Case Study: Aanderaa Data Instruments AS achieves cost-effective, durable low-volume buoy housings with Materialise

Housings for offshore equipment in a small series

Aanderaa Data Instruments AS, a Bergen-based maker of environmental monitoring instruments, needed a small production run of two-part housings for a 30 cm AIS marker buoy that must survive 50 m helicopter drops, salt water and –30 to +50 °C conditions. Because Aanderaa only sells about 40 of these high-end buoys a year, conventional tooling (e.g., aluminium moulds) would have imposed prohibitively high up-front costs. Materialise stepped in with its low-volume manufacturing services and technical consultancy, recommending additive and casting technologies tailored to end-use requirements.

Materialise prototyped the design with FDM, produced an SL master and silicone moulds for vacuum casting, and helped Aanderaa select LMPU1, a high-impact polyurethane that met impact, sealing and temperature specs. Materialise delivered a test series and the first production run of 14 buoys, with silicone moulds able to cast up to 30 parts, eliminating expensive tooling, cutting per-part costs and enabling quick reorders. The result: a functional, salt-water–resistant product brought to market rapidly and cost-effectively while preserving assembly fit and durability.

Aanderaa Data Instruments AS

Georg Nygård

Aanderaa Data Instruments AS