Alloy Wire International launches Exotic alloy wire for WAAM

UK-based Alloy Wire International – AWI – is targeting new additive manufacturing opportunities for its range of Exotic wire that can be used in WAAM technologies. The company, one of the UK’s leading manufacturers of round, flat and profile wire presented the new material range at last year’s Farnborough International Airshow (FIA) and is now ready to market them.

Alloy Wire International (AWI), which has been AS9100-accredited since 2013, is now selling its Exotic nickel alloy wire to the AM industry as more suppliers tap into the desire for cost-effective rapid production of parts.

The company can manufacture its wire for Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM), a process that produces near-net shape components that require less machining and wastes less material than conventional methods. It can also provide quicker lead times than conventional forging or casting without the need for complex tooling, molds or dies.

Angus Hogarth, R&D Director at AWI, commented: “It’s all about finding that manufacturing difference and additive manufacturing is a discipline the aerospace manufacturers are increasingly investing in.

“We were confident we could play a role in 3D Printing and, after months of R&D and technical reviews, we see our business as being a strong supplier of Exotic nickel alloy wire to the growing additive manufacturing sector. This is something we will definitely be promoting at Farnborough with new and existing customers.”

Exhibiting at FIA as part of the Midlands Aerospace Alliance cluster, Alloy Wire International tends to be a 4th tier supplier to the aerospace market, with its material manufactured into components that are integral to aircraft structures, in instrumentation and high-performance engines.

The company’s wire and straight bars, which are produced at its state-of-the-art factory in the West Midlands, is made into springs, fire detection wire, fasteners and electrical instruments – all manufactured so that they work at high temperatures and/or in corrosive gases or liquids.

Visitors to the show had the opportunity to talk with AWI’s R&D and sales personnel to discuss new projects, prototype work and supply chain agility, with orders able to be made in coils, on spools or straight bars within a range of 0.025mm (0.001”) to 21mm (0.827”).

Paul Chatterley, Sales Executive at Alloy Wire International, added: “We’ll be displaying some commonly used alloys for the aerospace sector, including Inconel, Nimonic, Monel, Nitronic, Phynox and Waspaloy.

“For only the second time, delegates will also be able to explore the recent introduction of INCONEL: 617, a Nickel-Chromium-Cobalt-Molybdenum alloy with an addition of aluminum.

“This is our latest addition to a 60+ range of alloys and delivers a combination of increased strength and stability at elevated temperatures (up to 1100°C/2012°F), whilst retaining the high-temperature resistance of INCONEL alloy 601.

“Its high Nickel and Chromium content makes INCONEL: 617® resistant to a variety of both reducing and oxidising media, not to mention achieving comparable corrosion resistance to INCONEL 625.”

AWI is a long-standing member of the Midlands Aerospace Alliance and, with export levels approaching 65% of its £12m turnover.