The Freeformer, Arburg GmbH + Co. KG‘s system for additive manufacturing, has won an award from the Italian Association of Industrial Designers (AIPI) at a recent trade exhibition.
Arburg received the international ‘Leonardo da Vinci' Award in Parma, Italy, last month, during the MECSPE manufacturing innovation trade fair.
Established by Italy's AIPI association in 1981, the international award is presented every two years to individuals and companies who have made a valuable contribution to design and technical innovation.
In addition to Arburg, this year's winners included Italian engineer Aldo Costa, who has designed and developed 32 Formula 1 racing cars, the helicopter division of Finmeccanica, and cycling company Victoria.
The Freeformer uses an additive manufacturing process to produce fully-functional plastic parts from qualified standard granulates on the basis of 3-D CAD data.
Arburg Italy managing director Adriano Carminati, said: “I'm delighted to accept this coveted award on behalf of Arburg Italy.
“Our Freeformer is unique — both in terms of design and the numerous options that it offers to plastics processing companies for the additive manufacturing of fully-functional one-off parts and small batches.”
At K 2016 in Düsseldorf, Germany, Arburg is exhibiting at Hall 13, Booth A13.