Fonon Corporation, a diversified holding company, R&D center, and manufacturer of advanced laser material processing systems for both subtractive and additive manufacturing, is spotlighting its Bulk-To-Shape (BTS) application-specific additive manufacturing/metal 3D printing technology for the mining industry. Although this cutting-edge technology is still under development and not yet fully commercialized, its potential impact is significant.
Mining equipment and structural components must withstand extreme shock and vibration, often in remote, hard-to-reach locations where transporting spare parts is both costly and time-consuming. While mining equipment is built for durability, failures can still occur, making maintenance a challenge. Fonon’s BTS additive manufacturing, or 3D printing, offers a solution by enabling local production of parts and tools, reducing reliance on extensive inventories and mitigating downtime due to unavailable replacement components.
Operators can use obsolete parts or raw materials to reproduce needed components. Once fully developed, Fonon’s BTS system will combine conventional laser additive manufacturing with original metal powder production to create 3-dimensional models. This capability will facilitate faster acquisition of critical parts, minimize on-site inventory needs, and support a more sustainable supply chain with a reduced carbon footprint. Physical inventories will be replaced by digital inventories, allowing on-demand production of new components and parts. The BTS system will also enable the fabrication of complex geometries and optimization of existing parts for improved performance and reliability, all while reducing material waste.
BTS technology aims to enhance industry practices and support sustainability goals. Unlike traditional subtractive manufacturing methods, which generate significant waste, Fonon’s BTS technology reconstructs products and their subassemblies into a single structure, minimizing waste and reducing material costs. Additionally, producing metal 3D-printed parts closer to worksites decreases transportation resource requirements.
Fonon’s 3D laser metal printing systems will use a layered, digitally-driven additive manufacturing process, directing high-quality, focused laser energy to fuse metal powder into 3D objects. This will enable the production of high-quality parts and metal prototypes directly from digital models. The advanced manufacturing systems will feature Direct Drive Motion and proprietary LaserComb Beam Shaping technologies to position a powerful laser for enhanced production speed and consistency. The system will ensure balanced light distribution across the powder bed, reducing reflectivity and improving beam quality. Unlike systems relying on galvo scan heads, this technology ensures consistent laser focus throughout the entire build process, resulting in uniform products and rapid processing over a wider area with a precise laser beam.
BTS represents Fonon’s expanding suite of building-block technologies supported by patents, licenses, next-generation hardware, and proprietary metal processing intellectual property. These technologies are dedicated to designing specialized 3D metal printing systems for industrial and manufacturing purposes, providing the fastest path to production readiness.
For more information about Fonon Corporation’s transformational Bulk-To-Shape technology, please visit Fonon Corporation.
