A D D I T I V E M A N U F A C T U R I N G
HOW VIABLE IS
ADDITIVE
MANUFACTURING?
In 1984, Charles Hull
The manufacturing and legal issues surrounding additive manufacturing.
invented the first 3D
printer, which used
stereolithography to
build up a plastic product
layer by layer. Over 35
years later, additive manufacturing
(AM) is drastically altering a range
of industries, from manufacturing
to the medical sector. But what are
the limitations of the technology?
In some applications, component
manufacturing is shifting away from
traditional subtractive machining
methods and towards additive
manufacturing techniques. The
broadening of the applications of
AM is causing manufacturers to
assess the viability of using it in their
own facilities. To do this, there are a
few considerations to make before
turning to 3D technology.
QUALITY NOT QUANTITY
When moving from one
manufacturing method to another,
quality is a huge factor, particularly
in highly regulated industries like
aerospace and medical devices.
In fact, quality has been one of the
major hurdles to the widespread
adoption of AM. One critical
consideration is that quality and
consistency must be the same
machine to machine, regardless of
location.
Powder bed fusion is one of the
most frequently used additive
manufacturing methods and there
is a possibility that it may introduce
defects. However, if the process
has a constant thermal gradient, it
can prevent warping of the product,
avoiding the introduction of defects
due to incorrect temperatures.
Another concern is that unsintered
powder will degrade as a result of
heat exposure and that this could
impact quality, although regular
changing of the powder can prevent
this from becoming an issue.
When investing in an AM system,
manufacturers can overcome
44 March 2020