A common question I hear from my customers is, "What 3D materials are tough and which materials are best suited for certain applications?"  The second question I typically hear is, "What is the print speed?"  While not many new AM technologies are being developed, the same is not true with materials.  With innovations in 3D printing and materials development, entirely new business models are being unlocked.  3D printing is developing fast.  With ever-evolving technologies and materials, the range of addressable applications across industries has never been so varied or offered such huge opportunities.  No material can do everything.

The 3D Systems' Figure 4 DLP technology has been especially transformative.  Innovative new materials open up new production workflows for digital manufacturing.  Plastic printing materials are particularly versatile.  Listed below are industrial materials and applications applicable to the Figure 4 DLP technology.  These materials are a new class of additive materials with industry-leading UV stability.

Figure 4® Rigid 140C Black, Figure 4® Rigid White, Figure 4® Rigid Gray, Figure 4® Tough 60C White, Figure 4® Tough 65C Black, Figure 4® PRO-BLK 10: True production-class material; versatile rigid urethane-like material with an industry-leading combination of speed, accuracy and engineering-grade properties of strength, impact, and heat resistance.
GOOD FOR:  • Rapid prototyping • Functional assemblies • Snap-fit components • Consumer electronic components • Drill/tap applications • Master patterns for vacuum casting

Figure 4® 150C FR Black: 
GOOD FOR: • Aircraft interior parts • Consumer goods and electronics • Components requiring flame retardancy

Figure 4® FLEX-BLK 20 and Figure 4® FLEX-BLK 10: Extremely durable polypropylene-like parts Highest precision prototyping material with UV stability for production applications where mechanical properties fit.
GOOD FOR: • Prototyping • Functional testing • Low-volume production • Master patterns for RTV/silicone molding • Snap-fit assemblies

Figure 4® HI TEMP 300-AMB: High-temperature resistance for use in the harshest environments.
GOOD FOR: • HVAC, consumer appliances, motor enclosures, and other test or end-use components requiring high heat resistance • Low-pressure molding/tooling • Overmolding

Figure 4® RUBBER-BLK 10 and Figure 4® Rubber 65A BLK: High tear strength, malleable material for hard, rubber-like parts.
GOOD FOR: • Functional prototypes with rubber-like properties - Gaskets - Hoses - Seals • Low to mid-volume direct manufacturing of end-use parts • Strain-relief applications

Figure 4® MED-AMB 10 and Figure 4® MED-WHT 10: Materials with biocompatibility and autoclave stability for medical and industrial.
GOOD FOR: • Medical applications, including - Surgical drill guides - Splints - Anatomical or bone models • High-temperature applications

Figure 4® EGGSHELL-AMB 10: A rigid plastic for casting silicones to withstand injection at high temperature and pressure, but easy to break away. 
GOOD FOR: • Silicone castings • Customized end-use silicone parts • Low-volume production of silicone parts

With a better understanding of industrial materials discussed for the 3D Systems' Figure 4 DLP technology, I want to discuss the advancements in print speed.  Figure 4 offers ultra-high print speeds with 3 print modes, enabling up to 100mm/hour printing, some of the faster on the 3D printer market today.  The following is a good example from a service bureau printing aerospace check fixtures.  

• CHALLENGE: Deliver production-grade check fixtures for aerospace customer with a very fast turnaround.
• SOLUTION: Figure 4 with 3D Sprint software and Figure 4 TOUGH-GRY 15 material.
• RESULTS: 
  • 24 parts printed per tray
  • Print set up time - 7 minutes
  • Time to part in-hand - 91 minutes
  • Print time - 31 minutes
  • Post-processing - 60 minutes

To round out the key advancements of the 3D Systems' Figure 4, alongside the materials science and production-grade end-use parts at accelerated speeds, the new high-density part stacking feature of 3D Systems' 3D Sprint software allows efficient part nesting and optimized support generation to enable new efficiency in batch printing and post-processing.  Advantages of High-Density Vertical Stacked Printing over traditional methods 3D printing often leads to fast turnaround times without using expensive tooling.  Additive Manufacturing, AM serves as a great tool for prototyping and low/mid-sized production by using high-density vertical stacked printing.  Key drivers for stacked printing include:

• Productivity and Efficiency: by utilizing the full build height (350 mm) and stacking parts, more parts can be printed.  With 3D Systems' additive manufacturing workflow software, 3D Sprint, stacks can be easily generated and supported to maximize packing density, reduce post-processing, and decrease labor times.
• Strut Array Generation:  Quickly generate and replicate strut supports throughout a stack within 3D Sprint.  The open, sparse strut network maximizes solvent washing, air drying, and post-cure process effectiveness for batch manufacturing.
• Overnight Printing and Cadence: For manufacturers that do not work around the clock, there is a lot of wasted time at night that could be used for printing parts.  Prints can be planned more efficiently to improve throughput in a single day by printing less frequently, but with a larger yield.  If build times are too short, technicians would get overwhelmed from replacing builds for many printers.
• Automation Compatible: Another method for improving the efficiency of the entire workflow is by using automation.  With pinpoint contact strut supports allowing for quick removal of supports, automation can be used to clean, dry, and cure stacks of parts without human labor.  Multiple wash stations can be used for cleaning parts.

If you want to know more about the advancements of vertical stacking with the 3D Systems solutions please click the following: 3D Systems Application Brief - Industrial Stacking

If you want more information in general, feel free to visit us at www.mastergraphics.com or contact me directly at barb.miller-webb@mastergraphics.com

If you’re like most businesses, you’ve got numerous questions about additive manufacturing—perhaps even a few misconceptions, too. You’re wondering: 

• Why should I be excited about adopting additive manufacturing?
• Can it really provide a competitive advantage?
• How would it help solve my customer challenges?
• What if it doesn’t work for me?

We created this webinar to answer these questions and many more.  

In the first of our three-panel discussions, you’ll hear from additive manufacturing leaders who will answer these questions and MORE—all from their own experience. How they started. What they learned. What mistakes to avoid.
You’ll hear from:

• Peter Koostra, Director of Engineering, RE3DTECH
• Kevin Carr, President, MasterGraphics
• David Rosendahl, President, MindFire Inc., Moderator

Watch the webinar recording now to gain insights into:  

• The unexpected reasons organizations are adopting additive manufacturing for a competitive advantage
• How companies start their additive journey (often through diversification), and the surprising lessons learned along the way
• Which approach to additive manufacturing doesn’t work
• Answers to questions that our webinar attendees had about expanding solutions to customers’ challenges 

Whatever the 3D print technique is, some kind of post-processing will be needed to make the part complete. Whether it be removing supports, using ultraviolet light to make a part strong, removing excess powder, or making a part smoother. I would like to review the optimal methods that MJF and SLS printing use to complete the Additive Manufacturing process. The methods (especially those automated) can increase productivity, create higher cost-efficiency, improve component performance, and faster implementation.  

After the unpacking process, the first step in post-processing is CLEANING, removing the excess powder in MJF/SLS printing. 

Media blasting systems need significant airflow to work properly to remove the unsintered loose powder, which can be accomplished with a sandblaster. 

There is an extensive list of sandblasters that are on the market and these machines can be classified into four categories:

• Benchtop media blasters
• Floor top media blasters
• Tumbling blast cabinets
• SLS/MJF-specific depowdering blast cabinets

Benchtop blasters are recommended for users on a budget, typically with small to medium-sized print volumes and pricing up to around $1,000.  

Floor top blasters are generally over $1,000 and offer a larger working space and are considered industrial quality.

Over the years, there have been many myths about 3D printing. One of these myths is that it would completely replace injection molding or CNC.  While 3D printing is capable of an incredible range of applications, it doesn't have to replace everything you're currently leveraging.  3D printing serves as a flexible and innovative supplement to your existing technology.

Are you curious about what the actual use cases for 3D printing are and how you can leverage them and get optimal results?

Here's your chance to find out!

Experts from leading 3D manufacturing companies such as MasterGraphics, Re3DTech, Graco, and Enerpac will come together to share their knowledge and secret recipes for success.

Throughout the webinar, the keynote speakers will share with you:

The benefits of introducing more 3D parts into your company mix.
How additive manufacturing can improve your supply chain.
Actual case studies on how people utilize 3D printing for TRUE Additive Manufacturing.

You'll also get a chance to meet and network with seasoned professionals.  

This question should be asked in various business initiatives.  However, I want to ask this question as it relates to additive manufacturing especially in smaller manufacturing companies that have yet to adopt additive manufacturing. 

When just beginning something—be it a journey for improvement or an initiative to ensure you are prepared, I always suggest starting small.  Companies that want to dip their toes into 3D printing have a couple of choices; own their own AM equipment or rely on service bureaus.  Times are also changing.  And those old production processes mean you could be losing your competitive edge by missing out on LARGE cost savings.  

Additive manufacturing can provide significant ROI to small manufacturers by helping:

• Improve their industrial tooling processes
• Produce more high-value, complex, low-run parts
• Create highly customized products for their industry and their customers

Start with a basic step process for additive manufacturing:

1. It starts with an organizational shift.  Generate an additive manufacturing mindset within the organization.
2. Create a roadmap.  Pilot a targeted small area and then scale up.
3. Develop a business case.  Examine impacts of parts from your supply chain and or product life cycle with the use of additive manufacturing.
4. Identify challenges and evaluate whether additive manufacturing fits in your company.

You have to get started with additive manufacturing/3D printing - doing nothing gets you nothing!

Historically most machine shops have been job shops, which makes the business dependent on constantly obtaining new customers with new machining needs.  3D printers can enable a machine shop to create its own new products and gain more independence.  

Let us review why it makes sense to adopt 3D printers in machine shops today.  

• Diversification - Metal 3D print technologies are the next evolution to the machine shop.  The ability to complement their subtractive with additive manufacturing.  The evolution of adding plastics, carbon, and now metal additive manufacturing to produce tooling, fixturing, and end-use parts.
• Optimize the tooling with metal 3D printing.  Shops can now leverage 3D printing cost-effective plastic parts or metal parts to enhance workflows and projects.  A machine shop can rely on the printer to mitigate errors and improve timelines from pre-production prototyping to creating production tools to printing end-use parts for quick fixes.
• Small-batch production — additive manufacturing technologies provide direct production options for low volume production and bridge manufacturing.  Save on tooling costs with 3D printing directly from a file, and take advantage of speed to market.

Complex geometries are the best use case for metal AM.

Most importantly, metal 3D printing

• Is especially helpful for geometries that are costly, time and labor-intensive processes to produce on a CNC machine.  Designs that leverage metal AM's freedom to generate internal features of the part, intricate geometries such as lattices, and complex forms such as topology-optimized shapes to maximize their performance while minimizing their weight and the total number of components in an assembly.  
• Communication to the machinists to help interpret drawings that have so many call-outs and can be difficult to catch all with complex geometries.  This helps eliminate time and material waste with a CNC job that a call-out may have been missed.  A 3D print can be a valuable tool prior to machined part production.
• To produce parts for test fit and function.  This will shorten the feedback loop in the machine shop with 3D prints in advance of production.  3D printing allows for faster prototypes, setting up prints to run overnight then using parts the next day.

Jigs, fixtures, and other customized production tools are essential for efficient, effective manufacturing.  Tooling is a fixed expense that must be amortized across large quantities of parts. 

• One important capability is an alternative to casting.  Machining lead times can be a hostage to the lead times from foundries delivering cast parts.  With production, metal additive manufacturing in-house, the machine shop can print its own parts as needed, without any lead-time from a supplier. 

In summary, additive manufacturing eliminates the following barriers with tolling-free production:

1. Optimized designs
2. Mass customization
3. Rapid design to production
4. Cost-effective at any scale
5. Digital inventory
6. Low operator burden

To learn more about metal additive manufacturing solutions, please connect with us directly at https://www.mastergraphics.com/desktop-metal

The official definition of Investment casting is an industrial process based on lost-wax casting, one of the oldest known metal-forming techniques.  The term "lost-wax casting" can also refer to modern investment casting processes.

Additive manufacturing technologies are rapidly evolving and their applicability to investment casting grows with it.  Instead of using injection-molded wax patterns companies can now also choose to directly 3D print patterns using Stereolithography (SLA) and MultiJet (MJP) materials.  Using these AM technologies and 3D printer software such as 3D Sprint from 3D Systems, you can streamline your time and labor-intensive process to advance production and reduce expenses.  Today this is referred to by 3D Systems as "digital foundry" which enables foundries to deliver a new level of service to their customers.  There is no need to change anything in the workflow process.  More importantly, they can expect patterns in hours rather than days or weeks.  Foundries that want to compete in this market and maintain a competitive edge should be using additive manufacturing or... be left behind.  

With the new technologies for investment casting, foundries will be able to:

1. Produce low volumes of casted parts from a CAD model in 24-48 hours
2. Reduce the costs of tooling
3. Eliminate the time it takes to produce tooling
4. Reduce costs and space for tooling storage
5. Deliver unmoldable products

Using powerful software such as 3D Sprint from 3D Systems you can apply chemical etching offsets.  Apply scale compensation for metal shrinkage.  Digitally create and position gates and vents.  Create sectioning of large parts and joints.  Prepare and optimize files for printing. 

Print your master pattern by choosing between plastic and wax master patterns.  But how do you determine which type of master pattern?  Let me summarize the differences:

With MultiJet printing (MJP) for wax casting patterns, you use 100% real wax printing technology.  This technology is great for small to medium size parts typically less than 8 inches in X, Y, and Z geometry.  These patterns are significantly lower in cost due to the material costs.  They are produced in less time than traditional patterns production again for low to medium volume prints.  You can expect accuracy and repeatability with wax patterns and fits into the existing investment casting process.  Also, ideal for customized metal components to bridge manufacturing.

With Stereolithography (SLA) for plastic casting patterns, you would use a castable resin material.  This provides you with highly accurate, high yield, large parts, and very complex lightweight master patterns.  They will maintain dimensional stability over years.  Typically, there is less manual finishing and labor expense with SLA processes.   3D Systems uses a QuickCast resin that is 30% lighter weight and provides consistent strength X, Y, Z geometries.

To learn more watch, the 3D Systems YouTube video. Understanding How 3D Printed Casting Patterns Work in the Foundry

I almost can't believe I am writing this but I just got back from attending my first live conference since the COVID pandemic hit us!  I was fortunate enough to attend the 2021 Additive Manufacturing Users Conference (AMUG) where the leading users of additive gather to share their knowledge, expertise, and updates on best-in-class additive manufacturing processes.  There is too much to share in just one blog so I will have more follow-up blogs but wanted to start with what the experts noted as the trends they saw in 2020.  In one of the sessions, industry leaders outlined what they believe will be the next areas of success around 3D print in 2021.  Here are my notes from what was presented...

BASF - Noted that they are seeing more traditional injection molding companies looking to leverage additive manufacturing and leveraging 3D print to augment their traditional services.  Historically because of the volume and material needs that injection molders require they have been slower to adopt Additive Manufacturing technologies but BASF believes advancement in materials and throughput will increase the adoption.

www.forward-am.com

DMG Mori - Stated they believe automation around 3D print, enhanced reliability, and improved quality assurance processes will be key for additive.   Much like the notes above from BASF, they believe adoption will also increase as the materials improve for both metal and composites.  In addition, more hybrid systems will be leveraged to take advantage of both traditional and new manufacturing technologies.

www.dmgmori.com

Dyndrite - Believes that software solutions have lagged 3D print technology and 2021 will be the year software makes a big step forward to catch up.  With the explosion of manufacturing data, software will need to be developed to run 3D printers more efficiently, quickly and to leverage data better.  The need for technology-agnostic front ends will be another improvement as manufacturers will leverage various 3D print technologies.  

www.dyndrite.com

Essentium - Predicts the continued rise of full-scale production, improved leveraging of 3D print for supply chain resiliency, and the development of materials to solve specific applications versus a general material solution.  The trend for true additive manufacturing that occurred in 2020 will continue into 2021.

www.essentium.com

ExOne - Beyond just the overall desire for 3D metal parts, they see the demand for more metal materials will increase along with the desire to implement additive processes to satisfy green initiatives. There will also be a continued leveraging for metal print for light-weighting and part consolidation.  Metal certainly has a strong future.

www.exone.com

Take these as my notes and I encourage you to visit each of their websites to see what they are focused on.  Overall I believe the message was consistent, it's not only about the print technology but the processes utilized both before and after printing.  Design processes and technologies will continue to evolve to better leverage and prepare data for printing.  The post finishing processes will be improved to support a true manufacturing process for both producing parts in quantity but with quality assurance.  Throw in materials development and I believe 2021 will be another step forward to true additive manufacturing.  

As always, if any of the directions I noted above resonate with you (or does not) please reach out as I am always curious to hear real-world feedback.

Lastly, I encourage you to check out the Additive Manufacturing User Group - www.amug.com
The Additive Manufacturing Users Group's origins date back to the early 1990s when the founding industry users group called 3D Systems North American Stereolithography User Group.  Today, AMUG educates and supports users of all additive manufacturing technologies.  If you are at all involved in 3D around production, this is a group you should support and join.

You can have the best 3D printed parts in the world, but if you do not have a good cleaning/post-processing workflow, your parts are likely not going to look their best or be as functional as possible. This is especially true with powder-based 3D printing technologies. 

The most common cleaning process for powder-based 3D printing is bead blasting.  In the past, this was done manually bent over a bead blaster; you would have a bead blaster hooked up to an air compressor and clean each part one at a time.  This process not only takes time, but you could damage and/or discolor the parts by putting the spray nozzle too close to the part.  See example A for discoloration, called burn marks. If any of you have ever bead blasted by hand you know what a pain in the back, neck, and eye strain it can be, not to mention a major time suck especially if you have many parts to clean. 

Now with the DyeMansion Powershot C automatic cleaning system what would take me hours has been reduced down to 10 minutes a load.  The other advantage with the DyeMansion Powershot C is I get consistently clean-looking parts.  See example B.  The cleaned parts are ready for finishing or shipping depending on your or your client's needs.  Again, remember the advantage of additive manufacturing is cost-effectiveness and turnaround time.  

In the video below, you can see I am unpacking parts from the HP Multi Jet Fusion.  I am just cleaning the loose powder off the parts as the HP recycles the unused material back into the system for reuse.  The parts are then loaded into the DyeMansion Powershot C and cleaned. 

After using the DyeMansion cleaning system, I would never want to go back to the cleaning process manually again.

Please feel free to give me a call at 800.873.7238 x2735 or send me an email at gene.call@mastergraphics.com with any questions or if you want to discuss post-processing.