Gloucestershire-based Renishaw, the global engineering-technologies company, has helped Domin Fluid Power to maximise its productivity when designing and manufacturing direct-drive valves.

Using metal additive-manufacturing (AM) techniques, it can now manufacture smaller and more-efficient drives in just 1hr (instead of 5.5hr before).

Working together, the two companies developed a new ‘state of the art’ technology suite for the fluid-power sector.

Marcus Pont, Domin Fluid Power’s general manager, said: “Metal AM allows you to stretch the art of what is possible in the fluid-power sector.

After spending years on testing different prototypes and designs, we have developed our understanding of AM, andthat will enable us to produce efficient parts for
customers.

For example, we have re-designed one of our drives to be 25% of the original size, 25% more powerful and produced at a third of the cost.”

Martin McMahon, Renishaw AM lead technical consultant, said: “We are always looking for opportunities to be involved with emerging technologies that make positive changes in the industrial world.

“We’ve worked with Domin throughout the whole process, from investigating material properties to exploring the advantages of using the latest technologies — such as the RenAM 50Q — in production.

“AM is a key technology for Domin. It gives the company the ability to build complex parts, free of tooling and with minimal operations and assembly.

“Trying to integrate such complex functionality into such a small design would not be possible using conventional manufacturing techniques.”