02/09/2015

3D Printing: Separating Hype from Reality for Distributors

Remarks and chart from Tim Shinbara, VP–marketing technology of the Association for Manufacturing Technology

To start with a definition, 3D printing is any of various processes to make a three-dimensional object. In 3D printing, additive processes are used, in which successive layers of material are laid down under computer control. These objects can be of almost any shape or geometry, and are produced from a 3D model or other electronic data source. A 3D printer is a type of industrial robot.

3D printing in the term's original and technically precise sense refers to processes that sequentially deposit material onto a powder bed with inkjet printer heads. More recently the meaning of the term has expanded to encompass a wider variety of techniques such as extrusion and sintering based processes. Technical standards use the term additive manufacturing (AM) for this broader sense.

Many of us think that 3D printing is a new phenomenon or process, but it has been around since the 1980s. While it may be a novel and remote concept to many, Tim Shinbara, in a recent talk to industrial distribution association executives, expressed the opinion that the technology is no longer “emerging” – it is all around us and is perhaps just three years away from rapid adoption in many industries. Where originally, the term 3D printing referred to a process employing standard and custom inkjet print heads, the technology used by most 3D printers to date—especially hobbyist and consumer-oriented models—is fused deposition modeling, a special application of plastic extrusion.

In the first decade of this century, the term additive manufacturing (AM) came into use as the various additive processes matured and it became clear that metal removal soon would no longer be the only metalworking process done under that type of control (a tool or head moving through a 3D work envelope transforming a mass of raw material into a desired shape layer by layer). After 2010, metal parts, such as bolts, flanges, etc. were grown using additive manufacturing rather than machined from a bar or plate of metal.

So what are we seeing in this realm now? Additive manufacturing allows the user to design for functionality. It can shorten both the machining/build hours and the design lead time. For many industrial parts, it eliminates seams – therefore no welding required. Additive manufacturing in combination with cloud computing technologies allows decentralized and geographically independent distributed production. Companies have created services where consumers can customize objects using simplified web based customization software, and order the resulting items as 3D printed unique objects.

At the present time, there are limited material systems and certifiable materials and processes in the industrial space. 3D produced items are rough-finished and require additional refinement to become a finished good. Also, there is a limit to repeatability – the ability to create exact replicas is not reliable under current conditions.

Tim Shinbara has applied the business school model of SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) to a distributor’s view of additive manufacturing at the present time and forecasting its impact on distribution in the future. His chart appears below. In conclusion, he expresses the opinion that as a technology, additive manufacturing is no longer just emerging. There are varying readiness levels and additive manufacturing is an enabler and a complement. For industry, he states that there is a need to increase education to non-AM communities, it can be important in prototyping functional models to end-use production. And finally, he urges distributors/manufacturers to be AM discriminators – know how to use AM as a complement and keep it under consideration.