Due to its rapid development, metal 3D printing technology has also appeared in component manufacturing. One of the main application areas is the production of customized parts, where complex geometries with a smaller number of pieces can be produced with a shorter lead time.

As a result, the BME Formula Racing Team (FRT) also needed to use more modern solutions to develop metallic parts for its Formula Student racing car. During the collaboration between the BME FRT team and the Laser and Additive Technologies research group of the department, a methodology was developed for the applicability of metal additive manufacturing, ranging from component selection, generative design and metal 3D printing process steps until targeted testing. It will allow us to develop more advanced metallic parts in the future. As a further result of the research, we applied the new methodology to four rocker components in the suspension system of the racing car and developed a component that better met the requirements and provided the team with a competitive advantage. The rockers in the suspension have been developed in a shorter time with 40% less weight per component, three times more rigidity and load-bearing capacity. The developed methodology can be further applied to other components to increase competitiveness further.