Hiperbaric and Aenium Team Up to Show Benefits of Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP) Technology for Additive Manufacturing

Spanish company, Hiperbaric has sealed an Industrial R&D Collaboration Alliance with Aenium, an engineering company specializing in AM technologies. Hiperbaric is a world leader in HPP (high pressure processing), a technology for preserving food and beverages by high hydrostatic pressure (with water). In 2020, they started working with HIP (hot isostatic pressing) in order to become leaders in high pressure technology applied to various sectors, such as AM. Additionally, the company has announced the inauguration of its HIP Innovation Center where companies from across the world, including those in the 3D printing sector, can come to test their components using HIP processes. The use of HIP processes in AM promises to create components with even higher quality standards, making them ideal for sectors such as aerospace, energy, automotive, oil and gas, industry and medical implants.

The agreement between the companies signals their combined commitment to develop and improve industrial metal components, notably showing the value of combining HIP and AM. Andrés Hernando, CEO of Hiperbaric notes, “The agreement with Aenium supports how Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP) post-processing technology is combined with Additive Manufacturing techniques to achieve parts that require excellent mechanical properties.” As HIP processes are ideal for optimizing material properties, especially in metals, and in producing parts with greater reliability, it is no wonder the companies saw the benefits of combining the two technologies. Both Hiperbaric and Aenium have affirmed their commitment to jointly respond to challenges and needs in AM and HIP, working to achieve faster and more economical post-processing cycles.

A component being printed using Aenium’s equipment.

What is HIP?

HIP is essentially a manufacturing process that, as the name implies, involves applying high levels of pressure and temperature to parts and components. The benefit of using this particular technology is that it helps to improve the mechanical properties of metallic or ceramic parts and components. In essence, the process helps to densify the structure, allowing the material to develop better mechanical properties in regards to fatigue life, resilience or ductility (when a solid material stretches under tensile strain). All in all, this process means that there will be less variability and better consistency with parts, making components more reliable. This is especially valuable as you can imagine in a number of sectors, including AM where the process can be used to optimize metal powders.