Direct Metal Laser Sintering Meets Formula-1 – Next Up Product Prototypes?
At my house, it’s not enough to love great products and every detail of how they were made. That fact is obvious to anyone who’s seen my less-than-interested daughter hold her ears and run out of the room screaming at the first peep of conversations involving “machining” or “part line.” Product design infatuation was clearly part of our marriage vows, along with brewing strong coffee, making soufflé, and having and holding until the end. But those who know my situation best know that a keen love of motorsport was also part of the pre-nup. So when Formula 1 starts using a new method of rapid prototyping in metal, well, the pairing of the two topics—racing + product—seems almost cause for a celebration where I live, or at least a multi-hour discussion of the method’s potential over dinner with our equally obsessive friends.
Real Metal Parts from an Astonishing Prototyping Process
(photo courtesy of 3T RPD)