Even now, as economies transition into recovery, the benefits offered by Additive Manufacturing (AM), that came so useful in times of restrictions continue to show their worth; in the pandemic, labour shortages and supply chain disruptions. Manufacturers could utilise AM to print difficult-to-access parts, even remotely, and physical manpower requirements were greatly reduced due to AM being digitally-forward. In short, AM is flexible, mostly contactless, less sensitive to supply chain shocks, and brimming with potential.
But these aren’t the only reasons why more SMEs are folding AM into their operations in a big way. Here are four more:
AM ain’t new, but has myriad applications
Although 3D printing began almost 40 years ago in 1981, when Hideo Kodama of the Nagoya Municipal Industrial Research Institute first published information on the manufacturing of a solid printed model, it has grown by leaps and bounds since then.
From a US$200,000 3D printing machine that required its own room and technician (it was that big) in 2009, to 2019 where your average 3D printer now fits on your desktop, today 3D printing is as easy as ‘plug-and-play.
Today, AM is used in a multitude of industries, from aerospace to healthcare. 3D printer sales (both industrial and desktop units) grew over 100 times, in 10 years, to over 600,000 units in 2019. 2 Cost per part reduced even as the range of parts produced increased.
Where AM first started out as a novelty, it has evolved into a necessity if manufacturers were to stay competitive. In 2019, an Ernst & Young report found that AM has attracted such exposure that almost two-thirds (65%) of businesses they surveyed have now tried applying the technology in business — nearly triple from 2016.
3D printing is now used to print life-saving medical equipment, prosthesis and joint replacements; it can be used to manufacture between 40 to 60 percent of parts in an electric vehicle, and has revolutionised the way we approach research and prototyping.
It has also shown great promise in making automotive components more lightweight, optimising cost by the number of new materials and techniques continuously being developed, and such designs can also be validated using computer-aided engineering.
AM thrives on complexity; the more complex the better
Complexity comes free with additive manufacturing, so the adage goes. Where once the complex, highly-detailed part was the nightmare of traditional manufacturers, 3D printing thrives on the difficult — the more difficult the part is to manufacture to high accuracy, the more 3D printing shows its mettle. In traditional manufacturing, as part complexity increases, so does the cost– but with additive manufacturing the opposite is true.
AM is able to produce highly customisable parts, cost effectively. Take for example, Hexagon’s collaboration with a renowned hospital in India, where custom-fitted joint replacements are 3D printed for patients. Before 3D printing, joint replacements were made to a standard size, and often failed — there is after all, no one-size-fits-all for the human body. With custom replacements, however, the experience was far more comfortable and safe for the patients, preventing pain as well as accelerated wear and tear.
This ability to support highly-customised and complex requirements opens AM up to more potential uses in industries like automotive and aerospace. In the automotive industry, AM is making waves in producing the complex and fine parts needed for electric vehicles for example. As complexity has no bearing on AM’s cost, this could potentially help drive prices of EVs down further.
AM’s biggest hurdle –scale and quantity– is being solved as we speak
One of AM’s big challenges is, literally, a big challenge. Size and scale have been one of AM’s drawbacks, since AM is focused on accuracy, detail and complexity for extremely fine or niche parts. Where AM struggles currently is in size: it is still too costly, both in terms of production and material cost, to print a large-scale part in huge quantities.
This, however, may soon be a problem of the past. Recent developments with a technique known as metal binder jetting is proving to be enormously positive towards the production of medium-to-large parts.
Metal binder jetting is the process of using a liquid binder to selectively join powder particles, layer by layer. The process begins with a thin powder bed (of a variety of materials, usually metals, and even sand and ceramics), upon which printheads strategically deposit droplets of binder liquid. Then, the printing plate is lowered and another layer of powder is spread, followed by liquid binder, until the part is complete.
With this, there are several unique benefits to metal binder jetting. For starters, binder jetting machines are less costly than 3D machines that use lasers or electron beams. These machines are also able to use Metal Injection Moulding (MIM) powders, which also are cheaper than other metal powders developed for 3D printing. Additionally, metal binder jetting is faster than some metal 3D printers, and are able to print large units with high accuracy, thus making it very scalable and production-ready; very much suited to the automotive and aerospace industries.
AM will only grow from here
With new, high-performance materials such as biomaterials coming into the market; this can really expand horizons and increase its use applications. 3D printing machines are also evolving to need; new machines are coming in with larger build capacities.
Manufacturers are also increasingly going for a hybrid approach– using traditional manufacturing in some parts and 3D printing in others, strategically adapting use to complexity, resulting in greater flexibility in cost and design. For example, combining traditional manufacturing in the production of vehicles; where initial modelling and prototypes of vehicles could be 3D printed for testing and research before using traditional manufacturing to produce the actual vehicle. Toyota, for example, have begun to use 3D printing for this very purpose when testing and prototyping their Toyota Corolla hatchback and sport models.
Malaysia is very much in the game for 4IR and AM
In Malaysia, the government has definitely made great effort to drive smart manufacturing practises in the industry; and AM is a key component of the 4IR agenda. In fact, alongside the National 4IR Policy which was launched on 31 October 2018, the Standard and Industrial Research Institute of Malaysia (SIRIM) last year announced that they will be launching the Smart Manufacturing Experience Centre.
The Centre will help propel SMEs, which contribute as much as 40% to national GDP currently, to even greater heights. In fact, studies show that digitally-mature and innovative SMEs could add between RM79 billion and RM99 billion to our GDP by 2024.
Without a doubt, AM is the new frontier for manufacturing and manufacturers will need to stay on top of it to remain competitive.
Terrence Lim, General Manager for ASEAN and Pacific, Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence
