Oberg Industries and Swanson School of Engineering Extend Additive Manufacturing Research Partnership

Article by Paul Kovach (August 28, 2018) … After a successful two-year inaugural collaboration, representatives from Oberg Industries and the University of Pittsburgh’s Swanson School of Engineering have agreed to extend their research partnership. Established in 2016, the agreement capitalizes on the Swanson School’s faculty expertise in computational modeling and design optimization with Oberg expertise in complex tooling and precision machined or stamped metal components.

With the renewed association, Oberg will continue to provide full-time employees in the Swanson School’s ANSYS Additive Manufacturing Research Laboratory (AMRL) to provide technical expertise to faculty and students while also engaging in corporate outreach for testing, design and prototyping. Oberg will promote the partnership to its customer partners to broaden corporate activity at Pitt while maintaining priority industrial access for its education, training, prototyping, testing, design and production uses.

“Oberg was one of our first corporate partners in additive manufacturing and we are excited to continue this relationship,” said David Vorp, associate dean for research. “Our collaboration has enabled our faculty and students not only take full advantage of the AMRL capabilities but also have helped us attract outside funding.” 

Albert To, associate professor of mechanical engineering and materials science and one of Pitt’s AM researchers, added that Oberg was instrumental in helping to found the Swanson School’s Modeling & Optimization Simulation Tools for Additive Manufacturing (MOST-AM) Consortium.

“MOST-AM has greatly helped us expand our reach to industry leaders in additive manufacturing, creating a win-win for our research and company growth,” Dr. To said. “My colleagues and I are grateful to Oberg Industries for being an inaugural partner and allowing us to better explore the potential for additive manufacturing.” 

“Our partnership with the University and the AMRL continues to drive innovation and value creation for our customer partners,” said David L. Bonvenuto, CEO of Oberg. “Teams from the University and Oberg are working together to help our customers design products that leverage the latest additive technology with the ability to do prototype builds, production and post-processing at the AMRL and Oberg.”

Since 2014, additive manufacturing researchers at the Swanson School have attracted more than $10 million in grants from America Makes, National Energy Technology Laboratory, National Science Foundation, and Research for Advanced Manufacturing in Pennsylvania. 

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About Oberg Industries
Headquartered just north of Pittsburgh, Pa., Oberg Industries is a diversified manufacturer with over 900 employees worldwide specializing in the production of advanced, precision machined or stamped metal components and precision tooling. With $150 million in sales, Oberg’s global manufacturing footprint includes operations in Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Costa Rica. Each manufacturing facility is ISO certified and operates under one or more of the following standards: ISO 9001:2015, ISO 13485:2003, and AS 9100:2009 Rev. D. Oberg is a strategic contract manufacturing partner for companies in the Aerospace, Automotive, Consumer/Industrial Products, Defense, Energy, Construction and Housing, Medical Device, Metal Packaging and Munitions markets. The company’s website is www.Oberg.com.

8/28/2018

Contact: Paul Kovach