At 3D Spark, our mission extends beyond developing cutting-edge software for part manufacturing and procurement. We aim to dive deeper into the practical contexts where our solution operates, ensuring it not only meets but exceeds the real-world demands of our customers.

In line with this, we've initiated a unique “Customer Internship Program” that involves our team members interning at customer sites. The first of these saw Ruben Meuth, our co-founder and CEO, spending a full day at the Alstom production site in Salzgitter, Germany. These experiences provide our customers a direct Q&A and support opportunity, allow us to gain a deeper understanding of what our customers workflows are, which daily challenges they face, how they use 3D Spark to overcome them and to identify further opportunities for efficiency gains.

Experiencing Alstom's Advanced Manufacturing Capabilities in Salzgitter

Dr.-Ing. Uwe Jurdeczka, a seasoned expert in Additive Manufacturing (AM) in Salzgitter and globally in charge of metal AM at Alstom, and Lasse Tiepelmann, who is pioneering new metal AM applications for bogies at Alstom Siegen, welcomed Ruben to his internship. The production site in Salzgitter produces well known trains like the Coradia Lint (Diesel), the innovative Coradia iLint (Hydrogen), Coradia Continental (electric), Coradia Continental BEMU (battery electric) as well as the S-Bahn and U-Bahn trains from Hamburger Hochbahn AG and Verkehrsbetriebe Hamburg-Holstein.

This collaboration offered Ruben a unique perspective on how Alstom leverages AM and the 3D Spark platform to maintain its leadership in the railway industry.

Spotlight on AM Parts:

• Cooling Water Manifold: Printed in aluminum with LPBF technology by Nikon SLM Solutions, this part exemplifies the intricate capabilities of metal AM, decreasing weight & waste of resources, while increasing part performance and spare part reliability which is crucial for the railway sector.
• Door Stopper: In collaboration with Replique and BASF Forward AM, this 316L steel piece showcases the robustness of metal-FDM technology, underlining the practicality of AM in producing key railway components (Read More).
• Steel Yaw Damper: Developed using WAAM technology by Gefertec, this large component demonstrates AM's versatility in creating complex, large-scale parts.

Strategic Discussions for Future Value

Ruben's discussions at Alstom focused on several key areas for potential enhancements:

• Further tuning Alstom's “Digital Factory Twin” within 3D Spark to streamline Alstom’s decision-making processes between 15+ different in-house manufacturing technologies.
• In-depth exploration of part request processes compared within the same production site, between Alstom production sites and external suppliers to provide a best in class “Supplier Panel” solution to ease part requests and purchasing.
• Enhancing manufacturability checks and cost efficiency in metal DED technologies such as WAAM, LMD, and robot DED.
• Assessing the capabilities of AM machinery and systems from leading providers like Gefertec, Vallourec, AddUp, Addimadour, and Meltio3D.  
• Exploring the innovative prospects of Liquid Metal Printing from GROB-Werke.

Always accessible, stable and fast costing helps choose the most cost-effective production option

Dr.-Ing. Uwe Jurdeczka highlighted the software's reliability and its influence on operational efficiency, noting, “3D Spark is stable, fast, and always accessible, significantly automating processes, especially in quick costing. It builds confidence among our team, allowing us to pinpoint the most cost-effective production alternatives.” This feedback underscores how 3D Spark facilitates a deeper understanding and control over manufacturing costs, aiding in strategic decision-making. He also emphasised the software’s comprehensive comparison capabilities, “The ability to compare 15 different processes and various materials for manufacturability, costs, and timing instantly is incredibly valuable.”  

Looking to the Future  

These internships help us build stronger partnerships and gathering insights to refine our software to provide even greater added value to our customers.  

We're excited about the potential this initiative holds for continuous learning, adaptation, and growth alongside our partners. Stay tuned for more updates as we continue to explore and push the boundaries of additive manufacturing together.

We invite you to follow our journey and reach out to discover how 3D Spark can transform your Manufacturing, Sales, and Procurement of manufactured parts!