3D Printing – Revolutionizing the product engineering

3D Printing – Revolutionizing the product engineering makenica.com/3d-printing-revolutionizing-the-product-engineering April 5, 2021

3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, is a cutting-edge manufacturing technique that enables you to make a three-dimensional physical structure from a digital model. A 3D printer is essentially a machine that can take a digital 3D print online model and create a three-dimensional object layer by layer in compliance with the digital file.

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With hospitals overflowing with COVID-19 patients and the world's stock of personal protective equipment (PPE) and medical supplies dwindling, the world turned to technology to address the shortage.

Indeed, many healthcare facilities have taken to 3D printing services to provide their employees with the much-needed safety equipment and parts to repair their ventilators.

Big companies, entrepreneurs, and even high school students with 3D printers came forward to answer the call.

Millions of PPE and ventilator pieces have been delivered to hospitals on the frontlines of this dangerous battle thanks to 3D printing services. And that is just the beginning of what 3D printing is capable of.

What exactly are 3D printers?

In short, 3D printers use computer-aided design (CAD) to make 3D structures out of various materials such as molten plastic or powders. No, they aren't like the magical boxes used in sci-fi movies.

Instead, the printers, which work in a manner comparable to conventional 2D inkjet printers, use a layering technique to construct the desired object. They start from the bottom up, piling on layer after layer until the object is exactly as anticipated.

What can be printed on these printers is exceptionally versatile. Plastics can be used to print rigid materials such as sunglasses. They can also use a blended rubber/plastic powder to make lightweight items such as phone cases and bike handles. Some 3D printers can also print with carbon fibre and metallic powders to create incredibly durable consumer goods.

What is the significance of 3D printers in the future?

As previously said, 3D printers are very versatile, not just in terms of the tools they use but also in terms of what they can print. They are also highly reliable and quick, making them a promising tool for the future of manufacturing. Most 3D printers are also used for what is known as rapid prototyping.

Companies worldwide are now using 3D printers to produce designs in a matter of hours, rather than spending months and potentially millions of dollars on R&D. In reality; some companies say that 3D printers allow prototyping ten times quicker and five times cheaper than conventional R&D processes.

3D printers will play a part in nearly any industry. They are not only used for prototyping.

Many 3D printers are being used to print finished goods. 3D printers are being used in healthcare to produce parts to repair faulty ventilators for the COVID-19 epidemic. The building industry is currently using this futuristic printing process to print whole houses.

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Schools worldwide use 3D printers to introduce hands-on technology into the classroom by printing three-dimensional dinosaur fossils and robotics parts. Because of its adaptability and flexibility, 3D printing in India is an instant game-changer in any industry.

Types of 3D Printing in engineering Technologies for 3D printing services have been used for decades. After the patent expired in 2009, a consumer-friendly method of 3D printing known as FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling) became commercially available.

This resulted in a surge in the availability of low-cost 3D printing machines, and FDM is still the most widely used form of 3D printing services today. However, there are several methods of 3D printing in India that are used in various fields.

Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) FDM employs a simple nozzle to remove the plastic filament, which then cools and solidifies into the 3D printed form. This is the most affordable version of 3D printing, and it is the process used for the vast majority of desktop 3D printers. Since it only requires a box, a nozzle, and a device to convert digital 3D model data into movement, this type of printer can be made in various sizes.

Stereolithography (SLA) Technically, the first method of 3D printing was developed in the 1980s. SLA 3D Printing uses a laser to harden a reactive liquid resin quickly. Layer by layer, the object is extracted from a vat of this liquid. SLA can print in much greater detail than FDM, but the printing process is still much more complicated and costly.

Pros and Cons of 3D Printing in Engineering 3D printing in India has many significant benefits over conventional machining and injection moulding. However, 3D printing in India, like any other form of processing, has disadvantages. As always, remember the expected use of your component as this may decide if 3D printing services or conventional manufacturing methods are better for you.

We've broken down a list of 3D printing's pros and cons and listed each briefly to help you decide if 3D printing in Bangalore is the right option for producing your pieces.

1. Design Freedom 3D printing Bangalore can produce complex geometry that machining and injection moulding can struggle with or simply cannot create. Complex geometry is often difficult to build using conventional techniques, and certain regions can be impossible to machine or extract from a mould.

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However, through 3D printing in Bangalore, the additive process and the use of support material allow for developing any form of geometry. You will be able to simplify the designs by replacing an assembly with a single 3D printed part.

2. Prototyping in a Short Time Prototypes can be produced very quickly using 3D printing in Bangalore. This dramatically accelerates the design process because components can be obtained within hours or a day, and the subsequent design revision can begin.

Furthermore, with each design change, a new prototype can be created easily and cheaply using 3D printing in India instead of the lengthy and costly process of machining the prototype.

3. On-Demand Print Inventory can take too much space, particularly if you don't use the component as often as you should. To stop making an overstocked and expensive inventory, 3D printing in Bangalore helps you print on demand.

Printing on demand adheres to the Just in Time inventory management process, but instead of producing in bulk, it frees up inventory space and financial assets. Since 3D printing designs are stored as CAD and STL files, you can effectively hold a virtual library of all your parts and print them only when needed and in the exact volume required.

Furthermore, when you haven't invested in tooling or inventory, you can change the design at absolutely no expense at any moment. This also prevents you from having the excess faulty or faulty product.

4. Parts that are heavier and lighter Plastic is the primary material used in 3D printing in Bangalore and can seem inferior to steel and aluminium. However, there are many benefits of using plastic instead of metal.

These plastics can act as lighter counterparts to metals. Many manufacturers have moved to use 3D printed parts in their vehicles, making them smaller and hence more fuelefficient.

In certain situations, plastic can be used in place of metal to achieve the same optimal results for your component. As a result, it might be worthwhile to examine your part to determine whether you still need to manufacture it in metal at all.

5. Reducing Waste 3D printing is an additive manufacturing method. This indicates that only the materials used to manufacture the component are used. Compared to machining, which involves removing large chunks of non-recyclable material to create the part, 3D printing services generate significantly less waste.

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As a result, the material cost of manufacturing is minimized, and you are only paying for what you require.

6. Quickness As previously said, 3D printing in Bangalore is high-speed and will print parts in just hours, depending on the size and complexity of the component. When the component is being machined or a mould is being cut for injection moulding, you may be multiple steps ahead of 3D printing in Bangalore.

7. Low-Cost-Of-Operation Although a 3D printing project's actual cost can vary based on several factors, 3D printing is expected to be more cost-effective overall. There is no additional time or resources wasted on several machines for various production phases since one machine does all of the work for 3D printing's single-phase manufacturing process.

Besides, unlike conventional production processes, which might necessitate an operator's presence to remove pick-outs or transfer pieces to a new unit, 3D printers may be set to print and then left alone for hours until the build is completed. This lowers labour costs since a single operator can work several machines without supervision.

Finally, while 3D printers are costly, you do not need to purchase one. This big purchase can be prevented by contracting your 3D printing project to a 3D printing service provider. You can be assured that the project is in expert engineers' care and is completed under your budget.

8. Accessibility If 3D printing becomes more common, its usability expands, which means you can always find a local or nearby servicer if you want to outsource your 3D printing. Since many conventional production processes are still manufactured in China, this would most likely save you time and money.

9. Environmentally Sustainable Since 3D printing is a newer technique with little testing, determining how environmentally safe it is can be challenging.

However, we know that, in addition to fuel efficiency and waste avoidance, 3D printing can be more environmentally sustainable than most other production processes because component size can be modified to conserve material and resources.

Cons 1. Limited Materials

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3D printing isn't yet flexible enough to work on a wide variety of materials. 3D printing mostly manufactures components in a small range of plastics with differing mechanical properties. Few 3D printers can work with metal, but the range is small since not all metal or plastic can be temperature regulated enough for printing yet.

Furthermore, most 3D printing materials are neither recyclable nor food safe, though FDM can achieve some degree of food-safe 3D printing.

2. Limited Build Volume Unlike mills and injection mould presses, the vast majority of 3D printers, including commercial quality printers, have small build chambers. Every component bigger than the build chamber of a printer will have to be broken into parts and fused in postproduction. This will escalate prices because it will take time to print the part, necessitating more manual labour.

3. Post-Processing Larger pieces are not the only ones that will benefit from post-processing. Instead, in addition to larger parts needing post-processing assembly, most 3D parts usually need some form of post-processing clean up to remove support material and smooth the surface finish.

Waterjetting, sanding, a chemical soak and rinse, air or heat dry, assembling, and other methods can be used. The amount of post-processing needed for a part essentially depends on the 3D printing equipment used in manufacturing, the part's size, and the intended use. Regardless, keep in mind that while 3D printing can generate parts easily, post-processing can be time-consuming.

4. Huge Volumes If you need a vast number of pieces, say more than a few hundred, 3D printing is not the safest manufacturing tool. When producing in large quantities, injection moulding the part may be the most cost-effective option.

Although the initial expenditure for injection moulding can be much higher than for 3D printing, the cost per device becomes considerably lower when processing in large quantities. The cost of 3D printing remains constant.

5. Part Structure Parts are printed in layers that bind to one another throughout the process of additive manufacturing. Unfortunately, the layers can split under some stress or part orientation, causing the part to break. This is a more severe issue for FDM than for other 3D printing technologies.

Polyjet and Multijet components are solid, but their materials are brittle. To entirely escape layer delamination, such as for parts exposed to a lot of stress, injection moulding can be more desirable because it creates homogeneous parts.

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3D Printing at Makenica We specialize in 3D printing for industrial applications at Makenica. If you're unsure about which 3D printing process to use for your part's production, our professional engineers will assist you in selecting the best method for your needs. We will make suggestions to get you on the right track to more productive development. Call us today for more information.

Read More : Injection Molding – Design tips and Design Rules – Preventing Flaws

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