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Hyundai Motor and Kia have opened the Additive Manufacturing Solution Center (AMSC) at their Namyang Research and Development Center in South Korea, marking the Group’s first purpose-built facility dedicated to AM research and production.
The center arrives nearly three decades after Hyundai Motor Group introduced its first industrial 3D printer in 1996, and occupies a newly constructed facility within the Advanced Mobility Solutions building.
The AMSC consolidates a broad range of AM technologies for different materials, geometries and performance requirements, moving components directly from digital design to fabricated parts with reduced tooling and greater material flexibility.
Polymer and metal process lineup
For polymer components, the center runs vat photopolymerization technologies, including digital light processing, and stereolithography apparatus. It also operates polymer powder bed fusion systems.
For metal components, the AMSC uses metal powder bed fusion, and directed energy deposition, including a wire-arc variant compatible with steel, stainless steel, aluminum and titanium, aimed at large structural parts that are difficult to produce as a single piece conventionally.
The center also develops DfAM capabilities, allowing engineers to consolidate parts and apply lattice structures for lighter components. Every part passes through the AMSC’s Quality Inspection Cell, where dimensional measurements, tensile strength, bending stiffness and impact resistance are checked against production-equivalent standards, alongside in-house material verification and metallurgical analysis.
Applications from prototypes to motorsports
The AMSC supports vehicle development prototypes, manufacturing jigs and fixtures, and service parts for discontinued vehicles or emergency replacement needs. It has also been used for heritage restoration, reproducing a Hyundai Pony side-sill component through 3D scanning, reverse engineering and additive manufacturing, and for motorsports parts such as anti-roll bar blades, damper brackets and brake duct rails.
The center has additionally displayed a vehicle motor housing built with wire-arc deposition and finished through CNC machining.
“We are rapidly internalizing additive manufacturing technologies through a growing range of applications across the Group,” said Hanwoo On, Senior Manager of the Additive Manufacturing Solutions Team at Hyundai Motor Company.
“Beyond vehicle components, we are expanding their use in high-value applications such as equipment consumables and manufacturing tools.”