One of the UK’s leading large format additive manufacturing (LFAM) specialists has sealed a groundbreaking educational deal with Kingston University.
Rapid Fusion, which supplies its solutions to customers in four different continents, has installed a £450,000 Zeus Robotic Cell into the Faculty of Engineering, Computing and the Environment.
Located at its Roehampton Vale campus, the state-of-the-art manufacturing platform combines 3D printing with integrated CNC milling in one modular system, giving researchers and industrial partners access to seamless additive and subtractive manufacturing.
This will reduce outsourcing, streamline production and improve repeatable quality, making it ideal for prototyping work and low-volume complex components.
Kingston University is also using the cell to teach students the latest additive manufacturing solutions, with Rapid Fusion making a longer-term commitment to offer work placements, potential Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) opportunities and input into the future curriculum – all designed to grow the next generation of 3D printing and robotic experts.
“This is a real show of intent from our partners at the university and gives them access to one of the most advanced LFAM robots in the world,” explained Jake Hand, CEO of Exeter-based Rapid Fusion.
“Zeus will provide staff, partners and grads with the opportunity to ‘print, scan and mill’ in one solution, removing a whole host of secondary ‘ops’ and, importantly, guaranteeing exacting tolerances as you are removing manually inputting the CNC toolpath.”
He continued: “This is the first time we’ve put this system into a university, but this is just the start. There’s a real skills gap in the UK for robotics and 3D printing experts, so need to do our bit to train budding engineers on equipment and tech that is going to be used in the world real now and during the next ten years.
“This is what we’re doing with Kingston. As well as installing and training staff on the cell, we are also looking at how our technical experts can work with education professionals to shape the curriculum and maximise what learners can do with the solution.
“It’s not just about developing people we can employ at Rapid Fusion. We’re doing this for advanced manufacturing as a whole – there’s lot of opportunity, but we need the right skills to go alongside the pioneering tech.”
Rapid Fusion has been pioneering LFAM robotic solutions for the last five years, developing and launching to market Apollo, Medusa and the containerised Cerberus solution for producing parts in remote areas.
The Zeus system is one of its most popular technology platforms and delivers smoother surfaces, tighter tolerances and post machined features directly by introducing subtractive accuracy to the scale and speed of additive.
It has used exclusive relationships with Zivid and Ency to incorporate the latest industrial scanning camera and AI-driven CAD/CAM robot programming software respectively.
This helps to harmonise workflow by scanning the custom part or mould and creating the most accurate toolpath quickly and with minimal manual involvement.
Lesley Stigling, Operations Manager at Kingston University, was a driving force behind the installation: “We are always exploring the latest technology and how it can add value to our industrial, research and educational offer.
“One of our graduates, Raghav, went to work with Rapid Fusion and insisted we meet. That quickly led to us acquiring the Zeus system, which gives us a competitive edge in large-format additive manufacturing and machining.
“I fully expect it will help us attract new research projects and cement existing relationships with industrial partners who are keen to push the boundaries of innovation and performance.”
He concluded: “This equipment will also help drive our efforts to future-proof the faculty. Our undergraduates and postgraduates will learn on this state-of-the-art robot, giving them the hands-on experience and skills that employers want, and a head start in the graduate job market.”
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