Dive Brief:
- Electronics manufacturer Nikon launched the Nikon Advanced Manufacturing Technology Center in Long Beach, California, according to a July 29 press release.
- The 90,000-square-foot facility offers design and metal additive manufacturing services to produce parts for aviation, aerospace, and defense clients, as well as contract manufacturers, according to the press release.
- The facility has 52 employees and also serves as the global headquarters for Nikon’s advanced manufacturing subsidiary, launched in April 2023 to oversee the scaling and management of the additive manufacturing business.
Dive Insight:
The Nikon AM Technology Center has been partly operational for some time, said Hamid Zarringhalam, Nikon Advanced Manufacturing’s CEO.
The center houses the other metal additive manufacturing companies it acquired and rebranded over the past few years. Last month, the Japan-based company announced it reorganized Morf3D and renamed it Nikon AM Synergy.
The reorganization included the closing of its El Segundo, California, facility and moving its operations to the AM Technology Center, according to the July 10 release. The goal is to step up the adoption and scaling of metal additive manufacturing for its clients, particularly in the defense and aerospace sectors.
Nikon SLM Solutions AG (formerly SLM Solutions AG) will open the Nikon SLM Solutions Studios at the center later this year. The company will integrate Nikon SLM Solutions’ laser powder bed fusion technology and Nikon-developed 3D printing solution to improve metallurgy and metrology capabilities.
“Using AM gives us the potential to make complex parts that are difficult or sometimes impossible or too expensive to make in a monolithic manner,” Zarringhalam wrote in an emailed statement to Manufacturing Dive. “It also gives us freedom of design, often resulting in lighter, more sturdy parts, while also reducing waste, carbon footprint and cycle time.”
The two subsidiaries will work in sync with Nikon’s research and development, offering engineering, manufacturing solutions and prototyping and production capabilities, according to a July 29 release.
Nikon AM is also offering production onsite and at secure locations of its customers’ choosing as a way to create partnerships and develop collaborations to position itself as a leader in onshoring industrial manufacturing, Zarringhalam said.
Nikon SLM Solutions has been building up its U.S. defense customer list this year. In April, the subsidiary partnered with Hartech Group to supply additive manufacturing for the Department of Defense. In June, Nikon SLM Solutions began collaborating with Howco Metals Management to upscale production capabilities using a heat-resistant alloy to manufacture rocket nozzles and other aerospace components.
