Additive Manufacturing for High-Performance Components: When to Print, When to Machine

A shop foreman at a Tier 1 automotive supplier in Michigan was staring at a problem that had plagued the operation for three years. A hydraulic manifold block used in transmission assemblies required a complex internal geometry: six nested galleries with serpentine cooling passages that crisscrossed the part to manage thermal stress during operation. Machining the part meant starting with a solid aluminum billet, then using a five-axis mill with specialized core drills to carve out those passages. It took 14 hours of machine time per unit. Material waste was brutal: roughly 68 percent of the billet ended up as chips on the floor. Lead time from order to shipment was four weeks. One passage miscalibration during drilling meant scrapping the part and starting over. The cost per unit was $