INDIANAPOLIS and HOUSTON, Nov. 11,
2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Würth Industry North
America (WINA) and Baker Hughes announced today a joint
service offering to expand their capabilities to provide advanced
design, digital inventory, and customized 3D printing services to
customers in a range of industrial sectors.
WINA, a subsidiary of Würth Group, the world's largest fastener
distribution company, will collaborate with Baker Hughes on
advanced design and additive manufacturing opportunities across the
oil and gas, renewables, power generation, maritime, automotive,
and aerospace industrial sectors, bringing a new level of scale and
automation to Würth customers' supply chains globally. As an
energy technology company with proven leadership in additive
manufacturing services for oil and gas customers, Baker Hughes will
now gain access to Würth's global customer base with more than
80,000 clients across a host of industries.
"The collaboration with Baker Hughes broadens our offering in 3D
printing and beyond," said Dan Hill,
chief executive officer for WINA. "Our existing inventory programs
gain a level of automation with no infrastructure change, and we
can take our customers' ideas from prototype to small batch
production to mass production at accelerated rates."
NASA is among the first customers to benefit from the joint
service offering. Baker Hughes is adapting and printing a NASA
design using a hybrid of direct energy deposition, an additive
process, and machining to manufacture a part to be used in wind
tunnel testing.
Würth's global sales teams will now offer Baker Hughes' proven
additive manufacturing services to help customers solve advanced
design and manufacturing challenges and 3D print parts on demand.
These expanded services also include access to Baker Hughes'
digital inventory capabilities that transform warehouse shelves
into cloud storage. Through a combination of machine learning
algorithms, past maintenance records, production forecasts, and
other documentation, Baker Hughes can select parts suitable for
additive manufacturing, digitalize these parts, and provide
on-demand ordering using a digital platform.
"The total cost of ownership is astronomical in these
industries," said AJ Strandquist, director of 3D printing for Würth
Industry North America. "There are opportunities to supplement the
traditional supply chain with additive manufactured products to
create a better customer experience. That is our mission
together."
Through digital inventory management, parts can be stored and
produced at hubs closer to operating sites. As the technology
advances, more materials and geometries – both in terms of size and
features – will become printable. Larger volumes of 3D printed
items provide for a higher degree of customization, allowing
customers to reduce supply chain logistics-related emissions by
moving production closer to the point of consumption.
"Now more than ever, industrial companies are looking for
innovative manufacturing solutions to reduce lead times and
eliminate physical inventories, while reducing the carbon footprint
of operations, and we believe additive manufacturing plays an
important role," said Scott Parent,
chief technology officer for Digital Solutions at Baker Hughes. "By
combining our advanced design and additive manufacturing
capabilities with Würth's global customer base, we can expand the
scope and scale of our services outside of oil and gas. We are
excited to can take advantage of this opportunity and transform the
future of work."
About Wurth Industry North America:
Würth Industry
North America is a $1 billion
division of the Würth Group, the world's largest fastener
distribution company. WINA is a strategically aligned collective of
companies: Würth Adams, Würth Des
Moines Bolt, Würth House of Threads, Würth Industry Canada, Würth
Industry de Mexico, Würth Revcar,
Würth Service Supply, Würth Snider, Würth Timberline, Marine
Fasteners, Northern Safety & Industrial, Würth SW Brazil, Würth Van
Horn, and Weinstock Bros.,
consisting of more than 110 locations across North America. Through the pairing of more
than 420,000 parts with a myriad of services, WINA provides custom
solutions for almost every industry. Würth products and services
include engineering assistance, quality control, inventory
management, vending, safety supplies, kitting and assembly,
structural fasteners and MRO/industrial supplies. In addition, WINA
systems ensure security and quality control through superior supply
chain management. The 3D printing and additive services provided by
WINA are complimented globally by the Würth Group's Advanced
Manufacturing and 3D Printing Innovation Lab lead by Pierre Lohrber and Christoph Völcker. For more
information on Würth Industry North America, go to
wurthindustry.com.
About Baker Hughes:
Baker Hughes (NYSE: BKR) is an
energy technology company that provides solutions to energy and
industrial customers worldwide. Built on a century of experience
and with operations in over 120 countries, our innovative
technologies and services are taking energy forward – making it
safer, cleaner and more efficient for people and the planet. Visit
us at bakerhughes.com.
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SOURCE Würth Industry North America