This research group aims to solve problems, tackle impasses, and bridge technology gaps in the manufacturing, engineering and scientific sectors.

The lack of process validation has constrained the adoption of AM in industry. AM-manufactured implants and jet engine parts were granted clearances by respective authorities only in the last few years. There is a pressing need to carry out in-situ AM monitoring / closed-loop control research for the effective manufacture of safety-critical components, especially in the medical devices and aerospace industries.

There are two primary process forms in metal AM: (1) Powder Bed Fusion (PBF) and (2) powder or wire Directed Energy Deposition (DED). Both forms use a high energy beam, i.e. laser or electron beam, as the heat source to melt powder or wires to manufacture components in a layer-wise fashion. One of the main technology bottlenecks of both PBF and DED is the perceived low build rate. In recent years, academic and industrial research groups have attempted to tackle this impasse by building multi-laser SLM systems, and increasing the electron beam power. Nevertheless, the improvements brought about by these new systems are deemed to be incremental as a point heat source is still in use for both powder bed melting and pre-heating (which can take up 30% of the processed layer time). Low build rate in metal AM leads to high production cost of components, which in turn slows down the adoption of AM in industry. In order for society to move towards smart manufacturing, wider application of metal AM is required. The research to increase AM build rate and to create a paradigm shift in metal processing needs to happen now.