Meltio M600 Wire-Laser System Now Available

The Meltio M600 metal 3D printer makes printing large metal parts easier by addressing the needs of industrial manufacturing with 24/7 production cycles, the company suggests.

The combination of wire deposition, blue lasers, a large (300x400x600 mm - X, Y, Z) fully inert workspace, and smart sensors allow the new Meltio M600 to process demanding materials, the company says, from titanium to copper and aluminum alloys (and more including stainless steels, tool steels, nickel, invar and Inconel).

The Meltio M600 integrates into machine shops and production environments, enabling printing of entire metal parts and the addition of features to existing components and repair of damaged surfaces. This is facilitated by the built-in three-axis touch probe and support for various workholding solutions, including zero-point clamping.

“The design brief for the new Meltio M600 was to imagine what the perfect 3D printer for the machine shop would look like. The vast majority of metal 3D printed parts require post-processing, which is carried out in the machine shop and since our ambition is to push the large-scale adoption of metal additive manufacturing we have a very clear vision that the modern machine shop is the ideal point of entry," says Lukas Hoppe, research and development director at Meltio.

Meltio M600 workspace. Image courtesy of Meltio.

Meltio M600 features the following:

It uses welding wire as its feedstock compared to the more common powder-based 3D printer. Having a wire material that is cost-effective, safe to handle and that does not risk contamination of CNC machines can be beneficial for industrial integration, according to the company.

Printing parts with the wire-laser deposition process produces high-quality components.

The newly developed Blue Laser deposition head increases printing speed while reducing energy consumption thanks to the increased absorption of the short wavelength light, the company says. This advantage is multiplied for reflective materials such as copper and aluminum alloys. 

The complete system has been designed to easily interface in the same industrial environment with CNC machines, and it features a built-in 3-axis touch probe and supports various types of workholding solutions.

Lastly, the Meltio M600 is highly autonomous meaning there is minimal operator interaction, common touch points such as manual laser alignment have been removed, and programming is a matter of minutes thanks to the Meltio Horizon, the dedicated slicer for the Meltio M600.

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