Australian 3D printer manufacturer Aurora Labs has announced a research agreement with the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) as part of a joint project to advance and commercialize 3D printing.
As part of the deal, Aurora Labs will supply CSIRO, a public scientific research organization, with a small-format Aurora Labs metal 3D printer and materials. In return, CSIRO will support the establishment of Aurora Lab’s 3D printing “Solution Centre.”
A reciprocal deal with CSIRO
As part of the research agreement, CSIRO will receive the metal 3D printer. It will be installed in CSIRO’s Lab22 Innovation Centre in Melbourne, where the organization’s scientists will investigate object design, printing and optimization processes using the 3D printer, eventually reporting back findings.
In return, CSIRO will provide $100,000 worth of technical, R&D, labor and overhead support to Aurora Labs in establishing a Solution Center. This will include facilities for the replicative and generative design of multiple metal powders. Leon Prentice, a research director at CSIRO said:
“We are pleased to be working in partnership with Aurora Labs to develop this Solution Centre, and we look forward to its future success and impact on a range of industries.”
“Aurora Labs are an important part of the Australian metal manufacturing value chain, and CSIRO’s goal is to grow the entire ‘powder to product’ process in Australia,” Prentice added.
The Aurora Labs Solution Centre
Aurora Labs, the manufacturer of the S-Titanium and S-Titanium Pro metal 3D printers, will provide 3D printing consulting services, 3D printer distribution, and possible powder production facilities. Special emphasis will be placed on providing 3D printing services to major infrastructure, mining and resource companies.
Ahead of the Solution Centre’s establishment, Aurora Labs has signed a number of deals to support its development.
The company signed a binding agreement with engineering company WorleyParsons in November 2017. As a result of this, WorleyParsons will distribute Aurora Labs 3D printers, and assist the company in establishing the Solution Centre.
In December, Aurora Labs additionally signed a non-binding agreement with global quality assurance and risk management company DNV GL, which will develop a certification framework for metal parts made on Aurora Labs’ 3D printers.
Commenting on the latest agreement, Aurora Labs Managing Director David Budge said, “this is an exciting collaboration, and we are incredibly pleased to be working with a tier-one partner such as the preeminent government research organization CSIRO.”
“The research agreement speeds up the development of our Solution Centre, enhances our credibility, as well as endorses the technical performance of our technology,” Budge added.
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Featured image shows Aurora Labs’ David Budge. Photo via The West.
