On the 2nd, at the BEXCO exhibition hall in Haeundae, Busan, officials from the UK, Germany, Italy, and elsewhere gathered to see the DLX series, a layered manufacturing solution publicly unveiled for the first time by DN Solutions. At 11:30 a.m., a machine covered with a black cloth revealed itself, and the demonstration began. As the demonstration started, flashes of light emerged from within the machine, and a complex flower shape made of metal began to appear on the previously empty workbench floor.
The machine operated repeatedly until it created the designated shape without human intervention before moving the finished product. The operator only needed to check the work status on a monitor outside the machine and extract the completed product.
Layered manufacturing is a 3D printing manufacturing technique that builds products by stacking materials. Typically, rubber or plastic is used as the material for 3D printing, but DN Solutions' layered manufacturing solution for industrial machines uses metals such as stainless steel and titanium. Unlike the standard 3D printing method, which produces items by applying heat directly to the material and extruding it, the PBF (Powder Bed Fusion) method coats the workbench with powdered material and sinters it with high-powered lasers.
The DLX series marks the first time DN Solutions has released a layered manufacturing solution using the PBF method. To facilitate this, the company signed an equity investment and strategic partnership agreement with INTECH, India's largest metal layered manufacturing equipment company, last month. Additionally, to enter this sector, they recruited Vinoth Suntharakumaran, who previously managed the metal 3D printing division at the industry leader. The current number of personnel in the layered manufacturing business organization is in the dozens in Korea and Germany, with plans for continuous expansion.
Using layered manufacturing allows for the creation of products that cannot be achieved with traditional cutting and processing methods. DN Solutions explained that even with the same product, higher quality can be obtained. At the exhibition, complex heat exchanger parts and components used in the aerospace sector made with DLX were displayed. Particularly, many parts were made with curved shapes, which are impossible to implement using existing cutting and processing machinery.
Even relatively simple shapes, like spindle fronts which are machine components, can be made to have better performance than existing products. While products made using traditional cutting and processing methods require subdivision for fine grooves, layered manufacturing can achieve this without dividing the product into several parts.
DN Solutions is accelerating its entry into the highly applicable aerospace industry and is also set to enhance its competitiveness in the automotive parts and energy industries. Suntharakumaran noted, "Layered manufacturing opens up design possibilities once thought impossible in the past" and added, "It has established itself as a game changer in modern production. The market value is expected to reach 125 trillion won by 2030."
Kim Sang-heon, chairman of DN Group, met with ChosunBiz at the exhibition and said, "The layered manufacturing sector is new for DN Solutions, which hasn't engaged in this area previously, and currently only a few companies are participating, so it can be seen as a new market." He also mentioned, "We believe it will become a focus of investment at the group level."
DN Solutions set a goal to achieve an annual revenue of 4 trillion won by 2030, focusing on high-end machine tools. Last year, DN Solutions reported sales of 2.1 trillion won and an operating profit of 410.5 billion won.