Custom-Fit Project on Research into Rapid Manufactured Products Kicks Off

Custom Fit Delegates attending kick off meeting outside Delcam Headquaters in Birmingham England

2004-09-30 - Birmingham, England: The Kick Off meeting the Custom-Fit research project took place on 21st and 22nd September at the headquarters of DELCAM plc., a CAD/CAM software company based in Birmingham, England.

Custom-Fit is a major new investment by Europe in the future of manufacturing technology. This major research project was selected over more than 200 proposals presented last year to the principal EU research program.

The consortium involved in Custom-Fit, a €16M EU sponsored project, aims to bring about a change in manufacturing technology for the 21st century. Custom-Fit brings together over 30 partners from across Europe to research and develop a new manufacturing process where products will be printed from different materials using new machines capable of varying the grade and type of the material within a single component. A single component may be composed of part plastic and part metal with a graded mixture of material in between.

The four and a half year project is focusing upon products that fit the human body such as surgical bone implants, helmets, prosthesis and sports grips. The customised products manufactured by this new process will improve the quality of life of European customers and will open a step-change in manufacturing for the new century.