Additive Snack

EOS

Join host Fabian Alefeld and a range of guests as they discuss all things additive manufacturing (AM) and 3D printing news, with interviews and real-world stories to educate and entertain. Each episode, Fabian talks to AM experts, professionals in specialist fields, and 3D printing users from all walks of life to deliver a well-rounded view on the state of AM. Cut through the confusion surrounding polymer and metal additive manufacturing solutions with our digestible, down-to-earth discussions that deliver insights into common mistakes and best practice tips so you can get a clear understanding of AM — layer for layer. Whether you’re curious about 3D printing technology for the aerospace industry, a deep dive into post processing, or applications of injection molding — we leave no spare parts behind. We want to provide you with the additive insight needed to stay laser focused and leverage every opportunity 3D printing materials have to offer. Join us for an Additive Snack and we’ll help you and your business achieve growth and success through the latest developments in AM. No marketing B.S. and no product pitches. Just the education, inspiration and information you and your organization need to drive business growth, brought to you by global AM leader EOS. Get ready to feed your AM knowledge and find your path to success!

  1. The Manufacturing Comeback: Dean Bartles on Defense, AI, and the Next Industrial Revolution

    3d ago

    The Manufacturing Comeback: Dean Bartles on Defense, AI, and the Next Industrial Revolution

    Host Fabian Alefeld interviews Dean Bartles, President and CEO of the Manufacturing Technology Deployment Group (behind NCDMM, Advanced Manufacturing International, and America Makes), about manufacturing’s evolution, defense industrial base challenges, and additive manufacturing. Bartles recounts his career from shop-floor machining and industrial engineering to international defense manufacturing programs and 31 years through successive owners culminating in General Dynamics, then leading NCDMM and forming a parent organization to expand technology deployment. They discuss consolidation and contracting barriers that pushed small/medium firms out of defense, productivity gains from automation, reshoring momentum driven by tariffs and new investment, and workforce shortages and training pathways via trades, community colleges, and SME/Tooling U. Bartles highlights AI for process monitoring and adaptive control in laser powder bed fusion, the promise of low-cost desktop FFF for drones, the need for shared data and improved repeatability, and sustainability efforts including the Additive Manufacturing Green Trade Association.    00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro    02:54 Dean Manufacturing Origins    04:18 Global Defense Career Path    06:05 Leading NCDMM and America Makes    10:44 Defense Base Decline and Industry 4.0    18:14 Reshoring and Global Models    22:17 AI Capital and Process Control    35:25 Open Data and Repeatability Challenge    38:24 Defense Adoption and Drone Boom    44:08 Workforce Pathways and Community Colleges    50:04 Sustainability and Greener AM    54:27 Closing ABL Always Be Learning

    58 min

  2. May 26

    From Hypersonics to AI Workflows: How Ursa Major Is Scaling Rocket Production

    Fabian Alefeld welcomes back Thomas Pomorski of Ursa Major to discuss developments over the past year across three focus areas: hypersonics, solid rocket motors, and in-space propulsion. Pomorski reports more than nine hypersonic missions flown with the reusable, ~80% 3D-printed Hadley engine and two successful test flights of the storable Draper engine with AFRL, plus progress on Ursa’s LINX solid rocket motor manufacturing approach using additive for tooling and cases to enable flexible “unit cell” scaling. They cover key hypersonics challenges around affordability and manufacturability and why a storable liquid rocket approach can reduce testing complexity. Much of the conversation focuses on AI’s current value in development: rapidly prototyping slicer features and scan strategies, building data-fusion and monitoring tools via EOS APIs, and enabling small teams to operate with much higher productivity, while noting production validation remains challenging. 00:00 Welcome Back Thomas 01:48 Ursa Major Year Update 02:37 Hypersonic Flight Milestones 04:05 Solid Motors and LINX 05:21 Additive Scale Up Tools 06:39 Hypersonic Cost Challenge 11:58 Solid Motor Unit Cells 15:37 Additive Geometry vs Supply 18:01 AI in Additive Workflows 24:33 AI Productivity Multiplier 29:33 Live Claude Slicer Demo 35:13 Prompting Claude Code 36:35 Sharing Team Workflows 38:40 Production AI Readiness 42:20 Slicer Feature Results 44:49 Closed Loop Optimization 46:46 AI Built Web Monitor 52:59 Automation Roadmap 01:00:12 Verifying Hatch Strategy 01:03:07 Advice For Students 01:08:29 Wrap Up And Thanks

    1h 12m
  3. Printing Batteries, how AM is changing Battery Manufacturing and Performance

    May 15

    Printing Batteries, how AM is changing Battery Manufacturing and Performance

    Fabian Alefeld hosts Karl Littau, CTO of Sakuu, to discuss why rechargeable battery manufacturing has changed little in decades and how Sakuu is rethinking it with additive approaches. Littau explains conventional thick-film slurry coating and stacked anode/cathode layers, noting heavy use of copper and aluminum and high costs driven largely by bill of materials. He outlines battery basics (anode, cathode, electrolyte) and contrasts lithium-ion with solid-state concepts, where solids replace liquid electrolytes but face commercialization challenges. Sakuu’s initial product targets electrode coating by shifting from wet, solvent-based processes to dry powder-bed methods, enabling powder reclaim/reuse, removing toxic solvents, reducing equipment size (e.g., long drying ovens), and potentially increasing throughput. The conversation also covers future possibilities like multi-material patterning, arbitrary shapes, bipolar designs that reduce metal, and broader impacts on EVs, grid storage, and electrification.   00:00 Welcome and Topic 01:32 Why Batteries Need Change 04:13 Cost Drivers Today 07:53 Sakuu Additive Approach 13:09 Battery Basics Explained 18:30 Dry Powder Manufacturing 26:10 Speed and Footprint Gains 28:47 Scaling and Supply Chain 32:27 Future Shapes and Structures 35:42 Solid State Readiness 37:48 Sakuu Origin Story 40:31 Roadmap and Industry Impact 42:34 Electrification Future Vision 49:48 Wrap Up and Thanks

    53 min
  4. Simulation as an Enabler: Pan Michaleris & Erik Denlinger on the Evolution of Additive FEA

    May 6

    Simulation as an Enabler: Pan Michaleris & Erik Denlinger on the Evolution of Additive FEA

    Fabian Alefeld hosts Pan Michaleris, founder of PanOptimization (PanX), and Erik Denlinger, co-founder and chief engineer, to discuss the evolution and role of simulation and finite element analysis (FEA) in additive manufacturing. Pan shares his background as a Penn State professor and entrepreneur (including a prior company acquired by Autodesk) and explains how simulation helps reduce costly trial-and-error builds by predicting distortion, temperature, stress, buckling, cracking, and recoater risks, while moving toward closed-loop manufacturing-to-design workflows and property prediction. Erik outlines PanX’s commercial capabilities - fast thermo-mechanical simulation for very large parts, distortion compensation, and dwell-time optimization - and describes proof-of-concept work on controlling melt quality and hardness via parameter modulation. They cover adoption in aerospace/defense and new space, qualification implications, integration with build-prep workflows (e.g., EOS/Velosis), and cautious, validation-focused views on AI surrogate models. 00:00 Welcome and Episode Preview 01:13 Meet Pan and Erik 01:59 Pan’s Journey to PanX 03:59 Erik’s Origin Story 05:10 FEA History and the Elephant Test 08:32 Why Additive Needs Simulation 10:23 Closing the Design Manufacturing Loop 14:33 PanX Today Core Capabilities 17:30 From Distortion to Material Properties 20:25 Making Simulation Usable for Engineers 27:06 Workflow Integration and Automation 29:44 From Failures to Design 30:41 Who Uses PanX Today 32:41 Simulation for Qualification 35:17 Layerwise Parameter Control 38:51 Why FEA Is Hard 41:38 AI and Surrogate Models 46:53 Future Material Tailoring 48:37 Roadmap Workflow Integration 52:27 Closing Thoughts and Wrap

    56 min
  5. The State of AM in Asia

    Apr 10

    The State of AM in Asia

    Host Fabian Alefeld speaks with Japan-based additive manufacturing consultant Peter Rogers about the state of additive manufacturing across Asia Pacific. Rogers contrasts Japan’s advanced but risk-averse manufacturing culture - strong in incremental optimization, with slower certification (notably medical) and limited defense budgets - with faster-moving but smaller markets like Australia/New Zealand, where mining drives demand for rapid, remote part supply. They discuss China’s manufacturing scale and government support, its growing dominance in desktop FDM, and how low-cost Chinese metal PBF machines can win and retain service-bureau business despite Western strengths in quality and productivity. Singapore is highlighted for academia and MRO, while Korea spans shipbuilding, semicon, automotive, and defense. Southeast Asia is still production-focused with limited local R&D, whereas India is rising as an English-speaking engineering and R&D hub for global OEMs. Both see lowering costs and AI enabling broader, consumer-facing AM applications. 00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro 01:49 Peter Rogers Background 03:32 Moving to Japan 05:12 APAC Additive Overview 09:23 China Manufacturing Dynamics 13:27 Reshoring and Kaizen Mindset 18:45 Traditional Skills vs Additive 20:57 Japan Nearing Inflection Point 25:06 Top APAC Applications 29:02 Japan Korea Industry Mix 30:31 China Scale And Funding 33:18 FDM Race To Bottom 34:27 Bambu Ecosystem Advantage 36:53 Metal AM Price Expansion 38:23 Chinese Metal Machines Case 40:30 Competing On Productivity 44:10 Southeast Asia Adoption 47:06 India RnD Powerhouse 49:46 Future Consumer Breakthroughs 52:40 Japan Pushing DED Limits 55:30 AI Lowers Barriers 57:13 Wrap Up And Farewell

    59 min
  6. From Fashion to Metal AM: Scaling Additive Manufacturing into Production

    Mar 25

    From Fashion to Metal AM: Scaling Additive Manufacturing into Production

    Host Fabian Alefeld interviews Erin Mastroni, President and founder of I3D Manufacturing (founded 2013), about building one of the largest additive-focused contract manufacturers and the industry’s shift from prototyping to production. Mastroni describes moving from fashion retail and trend forecasting to an MBA in sustainable business, spotting production AM as a key trend, and launching a metal powder bed fusion business in Oregon with limited traditional manufacturing experience. She recounts early funding challenges, using SBA/New Market Tax Credits, and landing Blue Origin as an early customer, which helped establish I3D as a fast-moving development partner known for tackling difficult materials like titanium and new nickel alloys with EOS. I3D grew from 5 people and two machines to two campuses, ~30 machines, and 54 employees, is launching an internal “I3D Academy,” navigated a severe COVID revenue drop without layoffs, and was acquired in 2023 by BTX Precision (L Squared Partners), expanding into turnkey CNC and broader capabilities while discussing PE’s role, production scalability, and emerging AI opportunities. 00:00 Podcast welcome 01:47 Fashion to additive 04:27 Funding and mission 06:52 Blue Origin breakthrough 08:27 Becoming a dev partner 12:19 I3D today scale 15:29 Growing talent academy 17:05 Growth phases and pandemic 20:22 Acquisition and turnkey expansion 22:06 Private equity tipping point 27:43 Private Equity Momentum 28:41 Flow Driven Applications 32:54 Supply Chain Use Cases 35:12 Scaling Production Know How 40:21 One Stop Shop Strategy 43:14 Customers Get Smarter 47:31 Next Wave Breakthroughs 53:03 AI In Additive Manufacturing 57:25 Closing Thanks

    59 min
  7. AI Update in Additive Manufacturing: Design, Process, Workforce and Industry impact

    Mar 4

    AI Update in Additive Manufacturing: Design, Process, Workforce and Industry impact

    Fabian Alefeld hosts Duann Scott on the Editor Snack podcast to discuss how AI is evolving in additive manufacturing, moving from “AI-washing” and impractical text-to-mesh hype toward more capable tools using language models, visual language models, surrogate models, and emerging foundational models. Scott describes testing tools by trying to make them fail and highlights a recent success with the Raven plugin for Rhino/Grasshopper, which generated a parametric VESA mount and tripod adapter from minimal prompts, then iteratively added fillets and an isogrid structure and produced a printable part within hours. They discuss constraints like missing engineering training data and design intent, the promise of AI for toolpath and process optimization (including transfer of parameter knowledge across materials), and the role of the 3MF format in capturing toolpath and metadata to enable richer, searchable datasets. Scott previews CDFAM events in Barcelona, DC, and Tokyo and emphasizes that progress requires significant data work and investment.     00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro   02:18 AI Hype to Real Progress   04:13 Testing AI Design Tools   04:46 Data Gaps and Design Intent   07:15 Two Paths for AI Design   10:15 Raven Grasshopper Breakthrough   13:17 Pushing Parametric Complexity   20:28 Limits of Black Box Optimization   22:40 Toolpath and Material Transfer   26:18 Alloy Discovery and Qualification   28:05 3MF Role Teaser   28:18 3MF Format Overview   29:17 Smarter Toolpath Extensions   32:31 Metadata for AI Training   35:43 Data Ownership and Synthetic Data   39:59 AI Impact on Additive   44:10 Workforce and Reshoring   47:22 What Is CDFAM   49:49 CDFAM Audience and Format   51:43 DC Event and Government   54:05 Wrap Up and Thanks

    57 min
  8. Beyond the Printer: Automation’s Role in the Next Generation of AM

    Jan 27

    Beyond the Printer: Automation’s Role in the Next Generation of AM

    In this episode of the Additive Snack Podcast, host Fabian Alefeld is joined by Oliver Elbert, Head of Additive Manufacturing at Grenzebach, to discuss the pivotal role of automation in scaling additive manufacturing. They delve into Grenzebach’s extensive expertise in industrial automation and its recent ventures into additive manufacturing. The conversation covers the challenges and benefits of automating post-processing tasks, increasing equipment efficiency, and optimizing labor dynamics. They also explore notable projects like the Next Gen AM and the Polyline project, highlighting how automation can significantly enhance production availability and reduce manual intervention. Oliver provides insights into the integration of automated guided vehicles (AGVs), robots, and job exchangers in additive manufacturing, and discusses the future potential of fully automated production environments.   00:00 Introduction to Additive Snack Podcast   00:18 The Challenge of Automating Additive Manufacturing   01:07 Introducing Grenzebach and Oliver Elbert   02:22 History and Evolution of Grenzebach   06:33 Grenzebach’s Entry into Additive Manufacturing   08:31 The Slow Adoption of Automation in Additive Manufacturing   14:34 The Dual Setup Station and Its Impact   19:25 Automation Solutions for Various Industries   23:52 The Future of Automation in Additive Manufacturing   24:48 Challenges and Opportunities in Automation   34:13 The Role of Humanoids in Industrial AM   36:20 Conclusion and Future Outlook

    38 min
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About

Join host Fabian Alefeld and a range of guests as they discuss all things additive manufacturing (AM) and 3D printing news, with interviews and real-world stories to educate and entertain. Each episode, Fabian talks to AM experts, professionals in specialist fields, and 3D printing users from all walks of life to deliver a well-rounded view on the state of AM. Cut through the confusion surrounding polymer and metal additive manufacturing solutions with our digestible, down-to-earth discussions that deliver insights into common mistakes and best practice tips so you can get a clear understanding of AM — layer for layer. Whether you’re curious about 3D printing technology for the aerospace industry, a deep dive into post processing, or applications of injection molding — we leave no spare parts behind. We want to provide you with the additive insight needed to stay laser focused and leverage every opportunity 3D printing materials have to offer. Join us for an Additive Snack and we’ll help you and your business achieve growth and success through the latest developments in AM. No marketing B.S. and no product pitches. Just the education, inspiration and information you and your organization need to drive business growth, brought to you by global AM leader EOS. Get ready to feed your AM knowledge and find your path to success!

Information

  • Creator
    EOS
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    98
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 EOS
  • Show Website
    Additive Snack

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