Key Points
- The partnership began by adapting robotic arc welding into a new form of large-scale metal 3D printing, enabling complex geometries, multi-material deposition and dramatically shorter production timelines.
- Joint research led to breakthroughs in real-time monitoring, materials qualification and multi-robot coordination, culminating in a system capable of depositing up to 100 pounds of metal per hour.
- Outcomes from the collaboration are already being applied across U.S. industry, including rapid fabrication of large molds, tooling and replacement parts that would traditionally require months or years to source overseas.
American industries face a common challenge when sourcing new and replacement metal parts. "Months- or year-long lead times for forged or cast components from overseas limit how quickly companies can innovate and fabricate," said Bill Peter, advanced manufacturing program director at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory. These limitations become more critical for applications affecting the nation's energy, infrastructure and security.
Researchers at DOE's Manufacturing Demonstration Facility (MDF) at ORNL partnered with Lincoln Electric , the Ohio-based expert in advanced arc welding solutions and automation engineering, to explore domestic large-scale metal additive manufacturing as a solution. With more than 130 years of pioneering welding innovations, Lincoln Electric brings a legacy of technical leadership and manufacturing expertise that makes them a uniquely capable partner for ORNL in advancing next-generation production technologies.
This collaboration has yielded a wealth of outcomes, from the launch of a dedicated Lincoln Electric business unit to the development of a game-changing robotic manufacturing system. Now, U.S. industry is seeing these outcomes in action.
Partnering to advance large-scale metal 3D printing
In 2016, the MDF and the Lincoln Electric Automation Fort Collins Division - then known as Wolf Robotics - began building a large-scale 3D-printing system called wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM). Based on welding technology, WAAM uses a robotic arm equipped with a welding torch to melt metal wire. It deposits thin layers of metal to build the desired shape.
"WAAM enables complex shapes and multi-material deposition," Peter said. "With such freedom of design, however, how do I know I'm depositing the right geometry, achieving the right material properties and performance? How can I improve fabrication rates and cost-effectiveness?" he added. "These questions shaped our collaboration."
Through an MDF Technical Collaboration Program cooperative research and development agreement (CRADA), the two teams developed, tested and refined their WAAM system's process parameters, like weld head speed and power level. They assessed the quality of its printed parts using unique ORNL capabilities, like neutron scattering at the Spallation Neutron Source , a DOE Office of Science user facility.
By 2017, the WAAM system was ready for public demonstration: printing an excavator arm that was showcased at an international construction trade show.
"We worked as true partners. Both teams' contributions were vital for proving out the new technology," said Jason Flamm, Lincoln Electric Additive Solutions general manager.
Next, the two teams joined other partners on an America Makes project. "The initial 3D-printing software couldn't take full advantage of the robotic motion," Flamm said. "We refined our robotic 3D-printing software on a new printing system in the MDF."
Additional joint projects focused the teams on developing real-time monitoring and feedback controls to detect defects and improve material performance.
Partnership powers Lincoln Electric's additive growth
As successful projects added up, Lincoln Electric explored strategies to commercialize the WAAM technology. In 2019, the company launched Lincoln Electric Additive Solutions as a metal 3D-printing services provider.
"ORNL helped us envision this technology's future," said Mark Douglass, business development manager for Lincoln Electric Additive Solutions. "The MDF provided exposure to industries and customers we normally didn't interact with. They helped us identify new applications, like aerospace tooling."
MDF insights contributed to Lincoln Electric's decision to acquire a company with aerospace tooling and machining expertise. "Additive Solutions hit the ground running with Baker Industries able to machine what we print," Douglass said.
Breaking barriers to industry adoption
Through a second CRADA, the two teams evaluated new materials for printing. Invar, for example, is a trademarked iron-nickel alloy valued in certain energy and aerospace tooling applications. The MDF and Lincoln Electric were the first to assess Invar's thermal expansion properties in the context of WAAM. Guided by that data, Lincoln Electric began manufacturing and using Invar wire.
The two teams also began developing MedUSA. This WAAM system, housed at the MDF, uses three independent robotic arms equipped with welders.
"We'd demonstrated WAAM's effectiveness for producing large parts in low volumes," said Joshua Vaughan, group leader for Manufacturing Robotics and Controls at ORNL. "But key parts for energy and defense can be so huge, a single robotic arm would still take too much time."
Adding robotic arms could increase speed and printing capabilities - if those arms could work collaboratively, without colliding. The MDF team made that possible by creating all-new, intelligent system controls. The controls are scalable, enabling future systems with even more arms.
Advancing controls has also helped streamline the process without sacrificing geometric accuracy. For example, the team innovated by leveraging information from the weld heads, eliminating the need to scan each bead of material after depositing it.
In 2024, MedUSA reached several significant milestones. First, it hit a deposition rate of 100 pounds of material per hour, a breakthrough that demonstrates its ability to produce large, high-performance metal parts at speeds that rival or surpass traditional manufacturing methods.
Second, researchers printed a complex, 900-pound mold for a hydropower impeller. This demonstrated MedUSA's versatility: in addition to printing parts, it can also print molds for powder metallurgy-hot isostatic pressing , another promising method for manufacturing large metal parts for domestic energy applications. MedUSA also earned an R&D 100 Award .
"We'll keep going bigger and faster," Vaughan said. "We'll continue adding intelligence into the system to increase user-friendliness and drive broader adoption. We also want to leverage machine learning and data analytics to cost-effectively evaluate part quality."
"Lincoln Electric is ready to push this technology to commercialization, as we did our current system," Flamm said.
Demonstrating innovation in action
Lincoln Electric Additive Solutions serves a range of industries, including transportation, energy, aerospace and defense. In 2024, Lincoln Electric was selected to support the U.S. Navy by 3D printing propulsion components weighing up to 20,000 pounds .
They also worked closely with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers , or USACE, to manufacture a replacement for a damaged ship arrestor arm on the Poe Lock in Michigan. This shipping facility is vital for the U.S. economy: a six-month closure could put millions of jobs at risk and reduce U.S. gross domestic product by more than $1 trillion .
The USACE had projected an 18-month lead time for traditional manufacturing methods. Lincoln Electric fabricated the approximately 6,000-pound arrestor arm in 12 weeks, without sacrificing quality. The effort was recently recognized by the Defense Strategies Institute .
"We've had a lot of success," Douglass said. "But there's so much more to explore, like digital parts qualification, to keep expanding the market."
"The MDF is uniquely qualified to support industry in this ongoing journey," Flamm said.
The MDF, supported by Department of Energy's Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office, is a nationwide consortium of collaborators working with ORNL to innovate, inspire and catalyze the transformation of U.S. manufacturing. Connect with the MDF.
UT-Battelle manages ORNL for DOE's Office of Science, the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States. DOE's Office of Science is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, visit energy.gov/science .- Meghan McDonald
