CNC vs Liquidmetal
Liquidmetal produces metal parts with the precision of CNC
Reduce cost with precision molding
When prototyping a new design, CNC machining is often chosen as the manufacturing process because it has a quick set-up time, and you can easily make a couple of parts to test your concepts. After proving out the feasibility of a design, engineers are then tasked with reducing cost. One way to do this is to find a more cost-effective manufacturing process.
Time is money. CNC machining can be a time consuming and costly operation. This is especially true if the geometry of a part requires removing a lot of material or if it has features on multiple surfaces. If you are in mass production, making parts quickly could be as important as the cost.
Liquidmetal injection molding is a viable alternative to CNC machining. All the features of a part can be molded in one single step, saving you considerable time. You are also ensured to get a repeatable geometry that is not dependent on the wear of a CNC cutting tool or the need to accurately fixture a part during multiple set-ups.
Traditional Metal
Liquidmetal
No trade-offs on performance
Liquidmetal has changed the game when it comes to injection molding a metal alloy. Manufacturers are not limited to CNC machining to get high strength materials. The nature of molding Liquidmetal creates an amorphous atomic structure that optimizes strength and provides exceptional dimensional control.
Born in the labs of Caltech and NASA, decades of R&D have led to the ability to “freeze” the random atomic structure of molten metal into a solid metal part with no crystalline structure (grain boundaries). No grain boundaries mean no weak regions.
Usually, when a material cools and crystallizes, it will shrink significantly. With Liquidmetal, shrinkage is minimized, giving you CNC precision.
