Thermwood has completed the first of a new type of additive print and trim system, the LSAM 1010. This is a fixed table, high wall system with both print and trim head mounted on a single gantry. Although with a ten foot by ten foot table, it is a bit smaller than the larger dual gantry flagship LSAM systems, it does require a significantly larger gantry.

The LSAM 1010 can both print and trim, but not at the same time. It uses the same 40mm print head that is standard on the larger LSAM systems and the same five axis trim head. It has the same 5 foot high print and trim capability of the larger machines. The addition of both of these on a single gantry adds two major new requirements.

Two Major New Requirements

First, the gantry must be significantly longer to accommodate the width of both heads, while also allowing both heads to cover the entire table.

Also, the gantry must be significantly stronger to rigidly support both the print and trim head, which together weigh well over 7,000 pounds, resulting in a live load (the parts of the machine that actually move) of over 18,000 pounds. Despite the weight, the machine can move at speeds up to almost three feet per second.  This is not a small machine.

New M400 Helps Build Large Machines

The production of this new gantry has been made possible by the commissioning of Thermwood’s new M400 five axis metal working system which can machine parts up to 35 feet long. The gantry design uses Thermwood’s slot and tab construction method which produces engineered steel structures that are extremely strong and stiff. 

More Details About the LSAM 1010

Since the LSAM 1010 has a fixed table, there is no practical part weight limitation. 

The LSAM 1010 has the same 200 lb maximum print rate capability of the larger flagship LSAM systems but is still priced well under the LSAM 1020, which is the smallest dual gantry LSAM available. 

The LSAM 1010 is also available as a “print only” machine for companies who already have the necessary machining capacity, bringing the price down even more. 

The LSAM 1010 is ideal for companies whose size requirements fit the available envelope and where a sequential process production rate (print and then trim) is adequate. It is also ideal for companies who need relatively large, heavy parts but don’t need trim capability. The lower price point also makes the LSAM 1010 easier to cost justify for a wider variety of end applications. 

Largest Selection of Large Scale Additive Manufacturing Systems

The LSAM 1010 is part of the LSAM product line which offers the largest selection of large scale additive manufacturing systems available anywhere. There is a system available for about any large scale additive requirement from a 5x5 Additive (Print Only) Printer to giant, dual gantry, print and trim machines up to 40 foot long. Longer machines are available however, 40 foot are the longest machines produced to date. 

Large Scale Additive Manufacturing Systems from the industry leader, LSAM by Thermwood.

Learn More About Large Scale Additive Manufacturing Systems from the industry leader, LSAM by Thermwood.

Thermwood LSAM 2020 - Year in Review

The last 12 months have seen an incredible level of disruption in all industries, fueled in large part by the coronavirus pandemic.  COVID-19 has impacted nearly every aspect of the global economy, from manufacturing to supply chains to travel.

The additive industry wasn’t spared, with event cancellations and disruptions to regular business becoming the norm.  Thermwood pivoted in 2020 to continue our focus on innovation and development with our LSAM (Large Scale Additive Systems) line, and have made many new discoveries and advancements in our additive manufacturing program.

Below, we highlight some of the notable LSAM moments from 2020 that leaves us hopeful for the future of large scale additive manufacturing in 2021 and beyond:

March 5th - Thermwood Announces Another New LSAM Model

To address the need for a lower cost enclosed additive machine, Thermwood developed the LSAM 1010. This system uses the walls from the larger LSAM systems with the gantry, control and sub-systems from the LSAM MT. 

The LSAM 1010 features a fixed 10 foot by 10 foot table. A single moving gantry carries both the print and trim heads as on the MT and, like the MT, it can both print and trim (but not at the same time). The print and trim heads on all Thermwood LSAMs are the same, so all machines can process virtually any reinforced composite thermoplastic materials available today.

With the introduction of the LSAM 1010, it became clear that Thermwood is committed to responding to customer requests and providing its industry-leading LSAM additive manufacturing technology in a variety of configurations to better fit varying customer requirements.

March 17th - Thermwood LSAM 1020 Quickly 3D Prints a Multi-Piece Foundry Pattern

This was a great exercise to demonstrate the capabilities of an LSAM to quickly make a multi-piece foundry pattern out of ABS (20% carbon fiber fill). 

The pattern was printed on an LSAM 1020 in 6 hours and 40 minutes, and machined on a Thermwood 5 Axis Model 90 (because of other projects that were pending on the LSAM).

More info

June 25th - Thermwood Builds Massive Metalworking Machine to Increase LSAM Production

Thermwood designed, fabricated and put into operation the largest machine it has ever built. The metalworking machine, dubbed internally as the M400, weighs 51 Tons (103,000 pounds) and is mounted on a special isolated, double steel reinforced concrete pad. It has a 15 foot wide, 35 foot long floor level steel table that by itself weighs 21,000 pounds.

More info

August 27th - Thermwood LSAM MT VLP Prints a High Temperature Part

In August, Thermwood demonstrated it's VLP (Vertical Layer Printing) capabilities on an LSAM MT 1010.  The high-temperature part was printed out of Techmer PM blended 25% carbon fiber filled PSU/PESU. 

Total print time for the project was 16 hours and 40 minutes, and the final weight of the part was 1,190 lbs.  The final part dimensions were 108.6" (x) x 33" (Y) x 45" (Z).

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September 17th - Thermwood and General Atomics Partner on Additive Tool with $50,000 Cost Savings

In September, Thermwood partnered with General Atomics to produce a CNC trim tool.  The tool was printed from ABS (20% Carbon Fiber Filled) in 16 hours.  Total machining time was 32 hours.  The final part weighed 1,190 lbs, and represented a cost savings of around $50,000 when compared to traditional methods.

Total lead time for the part decreased from 6-8 weeks to less than 2 weeks by utilizing the powerful LSAM system.

More info

September 24th - Take a Tour of the Thermwood LSAM

Also in September, LSAM Product Manager, Scott Vaal, took us on an informative tour of the Thermwood LSAM.

In this tour, Scott explains all the different aspects of the Thermwood LSAM and provides insight into this unique solution for large scale additive manufacturing.  

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October 22nd - A New Approach to 3D Printing a Yacht Hull Mold

In October, Thermwood printed a several sections from a 51 foot long yacht hull mold to demonstrate how only a single mold may be needed for the manufacture of larger vessels, such as yachts. 

The printed sections of this test mold were made of carbon fiber reinforced ABS from Techmer PM. ABS was chosen because of its physical properties and relatively low cost compared to other reinforced thermoplastics

More info

Thermwood recently announced the LSAM MT, a lower cost moving table version of its industry-leading LSAM (large scale additive system). Although Thermwood has hundreds of open moving table CNC routers in operation, similar in configuration to the MT, and believes this configuration will also work for many LSAM customers, several larger customers requested an enclosed machine configuration that is the same size as the MT, but configured like the larger LSAM high wall systems. 

To address this request for a lower cost enclosed machine, Thermwood has announced the LSAM 1010. This system uses the walls from the larger LSAM systems with the gantry, control and sub-systems from the MT.

The new LSAM 1010 has both the print and trim heads on same the gantry just like the LSAM MT.

The Details

A single moving gantry on the LSAM 1010 carries both the print and trim heads just like on the MT.

The LSAM 1010 features a fixed 10 foot by 10 foot table. A single moving gantry carries both the print and trim heads as on the MT and, like the MT, it can both print and trim (but not at the same time). The print and trim heads on all Thermwood LSAMs are the same, so all machines can process virtually any reinforced composite thermoplastic materials available today.

The print and trim heads on all Thermwood LSAMs are the same, so all machines can process virtually any reinforced composite thermoplastic materials available today.

Although the LSAM 1010 is slightly higher in price than the MT, it is noticeably less than the larger LSAMs and generally less than the cost and complexity of trying to add an external enclosure to the MT.

In addition, even though the LSAM 1010 is slightly wider than the larger LSAMs (to accommodate mounting both the print and trim heads on the same gantry), the overall footprint of the 1010 is actually slightly smaller than required for the MT. And, like the MT, the 1010 can be purchased as a print only machine. 

Thermwood believes that, since it is enclosed like the larger LSAMs, the LSAM 1010 can be built to meet European CE requirements, just like the larger machines.

With the introduction of the LSAM 1010, it is clear that Thermwood is committed to responding to customer requests and providing its industry-leading LSAM additive manufacturing technology in a variety of configurations to better fit varying customer requirements.

About Thermwood Corporation

Thermwood is a US based, multinational, diversified CNC machinery manufacturer that markets its products and services through offices in 11 countries. Thermwood is the oldest manufacturer of highly flexible 3 & 5 axis high-speed machining centers known as CNC routers.

Thermwood has also become the technology and market leader in large scale additive manufacturing systems for thermoplastic composite molds, tooling, patterns and parts with its line of LSAM (Large Scale Additive Manufacturing) machines that both 3D print and trim on the same machine. These are some of the largest and most capable additive manufacturing systems ever produced and are marketed to major companies in the aerospace, marine, automotive and foundry industries as well as military, government and defense contractors.