Posted to News on 12th Oct 2007, 16:32
CRP paper describes development of rapid casting
From 24-27 September 2007 the first 3D Systems Users' World Conference was held at Rock Hill (South Carolina, USA). CRP Technology attended this event with the aim of expanding its SLS knowledge and seeing how other businesses and users benefit daily from this rapid prototyping and manufacturing technology.
Dr Livia Cevolini, Marketing and Sales Director of CRP Technology, Italy, made her presentation on 25 September during the 'CastForm Applications' session. She presented 'Historical overview of CRP state-of-the-art casting work with CastForm products: 1996-2007, 11 years of experience to create the CRP winning method'.
Having been an active partner with leading racecar constructors for more than 30 years, CRP offers a high level of support throughout the entire project, including the manufacturing process. In 1998 CRP Technology began to work alongside the Minardi F1 team and studied the rapid casting process. Rapid casting is based on the combination of rapid prototyping technology (to manufacture the disposable pattern), and investment casting technology (lost wax casting).
CastForm, the material used today for rapid casting patterns, was developed through the co-operation between DTM and CRP. The first parts that CRP studied and produced were the cast titanium front and rear uprights made for Minardi; titanium rapid casting was therefore introduced in F1 by CRP Technology in 1999.
CRP's rapid casting procedure was one of the reasons that enabled the Peugeot WRC Official Team and Marcus Gronholm to win the 2002 World Rally Championship and the Mitsubishi Repsol Official Rally Raid Team and Luc Alphand to win the 2005 Lisbon-Dakar Rally Raid too - a success that was repeated In the 2006 Dakar with Stéphane Peterhansel.
The full paper of the case study is available online on CRP Technology's website www.crp.eu and Windform's website www.windform.it.
