Cretex Medical Presents at AMUG Conference

Cretex Medical | rms Presents at the 2025 Additive Manufacturing Users Group (AMUG) Conference

The conference is an opportunity for attendees to learn about advancements in additive manufacturing, network with other industry professionals, and experience hands-on workshops. 

April 7, 2025

Cretex Medical | rms Manufacturing Engineer II, Sloan Volkman, Presents at AMUG Conference in Chicago, IL.

The Additive Manufacturing Users Group (AMUG) 2025 Conference was recently held in Chicago, IL. AMUG is committed to educating and advancing the use of additive manufacturing (AM) technology. The conference offers attendees the opportunity to learn about the latest advancements in AM, connect with industry professionals, and participate in hands-on workshops.

This year’s conference featured a wide range of expert-led presentations, including one from our very own Sloan Volkman, Manufacturing Engineer II at Cretex Medical | rms. Sloan presented on the topic “Post-Processing AM Surgical Instruments to Compete with Traditional Manufacturing.” His session was extremely well received and stood out as the most well-attended presentation in the healthcare track.

About Sloan's Presentation

With advances in metal additive manufacturing, mass finishing, and 3D modeling, there are now greater opportunities to design surgical instruments with more organic and ergonomic features—while remaining cost-competitive with traditional manufacturing methods.

Historically, additive manufacturing (AM) has not been viewed as suitable for producing finished goods in applications requiring smooth, uniform surfaces and tight tolerances. Traditional manufacturing methods such as milling, casting, or metal injection molding have long been the default approach to instrument design. While cost-effective, these methods come with limitations in achieving both the desired finish and cost targets.

One of the major advantages of AM for handheld surgical instruments is the ability to integrate ergonomic and organic design elements without significantly impacting part cost. Over the past few years, Cretex Medical | rms has developed a refined process that takes parts printed using laser powder bed fusion and finishes them to meet or exceed current industry standards. This has been accomplished through a strategic blend of additive manufacturing, traditional machining, and mass finishing—resulting in parts with the dimensional accuracy and visual quality typically associated with milling, but at a lower cost.

Sloan’s presentation explored this journey to success and highlighted key takeaways from producing complex parts with strict dimensional and visual requirements.

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