Protolabs, which claims to be the world’s fastest digital manufacturer of custom prototypes and low-volume production parts, has released investment on a £5m expansion plan at its European headquarters in Telford.

The company, which works with thousands of product designers and engineers across Europe, is building a bespoke 50,000 sq ft extension to its Halesfield facility. Protolabs’ new extension will house at least 50 additional CNC machines and a further 20 additional injection moulding presses. Over the course of the next 2 years, the investment will also create 60 skilled jobs.
For further information www.protolabs.co.uk

US-based machining centre and CNC lathe manufacturer Hurco has moved the subsidiary serving the UK and Irish markets, Hurco Europe Ltd, to different premises on the Cressex Industrial Estate in High Wycombe.

Covering an area of 26,000 sq ft, the building is double the size of the previous facility. The official opening of the new headquarters, showroom and technical centre was marked by an open day for customers last month, at which 11 of the latest Hurco models were demonstrated under power. The president of Hurco Companies Inc, Greg Volovic, travelled from Indianapolis to formally open the building.
For further information www.hurco.co.uk

Machine-tool supplier, the Engineering Technology Group (ETG), celebrated its 25th birthday in style recently, when it showcased its latest manufacturing technologies.

ETG, which recently acquired HK Technologies, threw open the doors of its Wellesbourne headquarters to give over 450 industry delegates the latest insight into the world of turnkey solutions, with two new product launches, a UK debut for the Nakamura MX100 and an in-depth look at the latest additive manufacturing and wire EDM machines. Orders for four new CNC machines were taken during the two-day event.
For further information www.engtechgroup.com

Wednesbury-based aluminium foundry Alucast has completed a £2.25m investment drive by upgrading its casting capability and opening a new 7000 sq ft machine shop to support the growing demand of its automotive customer base for lightweight, complex components.

Following the investment, the company can now call upon a total of 20 CNC machines at any one time, with five of those being five-axis machining centres. This latest equipment, which has been supplied by the Engineering Technology Group (ETG), delivers a 30% increase in capacity to take on up to £3m of new projects.
For further information www.alucast.co.uk

LK Metrology is set to unveil the Altera C ceramic-bridge CMM range from stand H4 at Advanced Engineering.

Using the latest metrology software, multi-sensor technology and CMM design, the compact systems are intended for demanding quality control applications. Built at the company’s factory near Derby, Altera C machines are available in three sizes – 7.7.5, 10.7.5 and 10.7.7 – their respective X, Y and Z-axis movements being 700 x 650 x 500 mm, 1000 x 650 x 500 mm and 1000 x 650 x 650 mm.
For further information www.lkmetrology.com