CEIT PRESENTS THE STRATEGIC LINES IN ADDITIVE MANUFACTURE AND ITS NEW ATOMIZATION PILOT PLANT

The managers of CEIT, a center belonging to the BRTA Alliance, led by its Corporate President, José Mª Vázquez Eguskiza, presented the strategic lines in powder metallurgy and additive manufacturing, and the new atomization pilot plant located in the Miramon Technology Park at an institutional representation made up of the General Deputy of Gipuzkoa, Markel Olano, the Minister for Economic Development and Infrastructure of the Basque Government, Arantxa Tapia and the Mayor of San Sebastián, Eneko Goia.

The strategic lines will focus on the development of high added value metal alloy atomization technologies, additive manufacturing processes, as well as rare earth recovery technologies and the manufacture of permanent magnets for electric mobility.

The new pilot atomization plant will cover the gap between the development of laboratory technology and its transfer to an industrial scale.

This singular scientific technical infrastructure of the Basque Science, Technology and Innovation Network (RVCTI) will contribute to positioning CEIT, and by extension, the Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA) as a world reference in powder metallurgy and additive manufacturing.

The plant has two atomizers: the first one capable of producing up to 3 kg of metallic powder in each process and the second for atomizations of up to 250 kg. This infrastructure is strategic for the industry in that it allows us to get “tailor-made raw materials” to manufacture part preseries in new “near net shape” processes for sectors such as automotive, aeronautics, aerospace, energy, oil & gas, biomedicine or the science industry.

Iñigo Iturriza, Director of the Materials and Manufacturing Division of Ceit, highlighted the 35 years of innovative experience of the technological center in powder metallurgy, recalling that this new infrastructure will contribute to improving the competitiveness of Basque companies by opening up the possibility of have experimental metal powders available to investigate new manufacturing processes or the development of advanced performance components. Therefore, CEIT’s atomization plant becomes a unique infrastructure in Europe while the technology center consolidates its position as a benchmark in advanced manufacturing, recently endorsed by accreditation as a center of excellence for the Red Cervera by the CDTI.