What Qualities Are Necessary For 3d Printing?

 Introduction

3D printing creates parts by making up items one layer at time. This technique has many advantages over other manufacturing methods (for example CNC cutting) and the main advantages of which are applicable to the industry as a whole will be discussed in this post.

3D Printing is not likely to replace many traditional manufacturing methods yet there are numerous applications where a 3D printer can create a design fast, with high precision, using an actual material.

Understanding the advantages of 3D printing lets designers make better decisions when selecting the right manufacturing method. It also allows the creation of a top-quality product.

Speed

One of the biggest advantages of additive manufacturing is the speed with the speed at which components can be manufactured compared to traditional manufacturing methods. Designs that are complex can be transferred from a CAD model , and printed within a matter of hours. The benefit of this is the rapid verification and development of ideas for design.

Where in the past it could have taken some days to get an initial prototype, additive manufacturing places a model to the designer within a few hours. While increasingly industrial additive manufacturing machines are slower to print and process an item, the capacity to manufacture functional products in small to mid-sized quantities offers a huge time-saving advantage when compared with traditional manufacturing techniques (often the lead time on an injection molding die on its own could take weeks).

Single step manufacturing

One of the main challenges for designers is making an item as efficiently as it is feasible. Most parts require a large amount of manufacturing steps to be produce by traditional technologies. The sequence of these steps can affect the quality and production of the product.

Think about a custom-designed steel bracket made by traditional methods of manufacturing:

Like additive manufacturing, the process begins with a CAD design. Once the design is finalized, fabrication begins with first cutting the steel profiles to size. The profiles are then clamped into positions and welded one at each time to create the bracket. Sometimes, a custom jig will need to be made up in order to make sure that all parts are aligned correctly. The welds are then polished to give a smooth surface finish. After that, holes are made so the bracket can be hung to the wall. Finally, the bracket is coated, primed, and sandblasted to improve its appearance.

Additive manufacturing machines can finish a building in a single step, with zero interaction with an machine operating the construction stage. When it is determined that the CAD design is finished it can be transferred to the machine and printed in just only a few hours.

The ability to produce parts in one process greatly reduces the dependence on various manufacturing processes (machining welding, machining, painting) and allows the designer more influence over what is produced.

Cost

The costs of manufacturing is broken down into 3 categories; machine operating costs, material cost and labour costs.

Operating costs for machines:

A majority of desktop 3D printers require exactly the same power source as a laptop computer. Industrial additive manufacturing techniques use a high amount of energy to produce only one part. However, the ability to create complex geometries in one step leads to higher efficiency and the speed of turnaround. The operating costs of machines are usually the least significant factor in the total cost of manufacturing.

Material costs:

The material cost for additive manufacturing varies greatly based on technology. Desktop FDM printers employ filament coils, which cost about $25 per kg, while SLA printing requires resin that retails around $150 per liter. The wide range of available materials for additive manufacturing makes making a an analysis of traditional manufacturing difficult. Nylon powder used in SLS costs about $70 per kg, while comparable nylon pellets used in injection molding can be purchased for just $2-$5 per kilogram. Material costs are the biggest factor in the price of a product made by additive manufacturing.

Costs of labor:

One of the primary benefits for 3D printing is the cost-effectiveness of labor. In addition to post-processing, most 3D printers just require an operator to push one button. The machine then follows a completely automated process to create the item. As compared to traditional manufacturing which requires highly skilled machinists as well as operators are usually needed, the costs of labor for a 3D printer are virtually none.

Additive manufacturing at low volumes is priced very competitively as compared with traditional manufacturing. To make prototypes to test form and fit, it is considerably less expensive than other manufacturing techniques (e.g. injection molding) and often is efficient in the manufacture of unique functional components. Traditional manufacturing techniques are more efficient when the volume of production grows, and the high setup costs are justified by the huge volumes of production.

Risk mitigation

Making a mistake on a prototype will cost the designer both time and money. Even minor changes to the mold or manufacturing process may have a large financial impact.

It is possible to validate a design by printing a prototype that is ready for production prior to investing in costly machinery for production (e.g. molds , tooling, and Jigs) can reduce the risk involved in this prototyping procedure. This aids in building confidence in the design prior to making the huge investment required for the mass production level.

Complexity and design freedom

The restrictions that are imposed by traditional manufacturing on what products can be made are typically not relevant for additive manufacturing. Since components are constructed by layer Design requirements such as draft angles undercuts and tool access are not needed in the case of designing parts that are 3D printed

While there are some restrictions regarding the size of features that can be produced accurately The majority of the limitations of additive manufacturing concern the optimal orientation of a print to reduce support dependency and the likelihood of printing failure. This provides designers with a huge variety of design options and permits the simple creation of highly complex geometries.

Customization

Not just is it true that 3D printing allow more design freedom, but it can also allow for complete customization of designs. Because current additive manufacturing techniques excel in creating single parts one at an time, they're perfectly suitable for single-time production.

This idea has been accepted by the medical and dental industry to produce custom prosthetics, implants, as well as dental tools. From high-level sporting gear which is custom-made to perfectly fit the athlete to custom sunglasses and fashion accessories, additive manufacturing allows low-cost single-run production of customized components.