3D PRINTING-AM
The potential of 3D Printing - also
known as Additive Manufacturing
- seems all but boundless, as its
in uence spreads far and wide
Less waste – only material needed is
used and hence there is less chance of
materials being wasted
Few constraints – in the CAD software,
one can dream up just about anything,
and design the same and create it with
additive manufacturing.
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DISADVANTAGES
Production cost is high – with the
use of techniques other than additive
manufacturing, parts can be made faster
and hence the extra time involved in AM
can lead to higher costs. Also, there is
the expensive initial investment in additive
manufacturing machines themselves
Discontinuous production process –
parts can only be printed one at a time,
excluding economies of scale
Requires post-processing – the
surface nish and dimensional accuracy
are generally of lower quality than other
manufacturing methods
Slow build rates – some printers lay
down material at a speed of one to ve
cubic inches per hour. Depending on
the part needed, other manufacturing
processes may well exceed this
Effort in application design and setting
process parameters – material design
requires vast knowledge and specialist
additive manufacturing machinery is
necessary to make quality parts
Poor mechanical properties – layering
and multiple interfaces can cause defects
in the product.
The message is quite clear: you must
cut your coat according to your cloth.
Very much at the centre of things in
guiding those planning to take the AM
path is the Knowledge Transfer Network
(https://ktn-uk.co.uk/interests/additivemanufacturing).
Its Additive Manufacturing
Special Interest Group (AM SIG) – together
with British Standards Institution, FDM
Digital Solutions, Croft Additive and
Innovate UK – offers expert guidance on
AM to support SMEs (small-to-medium
enterprises) in gaining an understanding
of AM processes, so they can assess
whether AM is the right choice or not,
based on their speci c requirements.
So, what does the guidance provide?
Most importantly, it outlines the key
questions that businesses need to
answer to help feed into their design,
material selection, production run and to
identify opportunities that add value (eg,
improved performance, lightweighting and
supply chain value) that are critical for AM
to deliver bene ts to the business.
FLYING HIGH
One instance of a company working
closely with the KTN’s AM SIG and
literally ying high on the strength
and performance of AM is Clogworks
Technologies. Based in West Yorkshire,
it specialises in the design and
manufacture of unmanned aerial vehicles
(drones). Co-founder Peter Opdam has
a real passion for the technology and
credits 3D printing for being instrumental
in the evolution of the company’s
trademarked ‘Dark Matter’ drones.
“I love drones, because of the
technology involved and the huge
potential when it comes to applications
for these systems,” he enthuses.
“Really, it’s just a toyshop for me. When I
look at one of my drones airborne, what I
see is a piece of ying code. I take great
satisfaction from what I do – solving
problems, and designing and creating
new parts, components and systems.
Using 3D printing, I can get exactly what
I want. I nd it rewarding to be able
to design something that I can hold
in my hand afterwards – and the rapid
turnaround makes life much easier.”
How does he feel drone technology
will evolve? “I always think of the drones
we see now as the micro computers that
we saw twenty to thirty years ago. It is
exactly the same feeling and sensation
to me. There are so many possibilities
ahead,” enthuses Opdam.
See page 18 for our exclusive interview
with Clogworks Technologies’ Peter Opdam
on the vital engineering design elements
that go into the creation of his ‘Dark
Matter’ drones.
MANY-LAYERED TECHNOLOGY
Although the media, in particular, likes to use the term ‘3D Printing’ as a synonym for all additive
manufacturing processes, there are actually lots of individual processes that vary in their method
of layer manufacturing.
As the Additive Manufacturing Research Group at Loughborough University points out: “Individual
processes will differ, depending on the material and machine technology used. Hence, in 2010,
the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) group ‘ASTM F42 – Additive Manufacturing’,
formulated a set of standards that classify the range of Additive Manufacturing processes into
seven categories.”
These categories include vat polymerisation, which uses a vat of liquid photopolymer resin, out
of which the model is constructed layer by layer, and fuse deposition modelling (FDM), a common
material extrusion process trademarked by the company Stratasys. Here, material is drawn through
a nozzle, where it is heated and then deposited layer by layer. The nozzle can move horizontally,
while a platform moves up and down vertically after each new layer is deposited.
See https://www.lboro.ac.uk/research/amrg/about/the7categoriesofadditivemanufacturing
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