December 6, 2017 – Konica Minoltahas announced a partnership with Amiga Engineering to supply 3D SYSTEMSProX 320 DMP metal printer and provide support, which will propel the companyinto the future.

The changing landscape of Australian industrymeans that engineering, machine shops, and jobbing workshops have beenunder increasing pressure to survive.

Michael Bourchier, general manager, AmigaEngineering, said, “Traditional industry, such as automotive, has movedoffshore while the mining boom has faded. The country’s resources arebeing dug and pumped by large overseas corporations who no longer makecapital investment here to have machinery or platforms made. Rather, theyship or float this equipment from Singapore or other locations around theworld that are more competitive. Australians are left with being the maintenancecrews of offshore-supplied equipment.”

Bourchier suggests that is a barrier to Australiancreativity and innovation with Australia’s creative side is slipping tothe lowest it has ever been.

According a CSIRO blog: “Despite the wellpublicised closure of some manufacturing sectors in Australia, manufacturingisn’t dying. Instead, like industry around the world, it’s undergoinga period of significant change as new, disruptive technologies and economicrealities take hold and new markets emerge.”*

In an effort to keep up with world best practice,Amiga Engineering was looking for a new direction, and it found it in 3Dmetal printing.

Michael Bourchier said, “Amiga Engineeringhas been following the growth of this technology. We decided that now isthe time to take the plunge into this concept area to grow it and expandthe business. Without a way to reinvent the business it is probable thatwe would be like many other engineering shops across Australia: fallingby the wayside or becoming a conservative small business surviving on whateverbusiness comes in. We believe that 3D metal printing will take Amiga Engineeringto the next level and ensure our future.

“Free geometry is the new catch-cry, whereitems can now be functional to the upper limits of design and not be hamstrungby the technology that it can be machined on. Amiga Engineering can addvalue to 3D metal printing by offering a complete service. We can not onlyprint, we can also finish the parts to a useable state if required, andthe creative genius of our design engineers can be cut loose.”

To do this, Amiga Engineering chose KonicaMinolta and 3D SYSTEMS ProX 320 DMP metal printer.

Michael Bourchier said, “Amiga Engineeringchose Konica Minolta because of the passion and willingness to invest ingetting the idea off the ground for Amiga Engineering. Other considerationsincluded ongoing service, longevity in the market, and who had the resourcesto not let us down.”

The ProX DMP 320 is a high-performance metaladditive manufacturing system. It is a heavy-duty alternative to traditionalmetal manufacturing processes, offering reduced waste, greater speeds forproduction, short set-up times, and very dense and pure metal parts withleading surface quality.

Michael Bourchier said, “The 3D SYSTEMSProX 320 DMP metal printer can swap materials through its cart system.Although this system is designed for production swap-outs of build chambers,it is the only machine on the market that could truly swap out differentmaterial types and grades in the least amount of time. As a start-up inthis space, we realised very quickly we needed multiple machines for multiplematerials to be able to 3D-print metal for any amount of clients. The 3DSYSTEMS ProX 320 DMP metal printer lets us do this straight up withouthaving to invest in multiple machines.”

Amiga Engineering plans to install the 3DSYSTEMS ProX 320 DMP metal printer by the end of 2017.

Michael Bourchier said, “Amiga Engineeringis excited to explore the possibilities of 3D metal printing with customersand prospects and also to help advance the industry as a whole by beinga pioneer in the space, and creating use cases and applications for thetechnology.

“There is a lot of buzz already and we lookforward to seeing where that will take us. We will be starting with applicationssuch as medical-grade titanium for facial reconstruction and bone structures,and will look to advance into other sectors as we continue to invest inthe technology.”

Ben Darling, 3D specialist, Konica Minolta,said, “3D metal printing opens up significant opportunities for companies,such as Amiga Engineering, to realise the full potential of metal manufacturingand open up new markets from medical and dental applications to aerospaceand motorsports.”

About Konica Minolta
Konica Minolta Business Solutions Australia Pty Ltd is a market leadingprovider of integrated solutions and managed services with the power totransform business environments.

Konica Minolta works with organisations large and small to provide integratedprint and content management solutions and services to improve productivity,reduce costs, increase security and achieve sustainability outcomes. OptimisedPrint Services (OPS) combine consultancy with hardware and software implementationand operation.

Headquartered in Sydney, Konica Minolta Australia delivers expert professionalservices with experienced and responsive client support, in addition tothe world-class service provided through its extensive network of directsales offices and authorised dealers.

For more information: konicaminolta.com.au/home.

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