20/01/23
Humpty Doo Barramundi Fish Farm“The impact of this technology and the ability to quickly produce high quality parts locally is transformational for remote businesses like ours. Previously we would have to source this part internationally which could take months to arrive, especially with the recent interruptions to supply chains. The quality of the flange SPEE3D produced exceeded my expectations and is perfect for our application.”
Dan Richards, CEO and co-owner of Humpty Doo Barramundi
Many industries such as Defence, Oil and Gas, Mining, Rail, and Agriculture currently rely on complex logistics to source spare parts for the sustainment of their own operations. This can be especially challenging when a particular part is difficult to source, and businesses are unable to have a new part produced quickly at the point of demand. As a remote industrial business, the Humpty Doo Barramundi Fish Farm approached SPEE3D to provide an additive manufacturing solution to a supply chain issue.
Aluminium watertight pipes are integral for all types of farming, including fish farming. The Humpty Doo Barramundi Fish Farm’s pipes are designed to quickly connect lengths of piping that move water and fish around the establishment. Each pipe is connected via a V Band Pipe Flange. The rapid connecting and disconnecting of pipes allows the farm to improve the efficiency of its agricultural operations. However, because this part is not readily available in Australia, in the past the business has had to source it internationally, usually waiting months for a replacement.
SPEE3D’s high-speed metal 3D printers is a highly-flexible, deployable technology able to offer industries a solution to print metal parts remotely and on demand. SPEE3D’s technology also has the ability to print parts in aluminium 6061, the exact material the Humpty Doo Barramundi Fish Farm business required for the V Band Pipe Flange part. It is an ideal material used for the business’s pipe applications because of its strong yet light material properties, corrosion resistance, and ease of welding to existing pipes.
SPEE3D produced a 3D CAD model of the V Band Pipe Flange, and printed the part using a LightSPEE3D metal 3D printer. SPEE3D’s technology ejects metal powder directly onto a substrate. Therefore, the part was printed in the correct size and in its common ring shape; without the need of depositing or wasting material within its internal diameter. The part was then post-processed through heat-treatment and machining before being welded onto an aluminium 6061 pipe.
Image of post-processed and machined part before being welded onto a pipe.
The resulting metal 3D printed part was validated and tested to meet the application’s exact requirements. It was then welded onto one of the pipes used by the farm. Proving SPEE3D’s technology offers technological advantages to remote industrial businesses to readily produce metal 3D printed parts on demand.
Simulation of V Band Pipe Flange part on SPEE3D’s TwinSPEE3D CAD software tool.
V Band Pipe Flange printed in Aluminium 6061 metal powder on the LightSPEE3D printer.
Part after welded onto Barramundi Fish Farm Pipe.
Humpty Doo Barramundi is family owned and operated, located halfway between Darwin and Kakadu National Park. As Australia’s biggest Barramundi farm, it has been sustainably growing premium saltwater Barramundi since 1993. This V Band Flange project is an ongoing example of SPEE3D’s mission to make manufacturing easier for all industries. Leading the world into the future of manufacturing through innovation in metal part production.
Used in agricultural maintenance, and in high temperature gas applications within automotive, mining, and oil and gas industries, the V Band Pipe Flange is a part commonly used to connect aluminium or plastic pipes together. Once welded, male and female flanges are then clamped together by a standard V band clamp.
This part for the Humpty Doo Barramundi Fish Farm comes with a watertight rubber O-ring seal to allow for the easy connection and disconnection between aluminium pipes to control the movement of fish. Being able to swiftly manufacture this part provides this remote business an opportunity to maintain the continuous expansion of its fish farming operations.
With SPEE3D’s technology, communities and industries in remote locations now have a viable option to source parts on demand and locally, due to the high-speed technology’s ability to produce a selected part quickly and at a low cost. Offering a long-term improvement solution in infrastructure and equipment maintenance and reliability.
Article from our partner Spee3D
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