3D Printing

[tech2101]

I have been doing some research on this and was wanting to see if anyone else would like to discuss. A friend of mine who is an executive in the freight business is worried that this technology could impact his business over time.

But what if you could make that replacement part yourself?

Welcome to 3D printing. A vessel’s computers may one day have a
 database of 3-Dimensional CAD (Computer Aided Design) images of each and every part on the ship, from nuts to bolts, all the way up to complex engine parts. If any of these should fail, the printer could have a suitable, made-to-spec replacement in a matter of minutes to hours.

“3D printing has the potential to change everything” says a former ship engineer. First used in the late 1980′s, this technology has been called Rapid Manufacturing, a term coined by inventor S. Scott Crump who later went on to start Stratasys [NASDAQ:SSYS] 
 I has also been called additive manufacturing or stereolithography, more complicated terms for similar technology created at about the same time by 3D Systems [NYSEDD] founder Charles ‘Chuck’ Hull. While both companies have traded publicly for a decade or more, the technology has gained traction in recent years and has launched both companies into an organic growth spurt, prompting acquisitions and strong numbers, with little to no debt. While these two companies are the leaders in market cap, the entire publicly traded market cap for 3D printing companies is comparatively small, roughly 2 Billion USD. And many companies that work in this space are still privately held.

Today, 3D Printers have evolved to make a variety of objects using a laser or extruder (the material output part of the printer, best described as a futuristic hot glue gun) that move along an X, Y and Z axis to build an object in three dimensions, layer by layer, sometimes only microns thick at a time, depending on the desired resolution of the object. This method eliminates a lot of wasted materials, as any leftover powdered substrate can be immediately used on another project, alleviating the need for injection molding, setup costs, cutting, sanding, drilling and having scraps of material left over, as is common with traditional manufacturing methods. The most impressive part: economies of scale cease to
be an issue as costs for single parts become standardized in relation to the costs of the material being used.

Forbes article

 

[Ms Tree]

I think I know what you are talking about. I saw a show where they take a laser and mp out a object. Feed the data to a C&C machine of sorts and a little while later, a 3D object pops out identical to the original. I am not sure how it would change things in terms of his business. You would sill have to have this piece of hardware to do the mapping and C&c which I am sure are not inexpensive. The products still have to be designed by someone. Instead of having a machine shop where various components are machined out a C&C machine does it. I look at more along the lines of moving from horse and buggy to a car or plane. It's an evolution of sorts. I would imagine if it does affect your friends business, it would not be for a while unless there is some major break through that propels this technology in to a home office use.

I do remember being quite impressed when I saw the video of how it works.


Most of the vids I have seen are formed in plastic so making metal parts seems to be out of the question. Looking around my house there is a crap load of plastic stuff. Meh. Tell your friend to start packing. He's screwed.

Edit:
Just saw your vid on metal printing. Yea, your friend is hosed.

 

[tech2101]

I think I know what you are talking about. I saw a show where they take a laser and mp out a object. Feed the data to a C&C machine of sorts and a little while later, a 3D object pops out identical to the original. I am not sure how it would change things in terms of his business. You would sill have to have this piece of hardware to do the mapping and C&c which I am sure are not inexpensive. The products still have to be designed by someone. Instead of having a machine shop where various components are machined out a C&C machine does it. I look at more along the lines of moving from horse and buggy to a car or plane. It's an evolution of sorts. I would imagine if it does affect your friends business, it would not be for a while unless there is some major break through that propels this technology in to a home office use.

I do remember being quite impressed when I saw the video of how it works.


Most of the vids I have seen are formed in plastic so making metal parts seems to be out of the question. Looking around my house there is a crap load of plastic stuff. Meh. Tell your friend to start packing. He's screwed.

Edit:
Just saw your vid on metal printing. Yea, your friend is hosed.

It will not hurt him too bad. He works for UPS. They will be ok. It may hurt some if the particular stuff he does. I see it hurting local machine shops and tool and die places more than anything.

 

[xUT]

I have been doing some research on this and was wanting to see if anyone else would like to discuss. A friend of mine who is an executive in the freight business is worried that this technology could impact his business over time.



Forbes article

IMHO, 3D is good for modeling but the materials that can be used is pretty limited.
I have a friend in Korea that uses 3D modeling as 'examples' in form/fit/function but it's really a marketing tool. IMHO a 3D modeling tool that can create a part from stainless steel is still far in the future. Resins, foam, plastics is about the limit.
There are some pretty smart milling machines but there are physical limitations in that regard as well.

Hypothetically:
For a 3D printing device to be a replacement for milled/cast/machined parts would require the company to stock almost any/all materials in various thicknesses imaginable or throw away a lot of material.

JMHO&PO
B) xUT

 

[tech2101]

IMHO, 3D is good for modeling but the materials that can be used is pretty limited.
I have a friend in Korea that uses 3D modeling as 'examples' in form/fit/function but it's really a marketing tool. IMHO a 3D modeling tool that can create a part from stainless steel is still far in the future. Resins, foam, plastics is about the limit.
There are some pretty smart milling machines but there are physical limitations in that regard as well.

Hypothetically:
For a 3D printing device to be a replacement for milled/cast/machined parts would require the company to stock almost any/all materials in various thicknesses imaginable or throw away a lot of material.

JMHO&PO
B) xUT

Maybe we will find some new material that is perfect for use in 3D method.

 

[BoeingBoy]

Home 3D printers are available that while not cheap are somewhat reasonable in the $1500 to $2500 range. Of course you still need the software (CAD) to design whatever you want to model and you can't make big objects.

This is a link to a PC Magazine article on one of the lowest price 3D printers.

Sorry, can't get the link to work. Go to pcmag.com and search for "3d printer" and pick the article "Hands On with the Buildatron 2 3D Printer".

Jim