Linear Mold & Engineering, a full-service injection mold design, engineering and manufacturing company, incorporating both traditional mold manufacturing and 3D metal printing of end-use parts and mold components, plans to expand its 24,000-square-foot Livonia, MI, headquarters by an additional 17,000 square feet.
To meet increasing demand for its 3D printing/additive manufacturing services, Linear’s expansion will make room for eight additional direct metal laser melting machines, as well as allow for expanded mold manufacturing to include CNC machining centers, EDM and a gun drilling machine.
Linear recently installed its third EOS M280 direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) system from EOS GmbH, and a dual laser SLM280 from SLM Solutions. The company now operates a total of four EOS M270 3D metal printing systems, three EOS M280 3D metal printing systems, and two SLM 280 systems.
Demand for 3D printed metal parts has increased exponentially as materials and technology have evolved to provide opportunities for a wider range of applications that include aerospace and automotive components, electronic parts, and conformal cooling lines for injection molds to reduce cycle times, improve plastic part quality and lower costs to manufacture.
“We are energized by the opportunities that additive manufacturing gives our business at Linear,” comments John Tenbusch, President of Linear Mold. “With this facility and capacity expansion we will be able to better serve our customers’ increased parts requirements quickly and efficiently.”
Using the DMLM technology, Linear designs and builds 3D printed conformal cooling channels for injection molds for the mold making industry. However, the growth segment for Linear is the design and build of DMLM 3D printed production components for the automotive, aerospace and energy industries.
Since 2005, Linear has been on the leading edge of that transition, creating a forward-thinking manufacturing model that incorporates the latest, state-of-the-art machinery and systems in both additive and subtractive (machining) manufacturing. The company’s expertise and capability to meet its customers’ wide-ranging requirements for high-productivity injection molds, 3D metal printed parts solutions, R&D, and training has made Linear the leading solutions provider to the automotive, medical and aerospace industries, among others.
Linear will be exhibiting at the National Plastics Exposition (NPE 2015) March 23-27 in Orlando, FL. at Booth #35006. Additionally, you don’t want to miss Lou Young, Linear’s Business Development Director -Tooling & Manufacturing, who will be featured in a special presentation on 3D Printing (Additive Manufacturing) for Conformal Cooling Lines in molds to help reduce cycle times and improve part quality.
About Linear: Linear Mold & Engineering is a full-service mold design, engineering and manufacturing company specializing in high-productivity injection molds for the automotive, medical, and aerospace industries, among others. Since 2005, Linear has developed an expertise in 3D metal printing, additive manufacturing technologies for rapid prototyping, end-use components, conformal cooling channels, and other applications.
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