Innovative Non-Waste-Wax-Formwork for the Fabrication of High-Precision Machine Frames made of UHPC

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Within the priority program 1542 'lightweight concrete structures' of the German Research Foundation DFG the Institute of Structural Design (ITE) and the Institute of Machine Tools and Production Technology (IWF) of the Technical University Braunschweig had worked together on the project 'Non-Waste-Wax-Formwork: novel precise formwork-technology on basis of 100% recyclable industrial wax for the fabrication of geometrically complex concrete elements'. By reaching the objectives of this project and successfully defining the technical basics for the Non-Waste-Wax-Formwork-Technology it is now possible to fabricate especially UHPC-building elements (ultra-high-performance-concrete) in nearly any geometrical form with adjustable surface properties, extremely small curvature and sharp edges in a sustainable process. In this process a precision of a tenth of a millimeter can be achieved, which even in the field of mechanical engineering for machine frames is considered very high. Another advantage of the Non-Waste-Wax-Formwork-Technology is the closed-material-loop whereby the technology is not only economically but also ecologically interesting. The total avoidance of waste products in the production process is reached by the recycling (melting down) of the wax formwork material. Particularly for the high-performance material UHPC, Non-Waste-Wax-Formwork-Technology offers the opportunity not only for the building industry but also for novel application areas in the field of mechanical engineering such as the production of high precision machine frames. Together with two industry partners, the Non-Waste-Wax-Formwork-Technology shall be developed further to an industrial production process of high-precision UHPC machine frames. Therefore it needs to be optimized regarding its robustness, feasibility and profitability within the industrial application. The aim of the project is to significantly reduce the costs for the formwork of UHPC machine frames - especially for prototypes and small series - and thus to manufacture more efficient formwork systems and UHPC machine components which can be offered on the market. After the knowledge transfer project, a technology is available to the industry partners, which extends the possible shape spectrum, increases the manufacturing speed and precision, and considerably reduces the manual processing work, by closing the digital production chain from planning, dimensioning to CNC-controlled formwork construction. As a result, the core business for the fabrication of machine frames can be enlarged and beyond this extended by numerous other machine components, e.g. press molds, forming tools and measuring stands.