Additive Manufacturing

Orthopedics

Additive manufacturing allows the industry to move towards true patient-specific devices. There are successful examples of advanced cases from prosthetics to organs. 

Additive benefits to the orthopedic industry


Design freedom  
Flexibility for you to customize the implant for patient needs, desired mechanical properties, and to ease surgery. 

Complexity is not an obstacle 
You can add features to increase functionality and effectiveness of the implant without increasing production steps or costs.

Mechanics of the body  
You can design porosity and pore size, as well as interconnectivity of trabecular structures to allow for enhanced initial fixation and bone ingrowth.

One implant 
AM enables integrated trabecular structures that reduce risk of delamination and simplify the supply chain because the implant is made in one step—and  one part. 

Flexible and efficient production
AM is suitable for both serial production and manufacturing of mixed implant designs and sizes, without the need for change in hardware configuration. This allows for minimal waste and high productivity.

Applications

  1. Joint implants

    Joint implants

    Trabecular structured surfaces on implant components for joint replacements
  2. Cranio-Maxillofacial implants

    Cranio-Maxillofacial implants

    Replacements in head, face and jaw regions
  3. Spinal implants

    Spinal implants

    Spinal fusion

  4. Surgical instruments

    Surgical instruments

    Tools for performing specific actions during an operation

APA™ Powders are ideal for additive technologies

  • Highly spherical, low-porosities, minimal satellite content
  • Excellent flowability and packing density
  • Wide range of PSDs available

     

AddWorks™ helps our customers

  • Develop additive part cost models and business cases 
  • Reduce uncertainty and costs by reducing trial and error from adopting new technology
  • Bridge the talent gap by providing training
  • Produce additive parts at a production level
  • Support qualification efforts
     

Machine solutions for the orthopedic industry

  1. Q10plus
    EBM

    Q10plus

    ​​​​​​An EBM machine designed specifically for cost-efficient production of orthopedic implants.
  2. M2 cusing
    DMLM

    M2 cusing

    An DMLM machine with a medium size build envelope suitable for almost every medical application.

  3. M2 cusing Multilaser
    DMLM

    M2 cusing Multilaser

    ​​​​​​An DMLM machine with a medium size build envelope suitable for almost every medical application.

  4. Mlab cusing R
    DMLM

    Mlab cusing R

    ​​​​​​An DMLM machine with a medium size build envelope suitable for almost every medical application.

     
  5. Mlab cusing 200R
    DMLM

    Mlab cusing 200R

    ​​​​​​An DMLM machine suitable for fine detailed parts and the highest accuracy.

Discover new growth potential for your business

We’ll get to know your needs and priorities to help determine the machines and materials that can accelerate innovation in your business.

Case study: LimaCorporate


Grappiolo, of Fondazione Livio Sciutto ONLUS in Savona, Italy, joined forces with orthopedic implant maker LimaCorporate and Arcam, a manufacturer of 3D printers that is now part of GE Additive, for what would be a landmark operation. With their help, he implanted the world’s first 3D-printed hip cup, the Delta-TT Cup. The TT stands for “Trabecular Titanium” a biomaterial “characterized by a regular, three-dimensional, hexagonal cell structure that imitates trabecular bone morphology,” according to LimaCorporate.