CERATIZIT Shows 3D Printed Cutting Tools for Aerospace at RAPID 2026

At RAPID+TCT 2026 in Boston, CERATIZIT USA showcased its additive manufacturing capabilities for industrial tooling, specifically 3D printed steel cutting tools and drill bits for aerospace and defense applications. Steve Kuhnle, Global Business Development Specialist for Cutting Tools, highlighted that the company uses metal AM to produce tools with complex internal coolant channels that cannot be machined conventionally, enabling better coolant flow to the cutting edge and reducing redeposit metal on heat-resistant alloys like Inconel. CERATIZIT, which claims to be the largest tungsten producer in the western world, also supplies powder to competitors and operates a carbide recycling plant in Pennsylvania. The company is building out a tech center in Charlotte, North Carolina, slated for completion next spring, which will offer training and part processing for customers.

This announcement fits squarely into the industrial-tooling vertical, where AM is economically important but often media-invisible. CERATIZIT’s approach mirrors the IP lock-in grind pattern: by embedding 3D printed coolant channels into cutting tools, the company creates a customer-specific solution that improves part quality and cycle time, particularly for difficult-to-machine aerospace alloys. The company’s vertical integration—from tungsten mining to finished tool production—gives it a cost and supply chain advantage over pure-play AM service bureaus or tooling shops that must source materials externally. Competitors like Kennametal and Sandvik have also invested in AM for tooling, but CERATIZIT’s focus on solving specific aerospace re-deposit metal problems, combined with its new CTCS245 grade containing ruthenium for heat resistance, positions it as a niche but credible player in the production tooling segment.

For buyers in aerospace and defense, the practical takeaway is that CERATIZIT is not selling AM as a novelty but as a process improvement tool with measurable outcomes—reduced insert failure and better surface finish on Inconel and other superalloys. The company’s next milestone is IMTS this fall, where it will unveil new solid carbide drilling products. The tech center in Charlotte will be the real test of whether CERATIZIT can scale its application engineering beyond one-off customer projects into repeatable, qualified tooling solutions for the aerospace supply chain.