In episode 25 of @AuManufacturing Conversations with Brent Balinski, we hear from Steve Camilleri, CTO and co-founder of SPEE3D.
The episode was recorded at Land Forces 2022 last week.
Camilleri discusses the company's newly-launched expeditionary printer, XSPEE3D, the company's accidental presence in the defence market, and much else.
Episode guide
0:30 -- The company's history.
3:42 – “We knew exactly what we needed. We had a technology-shaped hole, we had to be able to print parts very quickly, so we targeted 100 grams a minute as our metric. We also decided that the parts needed to be able to be manufactured cheaply. So we were targeting about 100 bucks a kilo for our production cost. The first bit we worked out was that all the processes people were using already – mainly using lasers and electron beams and things like that – could not possibly achieve it.”
6:01 – Regarding cold spray: “There were papers at the time declaring loudly ‘this is a wonderful process, it would be perfect for additive manufacturing, but you can’t make geometries with it. It’s too constraining. You can only coat parts with it.’”
7:10 – Being daunted at first by the defence market and its complexity.
8:10 – “A bit of a coincidence” being discovered by the Australian Army for trials to see if they could solve a need.
10:10 – The new XSPEE3D printer plus the Hierarchy of Needs for 3D printer users.
12:42 – An insurance policy for isolated operations e.g. ports, farms: “You’re not the kind of person that yearns for a 3D printer, it’s not something that’s missing in your day, but what you do have is a lot of infrastructure, a lot of capital, and when that goes down very suddenly and unpredictably… you may not have any good choices on the table.” Much the same level of capability as WARPSPEE3D but not designed to be static.
15:05 – Pricing model.
16:10 – The current situation in Australia with metal powders and sovereign capability, and why this needs improving.
17:06 – Why the development partner for the printer is the UK’s Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) and not an Australian organisation.
18:50 – Demonstrating the usefulness of their tech to the US Navy at REPTX. (A research paper is currently being prepared on what was learned about printing at sea.)
23:25 – Why they’re borrowing ANCA’s approach in exporting Australian innovation. “Let’s go to the world, and let’s make sure we succeed, because we know that our domestic market isn’t enough to sustain us… The curse and the benefit of being Australia is this isolation. So we thought ANCA managed that extremely well.”
28:20 – How defence has supplied itself throughout history, why the global supply chain could be a little bit of a short-term aberration, and why the hose fitting makers of the world are doomed.
32:40 – Some closing thoughts on Australian industry development.
Relevant links
ARMY, SPEE3D RELATIONSHIP TO EXTEND WITH A NEW 12-MONTH TRIAL
SPEE3D SUCCESSFULLY PRINTS PARTS AT SEA FOR US NAVY – REPORT
LAND FORCES 2022 – 3D PRINTING TO REVOLUTIONISE LOGISTICS AT THE FRONT
LAND FORCES 2022 — COLD SPRAY AM CONTINUES TO PROGRESS ALONGSIDE DEFENCE
