Opportunities and Challenges with Cold Spray in Industry

Gordon is the CEO and Co-founder of Metal Powder Emergence (MPE) Ltd. The company was set up primarily to meet the "supply gap" observed for R&D powders for universities, research institutes and corporations. 

Over 30 years' experience in industries including the Pharmaceutical, Medical, Aerospace and Defence, Automotive (F1, EV sectors), Marine, Oil & gas, Tool industry etc. 

Specialising in supporting the development and supply of spherical gas atomised (GA) powders using production processes including "Cold Crucible" (CCIM), Vacuum Induction (VIGA), Electrode Induction, (EIGA), Plasma (PA) and Plasma Rotation Electrode Process (PREP). 

Spherical powders are optimised for PM applications, focusing on AM, HIP and Metal spray (thermal, HVOF, Coldspray) processes. Powders developed include alloys of Aluminium, Cobalt, Copper, High Entropy, Metallic glasses, Nickel base superalloys, Precious metals, Refractory metals, Steels (stainless, tool), Titanium, Zinc. 

After graduating from the Faculty of Nuclear Sciences and Physical Engineering of Czech Technical University in Prague, Jan joined Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, where he obtained his PhD in mechanical and aerospace engineering. After eight years in Asia, he returned to Europe, eventually joining the Institute of Plasma Physics in Prague in 2017, where he leads the cold spray research group and where he happily plans to retire.

His research interests are thermal spray technologies, in particular cold spray, as well as biomaterials and plasma-facing materials. He is an active member of several international materials-oriented societies and major conference committees and serves as an editor and reviewer to many international journals. He tortures students at two different universities and has supervised over 60 successful PhD and diploma theses.

Neil is a senior electric propulsion (EP) engineer at the European Space Agency, based in Noordwijk, Netherlands. He joined ESA in 2014 where his responsibilities include the flight operations of the Solar Electric Propulsion System (SEPS) on the BeiColombo spacecraft (mission to Mercury) and the specification, development and qualification of the EP system for the next generation of high -delta-V cubesat missions.

Before joining ESA Neil was the EP Chief Engineer at QinetiQ where he led the team developing the T5 and T6 gridded ion engines, associated systems and test facilities employed on the ESA Gravity and Ocean Circulation Explorer (GOCE) and the BepiColombo missions respectively.

Jim Pickles is the Head of Reactor Materials at Tokamak Energy, with 20 years of experience in materials Research and Development, and Product Management.  He spent 7 years developing and managing concentrated solar power projects in Arizona, USA.  He has an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth USA, and a PhD in physics from the Cavendish Laboratory, Cambridge, UK. 

Klaas Rozema is a leading innovator and expert in cold spray technology, with a distinguished career marked by significant contributions to the field. As the founder of Dycomet, Klaas spearheaded advancements in cold spray solutions, bringing cutting-edge technology to over 100 customers across various industries.

Following Titomic’s acquisition of Dycomet, Klaas transitioned to serve as President of the EMEA region, where he continues to drive growth and innovation.In his role at Titomic, Klaas leads the team and activities in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, leveraging his expertise to expand the reach of Titomic’s revolutionary cold spray systems. His leadership and vision ensure that Titomic remains at the forefront of additive manufacturing and advanced repair solutions for mission-critical applications.

Dr Ben Robinson joined TWI as a Project Leader in 2015, becoming a Section Manager of the Surface, Corrosion and Interface Engineering (SCI) team in 2024. Ben’s technical focus is coating systems for improved functionality with experience in thermal spray, cold spray, electroplating and conversion coatings. Ben has worked with TWI Industrial Members to develop and evaluated coating systems across a range of industry sectors including defence, aerospace, renewable energy, Oil & Gas, rail, automotive and nuclear.

Philip attended the University of Sheffield from 2005 until 2009, where he obtained his masters degree in Metallurgy. During his time at University, he spent two summers working at TWI Yorkshire as a summer placement student, working primarily with the laser deposition equipment.

In 2009, Philip enrolled on the Engineering Doctorate scheme with the University of Birmingham, studying crack formation in laser deposited CM247LC. During these four years he worked in the TWI Yorkshire lasers department. 

In 2013, Philip began as a project leader with the surfacing group, working on the cold spray system at TWI Yorkshire.

Dr Dibakor Boruah is a Senior Project Leader at TWI Ltd, Cambridge, UK. Dibakor's journey with TWI began in 2017 through the NSIRC programme, where he pursued his PhD, focusing on the structural integrity of cold spray-deposited Ti6Al4V alloy for repair and additive manufacturing applications. After completing his PhD, Dibakor expanded his expertise at Ghent University in 2020, where he was a leading researcher on multiple collaborative projects related to wire+arc additive manufacturing, funded by the EU and local governments. Returning to TWI's surface engineering team in 2022, Dibakor brought with him over seven years of industry-led research experience in materials engineering and advanced manufacturing. 

At TWI, Dibakor served as the Technical Manager for the EU-funded collaborative project FORGE and currently leads the CSAM ODS projects funded by UKAEA FIP Cycle 2, and the Joint Industry Project: Industrialisation of Cold Spray Repair. In addition, he continues to spearhead and contribute to various projects related to cold spray, thermal spray processes, and materials characterisation.