Sintavia buys two 3D printers for building rocket components

Sintavia will use its new M4K-4 quad-laser metal 3D printers to build rocket components like thrust chambers. Sintavia

Sintavia LLC, a Florida designer and additive manufacturer of critical thermal components for the aerospace, defense, and space industry, has purchased two M4K-4 printers from the German company AMCM GmbH, part of EOS GmbH family of companies. The metal printers are stretched versions of EOS’s commercial M400-4 printer, which features four 1-kW lasers to print single-unit components with dimensions up to 450 mm by 450 mm by 1 m.

Sintavia will use the new machines, scheduled for delivery in mid-2021, to expand its portfolio of thrust-chamber design and manufacturing for the rapidly growing commercial space industry.

“Since the acquisition of our first M400-4 three years ago, Sintavia has devoted tremendous resources to developing successful and repeatable operating procedures for the quad-laser printing of extremely thin walls, such as those found in the thrust chamber of a rocket,” said Sintavia CEO Brian Neff.

In addition to being longer and wider than the M400-4, the M4K-4 features more powerful lasers and an upgraded cooling system. The design of the M4K-4 was driven largely by demand from commercial space launch customers who were looking to optimize thrust chamber assemblies with fewer traditional joining steps.

The purchases bring the number of M400-4’s Sintavia operates to eight.