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Topic: Business Value3YOURMIND and TÜV SÜD collaborate to build a Rapid Parts Qualification online tool
2020 is a hard year for everyone. The global crisis came unexpectedly and slowed down most of the companies development around the world. Priority has changed from product development to the producing of medical supplies to support the medical industry. During this time, 3D printing has proven its predominance over traditional manufacturing methods. We were able to supply small batches of newly designed products and iterate them when new developments were made. The biggest challenge was to qualify and certify all of those parts, so they could be used to support the fight against the virus.
Read moreBuilding smarter defense operational supply chains with Additive Manufacturing
By 2024, the worldwide market for 3D Printing and Additive Manufacturing in Aerospace and Defense is expected to grow at a CAGR of roughly 17.5%, exceeding $3.3 Billion USD. This growth is predominantly concentrated in the USA and Europe, however parts of Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa are also increasing their adoption rates. The US Military has a proven preponderance of AM utilization for a variety of applications that include prototyping, R&D, MRO and production parts. Due to their strict guidelines for repeatability, security and time-sensitivity, it’s no surprise that this industry is further pushing AM into mass adoption to solve the problems of today, and tomorrow.
Read moreIs the factory of the future full of 3d printers?
As discussed in the article “Is Serial Additive Manufacturing Taking Off?”, the Additive Manufacturing world has seen significant growth in the past few years. Every year faster, more accurate technologies are being presented. AM knowledge is more accessible. New materials and post-processing methods are developed and implemented. To make it possible to use all of that in the production environment, we are also working very hard to introduce qualification processes to meet the highest requirements regarding part quality, production repeatability, and many other aspects.
Read more5 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 more5 Lessons for AM, part 2/3: Starting with Qualified Inventories
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 more5 Lessons for AM, part 1/3: Can COVID-19 kill 3D Printing?
3D printing has shown high potential in reacting to the supply chain crisis. And yes, the distributed manufacturing concept carries hope for building more resilient supply chains. But the COVID-19 crisis fleshed out some crucial limitations of 3D printing as a response tool. The global economic downturn will severely impact innovation budgets where 3D printing is classified for most organizations. But there are also ways forward to show how to develop 3D printing as a daily procurement tool to create resilient supply chains. It’s time to thoroughly work on building digital AM qualified inventories.
Read moreIs 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 moreEnd-to-End Management Software in Additive Manufacturing
Since its introduction in 1988, Microsoft Office has reshaped the way we work. Graphic designers, engineers and office managers now have everything they need in a complete software package. What’s the common link between software companies like Microsoft, Adobe, Autodesk and Siemens?
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