For more than a decade, Clinkenbeard, Rockford, Ill., has been producing parts using rapid production methods, including CNC machining sand molds for casting, but the company recognized a shortcoming to its process: the size of the parts it made was limited by the size and shape of the machines it used. Clinkenbeard had been approached in the past by customers who needed a large part quickly. But machines large enough to produce such parts are rare and expensive and operate more slowly than smaller machines, tooling was expensive and time-consuming to produce. Clinkenbeard partnered with the American Metalcasting Consortium to run a feasibility test on the use of robotic technology to rapidly produce sand molds and cores for large parts.
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