News

1. Customer Priorities: Quality, Delivery, then Cost

•  Quality remains the top priority for all users, especially during process qualification.

•  Once production is industrialized, delivery reliability becomes critical.

•  As production volumes grow, powder cost gains importance, pushing AP&C to continuously optimize its processes (SQDC framework).

2. Market Shift: Coarser and Broader Powder Size Distributions

The L-PBF sector is experiencing its most significant shift since 2015.
Customers are increasingly adopting broader particle size distributions (15–53 µm, 20–63 µm, up to 15–106 µm) to reduce printing costs, even if this means higher surface roughness or lower resolution.
This shift is accelerated by the rise of less regulated applications, which innovate more quickly.

3. Why Such a Rapid Change?

•  Deployment of larger, more productive printers.

•  Recognition of the economic benefits of broader PSD powders.

•  Internal AP&C studies confirming technical feasibility.

•  Market pressure from fast-moving, less regulated industries.

4. Supporting Customers: Equipment, Safety, and Powder Handling

AP&C provides more than powders:

•  Deep expertise in industrial powder handling, EHS, and processing.

•  Custom production-grade equipment, including sieving systems up to 50× faster than those previously used by clients.

•  These solutions significantly enhance customer productivity.

5. Reducing Production Costs: Technological and Operational Optimization

•  AP&C operates 17 atomizers near Montreal.

•  Continuous improvement programs target yield, energy use, and post-processing efficiency.

•  The goal: reduce the cost per kilogram of high-quality powder.

6. Digital Traceability: Essential for Regulated Industries

•  Implementation of a robust Manufacturing Execution System (MES) ensuring:

  •  Full traceability of powder handling.

  •  Real-time monitoring of production parameters.

  •  A strong digital foundation for AI-driven optimization.

7. Artificial Intelligence: Automating, Predicting, Improving

AP&C is deploying AI to:

•  Measure particle yield in real time.

•  Automatically adjust operating parameters to optimize powder size distribution.

•  Leverage sensor data from all 17 atomizers as a powerful industrial dataset.

8. Sustainability: Recycling and Revalorizing Powders

•  AP&C is developing solutions to reuse off-spec or waste powders, including alloying and reprocessing.

•  This can lower costs for customers while minimizing environmental impact.

•  Strict controls remain essential, especially in highly regulated industries where contamination risks cannot be tolerated.

9. Growth of Titanium MIM

•  Metal Injection Molding (MIM) with titanium is reaching industrial maturity thanks to very fine powders (0–20 µm) and improved feedstock chemistry.

•  These advancements enable parts with optimized mechanical properties, microstructure, and surface finish.

•  Titanium MIM is expanding rapidly across consumer goods such as sports equipment and electronics, currently scaling faster than additive manufacturing for high-volume production.

Read the article