One of the top research facilities in the world for additive manufacturing—AM, or 3D printing—the NextManufacturing Center advances this technology by leveraging the combined engineering and data science skills of Carnegie Mellon University. Researchers can create new methods for design optimization, materials development and characterization, process parameter selection, and parts qualification and certification, thanks to the cutting-edge equipment available in the campus’s additive manufacturing laboratories. Academics and staff are not only spearheading innovative research in these vital fields but also preparing the next generation of AM innovators through practical, creative problem-solving.
Focusing on current AM processes while also looking ahead to the future of additive processing, the NextManufacturing Center’s research efforts allow metal AM users to perform various tasks, including designing processes as they develop part geometries, monitoring and controlling the AM process, varying material microstructure and properties within a single AM part, and utilizing a wide variety of metal powders, among others.
NextManufacturing’s research has facilitated these advances, which will significantly increase build rates, reduce costs, improve properties such as fatigue resistance, allow for customization of the entire process, and ultimately enhance the widespread adoption of AM.
“I started at CMU on September 1, 2015, and one of my responsibilities was to introduce outside industry, federal entities, and other organizations to the research and capabilities that we have, and to meet with those organizations to understand their challenges and interests, and then basically try to bring those together to develop partnerships that would support our research,” says Sandra DeVincent Wolf, Executive Director of the Manufacturing Futures Institute and NextManufacturing Center.
“At that time, the aviation industry was developing an interest in using metal additive manufacturing, leading to increased activity as companies began calling us to inquire about industry developments and whether it would be significant enough for them to consider serving it, as opposed to traditional powder metallurgy manufacturing industries,” she explains.
“Manufacturing organizations were honestly worried that metal 3D printing might replace what they do, and that machining wouldn’t be needed anymore,” says Wolf. “Fortunately, they’re not being replaced at all. They’re needed more than ever, and their skill set is essential to the system, whether it’s making fixtures and jigs or finish-machining parts that are 3D printed.”
Recognizing the growing activity in this area, in 2015, the Dean of the College of Engineering approved the request to establish an additive manufacturing center.
“That was all it was at that time—there was no agreement, no plan, no program,” Wolf recalls. “In January 2016, faculty members Jack Beuth, Tony Rollett, and I committed to diving into this. I agreed to serve as the founding Executive Director of the Center, and we just started building and building.”
Wolf collaborated with the legal department and the office of sponsored programs to develop the membership agreement before presenting it to companies eager to learn about additive manufacturing and what NextManufacturing was doing in the field.
“We launched the consortium in July 2016, marking our very first NextManufacturing Center Membership Meeting and Research Expo, with attendees from all over coming for keynotes,” says Wolf. “We hosted some elected officials and top representatives from the FAA and the aviation industry, which is where metals additive was really gaining traction. At that time, we had one small metals additive lab with a couple of machines, two faculty members, and four students using it all.”
Since then, the Center has worked tirelessly to promote its efforts, resulting in 35 faculty and 175 students considering themselves affiliated with the Center. There are now two metals additive labs designed and built under Wolf’s leadership.
“I might have 30-some-odd students qualified to use the metals additive lab, which is a process, so that’s an accomplishment,” she notes. “Kudos to those students who have followed all of our training protocols and gotten qualified to work in the labs. That’s something that sets us apart from many universities.”
Metals additive manufacturing can be hazardous, she adds. Handling powders poses significant environmental health and safety risks, including potential inhalation. “It requires extensive infrastructure, and we have managed to operate safely despite these challenges. We also handle reactive powders like aluminum and titanium, which introduces a whole other level of risk since they can be combustible and even explosive.”
Wolf currently oversees two labs with two to three dozen students actively working on everything from powders to wire-based additives. The Center’s equipment is available to all its researchers, with external rates for those in the industry who lack such capabilities. Additionally, professional staff are responsible for maintaining the labs’ equipment and ensuring safety.
“We’re very well known for our development of materials, new alloys, and process monitoring and control,” Wolf says. “I would also say we’re leaders in applying AI to additive manufacturing, which has been a primary focus of our research for the last four years. While we continue with process or alloy development, we are utilizing and applying AI as a tool to accelerate our efforts and do it more accurately. As humans, we can’t process all the data we can now collect with available computing power.”
In manufacturing—or science in general—when there’s a need for advanced data analytics and the ability to collect vast amounts of rich data, there’s really no other way to achieve this today, Wolf explains, but fortunately, the Center has the computing power to manage it.
“Now that we can monitor all these aspects, it’s astonishing how the work in the lab has evolved. You spend more time setting up to collect data than actually running a build because of the amount of information you can gather. It’s very efficient. It’s phenomenal.”
On the funding side, the Center has been fortunate in securing various grants from different branches of the federal government, enabling it to advance vital research. According to Wolf, the Consortium, which was quite large in its second year, positioned the Center to win several federal grants with the Department of Energy, including grants of two and a half million dollars each for heat exchangers. There’s also been funding from the Office of Naval Research, led by Lockheed Martin, as well as a NASA University Leadership Initiative totaling $656 million over three years, which has allowed the Center to pursue qualification of additive Laser Powder Bed Fusion (L-PBF), particularly for aviation.
One of the Center’s greatest strengths, says Wolf, is that it maintained a small research force initially. “We had only a couple of faculty members, but they possessed deep expertise in all kinds of important related topics like material development, solidification processing, models, simulation, and design, including predictive analytics.”
Additionally, the Center’s commitment to fostering an “extremely collaborative environment” has proven invaluable.
“It shouldn’t be a secret sauce; everybody should be collaborating everywhere, and that’s one of the things that’s really special about the Center,” Wolf emphasizes. “My personal mission the whole time I’ve been at CMU is to bring people together, to find the right people, to help others.”
Part of Wolf’s success is her dedication to continuous learning and staying informed. “It’s never too late to learn,” she says, and after extensive experience across various industries, she feels the Center is the perfect fit. “I’ve finally arrived. I am in a place that I absolutely love, because it’s incredibly exciting. The innovation is outstanding.”
The students are equally impressive, she adds, enthusiastic about being part of the experience. Seminars are highly attended, allowing students to broaden their knowledge beyond their own research.
“We also see students collaborating significantly. They love it; they love being part of this. Some students have even told us that this Center is the reason they chose us over other grad school options while pursuing additive manufacturing.”
The Center is committed to supporting these students, particularly in their research endeavors. “We train them. We want them to be hands-on and capable, which doesn’t happen at every university,” Wolf says. “We also foster a strong collaborative culture of safety in our labs, which is something we are very proud of.”
She is equally proud of the students’ generosity with their time, skills, and knowledge, as well as their willingness to share what they know with others, whether it’s safety training or operating various lab machinery. “Every one of them is so grateful for their opportunities that they pay it forward or back. They’re just so generous and gracious.”
Looking ahead, the NextManufacturing Center aims to continue with automated or data-driven qualification and certification as a pathway to true adoption of additive manufacturing. The goal is also to attract more students and raise awareness of the vast possibilities within the field.
“We have the advantage. 3D printing is the best thing that’s happened to metallurgy in years,” Wolf says. “We have an outreach tool, if you will. We have a technique—even if it’s just desktop plastic 3D printing—that’s so visual and so accessible. For $300 to $500, you can have a desktop 3D printer.”
This accessibility means schools, libraries, and community centers are now being introduced to the field, which can only benefit the broader industry.
“Even if you’re a non-technical parent or teacher, you can acquire one, and it’s for girls and boys,” Wolf says. “Additive is on the move now, and that’s incredibly exciting when trying to engage kids in STEM, particularly in additive manufacturing.”
