Continued CT Services Expansion

3D Engineering Solutions (3DES), North Americas’ most Advanced & Proven Center of Excellence For Metrology & Engineering Services is pleased to announce their ongoing strategic partnership with Nikon Metrology, Inc (NMI) of Brighton, Michigan. 3DES recently purchased two additional advanced industrial computed tomography (CT) systems from NMI. These systems use X-rays to penetrate components and assemblies to retrieve all surface and internal details.

3DES’ additional investment in advanced industrial CT Scanning systems have led to the expansion of a now 30,000 square foot controlled state-of-the-art laboratory featuring leading edge touch-less data collection, inspection and engineering systems. The addition of these two industrial CT Scanning systems augments their 24/7 on demand customer priority support services. Typical industry lead times for CT/X-Ray service can be up to 7-10 days. 3D Engineering Solutions is leading the paradigm shift in customer expectations of CT / X-ray scanning/analysis and have slashed customer deliveries down to support 24 hour turn around on critical customer requirements. 3DES’ large trained engineering staff allows for ongoing 24/7 support for larger volumes as well.

Industrial CT Scanning overcomes line of sight restrictions and data collection issues experienced with touch probe, laser, vision and structured light based systems. 3DES VP of Operations, Rob Glassburn, P.E. explains “Industrial CT Scanning allows us to surface map and inspect internal passages of customer parts that require a non-destructive evaluation of their critical components. Markets from aerospace, medical, electronic PCB, automotive and historical preservation can benefit from this advanced CT technology by utilizing 3DES’ services without the burden of expensive capital investments and maintaining engineers proficient in their use.”

3DES’ project, valued at over 1 million dollars, creates this state of the art industrial CT scanning center of excellence. This strategic partnership with Nikon Metrology uniquely qualifies 3DES as the premiere engineering and metrology lab in the United States. This advanced suite of leading edge CT scanning hardware, advanced reconstruction and analysis software (Volume Graphics) and team of degreed engineers professionally trained in all aspects of the use and proficient application of voxel data acquisition and point cloud engineering for certified ISO17025 third party inspection, 3D CAD modeling and reverse engineering services.

Nikon Metrology, VP Sales & Service, Jim Clark explains, ”Industrial X-ray/CT has long been a tool used in the Quality and Failure Analysis labs but advances in speed, techniques and standards mean that it is now a tool that can replace several pieces of existing measurement and metrology equipment and provide superior results both quicker and without the need to cut or destroy the part.”

“Nikon Metrology is excited to have partnered with 3D Engineering Solutions. 3DES is geographically well positioned in the Midwest to support the growing demand for advanced CT scanning services. Additionally it provides Nikon Metrology with a base for demonstrating and educating key customers and industries as to the benefits of industrial CT.”

The exploding market of additive manufacturing (3D Printing) and CMCs (Ceramic Matrix Composites) as well as existing exotic materials in the aerospace industry requires jet engine manufacturers to understand the critical nature of the internal passages of the components they are designing, processing and manufacturing. High temperature alloy components such as single crystal nickel based metal components, new additive materials and CMCs in the hot section of engines such as turbines, nozzles, blades, etc. require internal surface details be inspected, modeled and analyzed. Nikon and 3D Engineering Solutions 450KV CT scanning system with rotating target and CLDA (curved linear diode array) allows for significant improvements in scanning these critical components in the aerospace industry. This new strategic partnership with 3DES and Nikon Metrology allows this niche industry of advanced CT scanning of critical aerospace components to be supported on a 24/7 basis that no other engineering services company is currently offering.

3D Engineering Solutions president, James T. Irwin, shares, “In the world of metrology and non-destructive engineering/testing (NDE/NDT), this is game changing technology” “From a single CT scan of a fine watch, we can measure and 3D model each internal component.”

Our Industrial Computed Tomography (CT) center of excellence houses several of Nikon’s Best in Class systems from 160kV Laminography and CT scanning to the 225kV MCT (Metrology Grade CT) to the 450kV CT scanning system boasting the patented rotating target, yielding the world’s only available micro focus source of this size. With the speed, accuracy and capacity of these systems, we are prepared to exponentially support our customer most critical needs.