GE Additive Arcam EBM Q10plus

The GE Additive Arcam EBM Q10plus is an electron beam melting machine with a maximum build size of 200 x 200 x 200 mm (W x D x H) and a maximum beam power of 3kW from a single crystalline cathode. It melts under vacuum instead of a shielding gas: minimum chamber pressure is 5 x 10^-4 mbar, and the typical build atmosphere is 4 x 10^-3 mbar as a partial pressure of He.

Colibrium Additive states throughput door to door and gives two figures, 53.5 cm3/h for a high density build and 16.6 cm3/h for a low density build. The gap between them is roughly three to one, so the rate a shop sees depends heavily on the build itself. Estimate cycle times from a job that resembles your own, not from the higher number. Minimal part resolution in X and Y is 0.75mm with the 70um layer parameter set, which puts a floor under wall and strut thickness.

The material list is short and led by titanium. Ti6Al4V Grade 5 and Ti6Al4V Grade 23 are listed as P-Material. CoCr and Ti Grade 2 are listed as D-Material for Machine v1.0, and Pure Copper as D-Material for Machine v1.0 and v2.0. Since the entries differ by machine version, establish which version a given machine is before assuming a material is available on it.

Utilities are light for the process. The electrical connection is 3 x 400 V, 32 A, 7kW, and active cooling is by a water-cooled heat sink. Helium consumption is 1 liter / hour in the build process plus 50-75 liters / build for ventilation. The machine measures 2112 x 1134 x 2758 mm (W x D x H), so ceiling clearance is the dimension to check first, and it weighs 1,681 kg against 2,915kg for the GE Additive Arcam Spectra H. Build data arrives as STL, the standard CAD interface.