Casting 4.0 - Supply chain digitalization to produce metal parts using Additive Casting Enable specializes in Additive Casting(r), which combines the best of 3D printing and traditional casting to manufacture complex metal parts of any size cost effectively. We use industrial 3D printing to produce moulds from which we can cast metal parts using nearly any metal. This approach eliminates the need for tooling, allowing for more complex parts to be manufactured from first prototypes to large annual production volumes. We are a team of five people who are all shareholders in the business. I am responsible for customer satisfaction which includes marketing and other customer interactions on a non-technical basis, driving our strategy to get Additive Casting adopted as a standard manufacturing method. This project is about the creation of a data management and tracking system from order to invoice that automatically generates and shares manufacturing data, tracks and records manufacturing stages through the supply chain and gives complete visibility and traceability for the end customer. This will support our commercialization of the Additive Casting technology and give us a strong USP in the market: The delivery on our promise to supply castings within 4 weeks using Additive Casting, as opposed to 6-12 months with the traditional casting process. This will not only be an innovation for Enable but many other UK manufacturing businesses that can use the Additive Casting process to innovate quicker and re-shore production to the UK.

Now more than ever the UK needs an agile and local manufacturing base that uses the latest technology to create high value components for all industries from aerospace to construction. There is an additive manufacturing technology which, with the help of a new supply chain, can provide effective and easy to access route to additively manufacture metal components. However, the technology and supply chain need to be trialled and tested to provide evidence that this technology is capable of being used to additively manufacture metal parts to the standards and costs required for these sectors. This project will do just that. We will design test geometries of different sizes and complexity and then manufacture these in different metals through a broad UK focused supply chain in varying quantities. The parts will be tested for all critical properties including costs. The project will therefore prove the technology and supply chain for lots of metals, in quantities from 1 to 300 parts. The findings will be made available in a white paper and associated technical data to assist companies with design for manufacture. The resulting technology and supply chain will be used by Enable Manufacturing Ltd to provide manufacturing on demand for complex metal parts and thus all UK manufacturers can access to a newly qualified and cost-effective additive manufacturing service.