build better products.

“The automotive industry shows significant promise for using digital fabrication for production at scale, and our partnership with Lamborghini is a perfect example of the kind of innovation you can achieve when you fuse design, manufacturability and engineering into one.”