The European LASIMM project (Large Additive/Subtractive Integrated Modular Machine), which has brought together 10 organisations comprising international teams of roboticists, software developers, machine engineers and others, is now ready for operation.

Housed at Loxin’s facilities in Pamplona, Spain, LASIMM (www.lasimm.eu) is one of the world’s largest hybrid manufacturing machines, offering metal additive and subtractive capabilities.

It will be capable of 3-D printing metal parts and structures (for construction applications) up to 6m x 2m in diameter and weighing up to 2,000kg.

A project spokesman said that reducing costs, improving efficiency and production flexibility are key to improving Europe’s industrial competitiveness.

As part of a major initiative to address this, the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme has funded the 10 partners (from six countries) to produce a machine that can manufacture components directly from CAD models.

In addition to Autodesk, five other companies, two universities and two research institutes — from Belgium, the UK, Denmark, Spain, Germany and Portugal — are collaborating on LASIMM, based on a scalable open-architecture framework with associated software.

The machine will now be used to make demonstrator parts, such as large cantilever beam structures, airplane panels and wind turbine parts.

These have been designed to fully test its capabilities, which include additive
manufacturing, machining, cold-working, metrology and inspection.

The combination of these technologies is expected to provide the optimum solution for the hybrid production of large engineering parts and deliver a 20% reduction in time and cost expenditure, as well as a 15% increase in productivity for high-volume additive-manufacturing production.

The machine includes a modular configuration of industrial robot arms for the additive manufacturing of aluminium and steel, plus a specialised milling robot for machining away surplus material to provide the final finish.

This process will enable industries to move away from standardised components and produce bespoke solutions for industries such as aerospace, renewables, energy, transport and construction — plus many more.