Hyundai and Kia Open a 3D Printing Hub at Namyang

Hyundai Motor Group officially opened an Additive Manufacturing Solution Center at its Namyang R&D campus in Hwaseong, South Korea. The facility brings together six different additive manufacturing processes spread across both metal and polymer, marking the first time the automaker has consolidated AM work into a single dedicated site.

Why now, after 30 years

Hyundai has used 3D printing since 1996, but a formal solution center is new. The timing is not random. Supply uncertainty for tooling materials and persistent production delays have pushed automakers to treat in-house AM as a risk mitigation tool rather than a research curiosity. If a tool breaks or a spare part is stuck on a delayed shipment, having a print farm on campus changes the math.

Hanwoo On, senior manager of the Additive Manufacturing Solutions Team at Hyundai Motor Group, put it plainly: the company is rapidly internalizing AM across vehicle components, equipment consumables, and manufacturing tools.

What is actually in the center

The publicly available details list metal and polymer systems, including directed energy deposition and wire arc additive manufacturing for metal, alongside vat photopolymerization and other polymer processes. The breadth matters because automakers need different materials for different jobs. Metal AM handles tooling inserts and lightweight structural parts. Polymer systems cover jigs, fixtures, and end-use interior components.

On-site CNC machining capability also means parts can move from print to finished dimension without leaving the building. That closes the loop on workflow delays, which is exactly the problem Hyundai is trying to solve.

The automotive AM context

Automotive 3D printing is not new, but its role is shifting. BMW, Ford, and Toyota have all expanded AM tooling programs in recent years. Stratasys, Markforged, and EOS have all pushed automotive-specific material packages. What makes Hyundai's move notable is the scale of the Namyang campus: over 3 million square feet and more than 10,000 workers. A dedicated AM center at that size signals that additive is moving from pilot projects to daily operations.

What to watch next

The real test will be output volume and part qualification. Automakers can print tooling fast, but they cannot install printed parts on production cars without crash and durability validation. If Hyundai publishes case studies with part numbers and cycle-time reductions, that will be the signal that AM has moved from marketing to manufacturing. For now, the Namyang AMSC is a clear bet that in-house additive is no longer optional for a global automaker.