Last week SMMT and some of our members travelled to Barcelona for a visit programme arranged by HP, to showcase additive manufacturing and how it can be used in automotive. The programme included calls on charger manufacturer Wallbox, Dfactory, Seat – Cupra and finished with a tour of HP’s hugely impressive Centre of Excellence for Additive Manufacturing at Sant Cugat. There were also networking opportunities with local Tier suppliers.
Additive Manufacturing offers many advantages for automakers including prototyping and validation, making small batches just in time, light weighting and speed-to-market. The process can also be used as ‘bridge production’ where a key supplier cannot deliver and to make late engineering changes close to product launch. Huge thanks to HP for a superbly organised and fascinating visit.
To read more about HP Supply chain and additive manufacturing opportunities in Spain here or contact the SMMT International team for more information.
