AM Rudder Component Wins Sailing Gold at Olympics

The metal AM sailboat rudder suspension. (Courtesy Fehrmann Alloys)

A boat equipped with a metal additive manufactured (AM) aluminum alloy rudder suspension helped Australia win a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics. The parts exhibited good strength, high ductility, and corrosion resistance, and the parts were required to have the same mechanical properties as their cast counterparts. The aluminum alloy selected can be used for metal AM, sand casting, pressure casting and mold casting, with the mechanical properties of the material said to remain very similar in all processes.