12th of June 2012: GARPA annual meeting

This year, the AFPR welcomes GARPA (Global Aliance of Rapid Prototyping - Additive Manufacturing - Associations) for its annual international meeting.

13th of June 2012: additive manufacturing to assist in innovation

A day to review the integration of additive manufacturing in the product lifecycle management, a production technique which is a manufacturing process assisting in product and service innovation and  reduction of the production costs and marketing time of new products.

Additive manufacturing techniques, previously referred to as “rapid prototyping” (the field for which they were intended over the past two decades), now cover the whole product life cycle: design, communication and validation of designs, industrialisation, production and product maintenance.
The development of technologies, materials and manufacturing capacities has also expanded the field of application of additive manufacturing. Today, all sectors of activity are turning to additive manufacturing in order to innovate: new (multifunction) products, new economic concepts (from a unique object to customized mass production), etc.

This conference will be led by the AFPR’s Intelligence Commission under the guidance of Professor Alain Bernard, Vice-President of the AFPR, a specialist in rapid product development and manufacturing.

It will include:

• an overview of technologies, materials and their applications,
• examples of innovations in which additive manufacturing has played a predominant role,
• examples of use of additive manufacturing in fields as varied as aviation, consumer goods, medicine, culture, architecture and luxury products.

Target audiences: This conference is intended for anyone whose company has Innovation at the heart of its strategy, whatever the sector of activity. There is no need to be a manufacturing specialist: an enterprising spirit is all that is required to discover how additive manufacturing can contribute to innovation.

14th of June 2012: direct additive manufacturing

A day to discover the progress made in this new series manufacturing and customized production technique, and to meet the majority of specialists and service providers in this field.

Several additive manufacturing techniques now allow direct manufacturing of optimized plastic and metal parts or series tools. But where are we at exactly in terms of precision and surface quality? What materials can be worked? What are the competitive advantages compared to material removal processes? How can additive manufacturing be integrated in the digital product development line? What is the effect on the design of the product or the design of tools? This one-day conference will answer all your questions.
The conference will be led by experts from the AFPR’s Direct Manufacturing commission under the guidance of Georges Taillandier, President of the AFPR, who is an expert in additive manufacturing and casting.

It will include:

• an inventory of machines and materials,
• results of comparative studies,
• case studies in good material additive manufacturing
• case studies in intelligent tool manufacturing

Target audiences: This conference is intended for all mechanical engineering and plastics technology professionals, including not only manufacturers of tools for casting, plastics and thermoplastics but also medical professionals.