The Rapid Product Development Association of South Africa (RAPDASA) will hold its 16th Annual International Conference from 4 to 6 November 2015. The conference will be hosted by Aerosud ITC and the CSIR, on behalf of RAPDASA.

Additive Manufacturing (AM), better known as “3D Printing”, has matured from a prototyping technology into a fully-fledged manufacturing technology. AM products are increasingly being used as final products in the aerospace, automotive, medical, consumer product and other industries. Internationally, unprecedented innovation has been seen in the field of AM and South Africa is certainly contributing to the advancement of AM as a manufacturing technology.

The conference theme
Additive Manufacturing Transforming Ideas into Business is aimed at focusing on how Additive Manufacturing is impacting on business and industry. The conference will offer participants the opportunity to:

• Gain exposure to the latest developments in the field of AM
• Share knowledge and ideas through presentations and technical discussions
• Network with experts from industry, R&D institutions, academia and government
• Gain firsthand knowledge of the latest AM technology through the conference exhibition

Day 1 of the conference will focus on a celebration of AM innovation in industry and will see a selected line-up of makers, inventors and users in the field of Additive Manufacturing. This event, the SA Additive Manufacturing Innovation showcase, will allow inventors to interface with industry, universities and funding agencies. The aim is to showcase technology and spark business creation. Day one will end with a visit to the South African developed “Aeroswift” machine.

Additive Manufacturing has an enormous application base and as such, the conference will cover sectors such as aerospace, medical and bio-medical, automotive, sport & leisure, architecture, creative industries, consumer goods and many more.

Apart from these, papers will be presented on topics covering all aspects of the rapid product development chain, such as AM business development, new application areas in AM, impact of AM on the intellectual property environment, design for AM, reverse engineering, simulation and modeling, process monitoring and control, material evaluation and selection, post processing and qualification, material / process development and product development.

Conference package
The conference will be hosted in Pretoria, the beautiful capital of South Africa, at Roodevallei, situated on the banks of the Pienaar’s River in the Gauteng province. The conference fee will be ZAR 3750 for delegates and ZAR 2500 for students which will include:

• 3 days full conference participation
• Lunch and refreshments (tea/coffee breaks)
• Cocktail function
• Gala dinner
• Aeroswift site visit

Limited on-site accommodation is available at ZAR 1100 pppn (single) including bed and breakfast.

Online registration is essential at www.rapdasa.org. Early bird registrations (before July 3rd 2015) will receive a 10% discount on the conference fee.