Elite Additive Manufacturing to implement MES from AMFG

Elite Additive Manufacturing, a business area of Elite Mold and Engineering Inc. have chosen to use AM-specific MES software from AMFG to establish their movement into the additive manufacturing space.

Established in 1982 and based in metro Detroit, Elite has a mold and engineering arm, alongside a focus on plastic products. An emphasis on growth has been furthered by the recent implementation of Additive Manufacturing capability with the purchase of a Carbon M2 3D printer in November 2022. The new machine complements the 10 molding machines, 2 EDM machines and 10 CNC machines.

The purchase of the Carbon M2 opened up new manufacturing avenues but prompted a rethink over the priorities that come with implementing new printing techniques. CEO Paul Patrash asserts that the biggest motivation around seeking out software solutions, like those presented by AMFG, was ease of use for their customers.

“We looked at several online quoting platforms, and AMFG checked all the boxes for what we needed to support our growing customer base in the 3D additive market," says CEO Paul Patrash, who explained why AMFG was the only option for Elite moving forward. "The ease of onboarding and the back-end support was critical to our decision to use AMFG as our provider.”

As the emphasis was on customer usability and confidence, the biggest attraction of AMFG’s MES Software is the Order Management portal. The Portal provides a fully automated quoting solution, with customers able to upload their own CAD files, choose materials and other configurable parameters before a quote is instantaneously generated.

The quote portal has been implemented onto the company website, blending in with Elite’s own branding and message—a feature of the customizable options available as part of AMFG’s software. The message delivered by Elite to their customers via the portal is consistent but the quoting options are entirely tailored to Elite’s capabilities.

By implementing AMFG’s software, Elite are looking to make the movement into the additive manufacturing space as smooth as possible, the company says.

The process relating to the adoption of the machines happened quickly, with the Carbon M2 purchase in November, staff undergoing training in December and additive manufacturing becoming a facet of the business in January. 

AMFG’s Head of Implementation Consulting, Rohan Graham, said he believes the combination of AMFG’s expertise and that of Elite is sure to be a success: “Allowing Elite to take a further step into the additive manufacturing space, through the use of our software, is proof that the product not only streamlines processes but fuels and promotes progress.”

As well as promoting scaling, the partnership proves how much of an attractive and viable technique additive manufacturing has become. The pairing of hardware and software ensures the process of going to market is considerably quicker. The Elite and AMFG partnership demonstrates how additive manufacturing and software solutions are vital.

Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company’s website.