Industrial Laser Solutions

Selective laser sintering manufactures control system component

Sept. 18, 2020

IMAL turned to CRP Technology for the manufacture of a functional sensor housing box using the company’s 3D-printed service with laser sintering process and composite material.

IMAL S.r.l. (San Damaso, Italy) offers machinery for the production of wood particle, plywood, medium-density fiberboard (MDF), and oriented strand board (OSB). For an important customer, IMAL created a quality control system to be placed at the end of the production cycle, based on terahertz/millimeter wave (T-ray) technology. IMAL turned to CRP Technology (Modena, Italy) for the manufacture of the functional sensor housing box using the company’s 3D-printed service with laser sintering process and composite material.

For the first time, IMAL did not use mass-produced sensor housing boxes, as they would not have met the quality criteria of the company. “We turned to CRP Technology,” IMAL commented, “as we knew they would support us during the entire creation process, advising us on the best choice to get the product we wanted, and to manufacture it in the shortest time. The application had to be created in a short time, and to combine high mechanical characteristics (resistance to acceleration, stress, and heat) while maintaining high-level aesthetic standards.”

CRP Technology assisted IMAL in choosing the best laser sintering material to guarantee the success of the project: Carbon-composite Windform XT 2.0. This choice proved to be appropriate because the sensor housing box turned out to be electromagnetically shielded, thanks to the carbon-filled Windform XT 2.0 composite material.

CRP Technology created the functional 3D-printed sensor housing box in two shells. To obtain higher feature tolerances, the sensor housing box has been CNC-machined on a 5-axis machining center on specialized jigging. This was possible through the characteristics of Windform composite materials. CRP Meccanica processed the sensor housing box via subtractive technology.

“This is our first experience with professional laser sintering technology,” IMAL said, “and we are very satisfied. Working with CRP Technology, we had collaboration, high quality, competence, and an open and constructive approach towards us.”

For more information, please visit crptechnology.com.