5 Lessons for AM, part 3/3: 5 Guidelines for Resilient Supply Chains
3D printing was able to support the covid response effort for critical, stop-gap production. But after less than one month, conventional manufacturing was already producing almost all of those parts, with the exception of parts that were generally better suited for AM. That illustrates that 3D printing has a critical, but limited role in the supply chain. Those guidelines can be taken to move 3D Printing from an innovation budget into a secure procurement plan as part of a resilient supply chain.
Read ArticleHow to Use 3D Printing to Build More Reactive Supply Chains
The way that the global community has responded to the covid situation has not only been a shock for the larger economy, it also presents an existential challenge to the 3D printing industry. For 3D printing to move out of the innovation department and into the procurement budget, it needs to be part of resilient supply chains. The good news is that the response effort to the medical supply shortages in covid offered some key guidelines to create this ongoing solution. Our first article spoke about how establishing smooth transitions between 3D printing and conventional manufacturing is key. In this article, we will explore the importance of working with qualified parts, how to use stakeholders in a center of excellence model to ensure that information is shared and steps to build fully resilient procurement processes.
Read ArticleWebinar Replay: When do AM Competency Centers Need 3D Printing Software
3D printing is already used by more than 50% of companies, but there is still a minority who require a robust software solution. The companies who have reached this milestone need a digital solution to manage the large volume of orders and access levels throughout their organization. Brian Crotty will provide an overview of specific signs that your company has reached a scale or level of complexity that requires a digital structure. He will also detail why enterprise companies are opting for the competency center model and how to transition from smaller production streams into a focused management solution that is accessible to the entire company.
Read ArticleWebinar Replay: Building a Digital AM Warehouse (with EOS)
3D printing is already used by more than 50% of companies, but there is still a minority who require a robust software solution. The companies who have reached this milestone need a digital solution to manage the large volume of orders and access levels throughout their organization. Brian Crotty will provide an overview of specific signs that your company has reached a scale or level of complexity that requires a digital structure. He will also detail why enterprise companies are opting for the competency center model and how to transition from smaller production streams into a focused management solution that is accessible to the entire company.
Read Article3YOURMIND Expands Machine Connectivity With Ultimaker
At formnext 2019, 3YOURMIND displayed running machine connectivity with ultimaker machines. Over the past years ultimaker has been an increasingly interesting player for producing jigs, tooling and assembly aids. Brian Crotty, Marketing Manager at 3YOURMIND will show how simple the connectivity is to configure, the types of information that can be received from the machines and what direct advantages that transparency provides to distributed production.
Read ArticleWebinar Replay: How will Erpro optimize AM production for 17 million parts?
One of the most visible serial applications in additive manufacturing is Erpro Group’s 3D Factory who have produced more than 17 million 3D printed mascara brushes for Chanel. In 2020, they plan to double or triple the number of serial production lines they run - but without significantly increasing manpower. To hit that goal, they are putting tools in place to optimize their production lines. Most important will be reducing the number of manual steps and moving to a digital, paperless workflow.
Read Article3D Order Management for COVID-19-Response
The 3D Printing Community has quickly risen to offer their capacity for printing additional supplies to slow the spread of the corona virus. But the question remains, how to get 3D printed supplies to hospital locations where they are needed. 3YOURMIND has setup an order management platform to connect hospitals and medical clinics with industrial 3D print producers for efficient production.
Read ArticleLaunch of AM Webinars March 2020
We want to ensure you can still receive the updates we planned for AMUG and Rapid+TCT now that Additive Manufacturing conferences have been postponed due to the COVID-19 virus. We will begin with three webinars showing the presentations that were prepared for AMUG 2020. The highlight is our keynote with Erpro 3D Factory about how they are using software to establish fully digital, serial additive manufacturing. The use of software for automation is timely, as the world looks more closely at digital automation and connection.
Read ArticleIs Serial Additive Manufacturing Taking Off?
Over the past few years, there has been a shift in how engineers approach Additive Manufacturing. Initially, the technology was focused on rapid prototyping, creating parts for testing and design iteration. But in the last five years, engineers across the world have started to focus on suitable applications for end-use goods and reaching the full potential of additive manufacturing. Medicine, aerospace, automotive, logistics, consumer goods - in every industry there are hundreds of potential products and the question is: Which products can be moved to serial additive manufacturing?
Read ArticleThe umati standard influences AM
Additive manufacturing technologies and materials have made significant progress over the past several years - but even the top production houses still handle the majority of their scheduling and quality control using manual processes. This is because of the complexity of the work, the lack of best practices and the development of independent machine data systems. We know from other industries (USB, CDs, paper sizes) once those standards are in place and in use - a whole host of other processes simplify and production costs drop. The same will be true for additive manufacturing machines - the easier it is to exchange and share information, the more efficient they are. Companies across all industries involved in production are requesting a universal machine interface to ensure clear data collection, streamlined communication channels and control of different machine types. Umati enables machine vendors to provide a connectivity interface to easily connect to customer-specific software solutions.
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