Fixing the Oops with Additive Manufacturing – Recovering High-Value Scrap via Laser Cladding

The unique combination of precise heat control and CAD-driven automation allows manufacturers to completely recover from machining errors without compromise in part strength or structural integrity. Using three dimensional models of a machined part in its existing state and its ideal completed state, software tools allow laser technicians to develop welding strategies to replace material accidently lost to machining errors with equivalent or sufficiently similar materials with physical properties nearly identical to the original un-machined stock.

Unlike cold spray or other low temperature additive technologies, material added by laser cladding is fully consolidated and metallurgically bonded at the time of application. No additional heat treatment is necessary, and the applied material can be tooled almost immediately after application.

This technique is especially useful in the recovery of highly machined components, and/or pieces made from expensive or exotic alloys, where scrappage of the component due to a machining error represents a substantial loss of invested time and material. Examples include manifolds and other highly milled or formed components common in the aerospace and defense industries, especially those made from titanium or other difficult-to-source materials.