Joint Collaboration Aims To Enable Mass Industry Adoption of LAAM Technology

Laser-Aided Additive Manufacturing (LAAM) technology supports production and repair of complex, functional metal parts.

ISDN Holdings Limited (“ISDN”) is partnering with SIMTech to commercialise the Laser-Aided Additive Manufacturing (LAAM) technology platform for 3D printing and deposition of corrosion-resistant metal structures and components for heavy industries such as aerospace, oil and gas, and offshore and marine.  

The LAAM technology platform, developed by a team of SIMTech researchers led by Dr. Chew Youxiang, incorporates a heat source – in the form of a high-power laser beam or arc source – into 3D printing to create full-scale metal parts that are highly durable. In additive manufacturing, more commonly known as 3D printing, objects are first digitally defined using a design software. With LAAM, metal powders or wires are melted by a laser beam and deposited layer-by-layer onto a metallic substrate, fusing together to form a functional metal structure. 

LAAM is a versatile AM technology that enables integration with other processes such as robotic machining, laser welding, and arc-based additive manufacturing (cold metal transfer) for the design and fabrication of complex metal components, without the need for traditional intermediate steps or special tooling. This technology is also highly apt for adding materials on existing freeform structures and is useful for repair of high-value and large format parts to reduce material wastage and part replacement lead time. 

Founded on its precision and motion control engineering capabilities in 1986 and listed on the Main Board of the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited since 2005, ISDN Holdings Limited has today transformed into a multi-industry corporation with more than 60 offices spanning key Asian growth markets. ISDN has also been listed on the Main Board of the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited since 2017. 

ISDN is dominant in the niche areas of motion control, industrial computing, and other engineering solutions. Their customised engineering solutions cater to different industrial sectors including medical, robotics, factory automation, energy, manufacturing, hard disk, and semiconductor industries. By leveraging its alliances with strategic partners in Europe and Asia, ISDN is able to combine and thereupon benefit from the best-in-class technologies and business systems these collaborations have to offer.

ISDN and SIMTech are jointly collaborating to develop a hybrid LAAM system for fabricating complex 3D structural parts for needed industry applications, and have been tasked with commercialising the production technique in Singapore. They are also coming up with the relevant industry-wide production processes as well as methodologies to evaluate the quality of metal parts created using LAAM.

As a motion-control engineering specialist, we are delighted to be able to play a role in driving the mass adoption of LAAM technology in Singapore. This advanced manufacturing technique not only allows for the fabrication of complex designs that may be too expensive or too challenging for conventional machining, but also lengthens the shelf life of metal structures and components. We believe LAAM will go a long way in supporting various heavy industries in Singapore.

Mr. Teo Cher Koon, ISDN’s Managing Director and President

For enquiries, please contact Mr Tan Chee Tat, Director, PE COI
Email: cttan@simtech.a-star.edu.sg
Web: a-star.edu.sg/simtech-pecoi