ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING is the magazine devoted to industrial applications of 3D printing and digital layering technology. We cover the promise and the challenges of this technology for making functional tooling and end-use production parts.
Issue link: https://am.epubxp.com/i/667993
MAY 2016 Additive Manufacturing FEATURE / Business Strategy 34 acceptable material in medical imaging. Government restrictions on lead have not applied yet in these systems, because there has not been a practical lead substitute. RPT and rp+m are using AM to realize what will be that practical substitute, but even at that, profting from this advance once the regulations do change will require more than just printing existing parts in tungsten. Anoth- er manufacturer could do the same. The development work also includes leveraging rp+m's additive expertise and the design free- dom of additive to realize diferent collimator forms that function better, focusing the radiation more efciently than the traditional forms of these components. Foundation in Production One further advantage for rp+m is vital to mention, because it is arguably the advantage that makes this kind of long-term work possible. Namely: This frm was born from an established manufacturer, another sister company—the injection molding company Thogus. Here, Hlavin is not the founder but instead the third-generation owner. The AM frm is located in the same plant as Thogus, and the molder is an important source of steady business for the newer company. The commitment to additive manufacturing that ulti- mately led to rp+m began with this molder, and proceeded in steps. In 2009, Hlavin began to add FDM equipment at Thogus as a complement to injection molding—a way to make short-run plastic parts without a mold. However, he learned from this that one of the best applications of the process was, in fact, making molds. He also learned that pur- suing opportunities and developing expertise in AM required him to diversify into other additive capabilities. The result was the sister company, which now serves as Thogus's on- site supplier for prototyping and 3D-printed mold tooling. It is on the strength of this platform that rp+m is exploring the long-term possibilities of 3D printing for full production. Right now, the Binder Jetting machine represents perhaps the company's most promising resource for fnding these long- term opportunities, the company leaders say. While all AM machines permit geometric freedom, the ability to grow parts without melting adds a range of material freedom as well. Recently, rp+m used this capability in a project funded by NASA aimed at developing an entirely ceramic miniature gas turbine engine. When personnel from both NASA and Boeing visited, says Hlavin, they expected to see a service bureau—a small shop built around a few 3D printers. Find- ing an established production facility instead, they were impressed and pleasantly surprised. That connection to production is crucial, says Hlavin, because production is where additive is heading. What his visitors saw and appreciated is that AM is being developed within and alongside an organization that already inherently understands efciency, quality, process control and other disciplines production requires. The projects aimed at long-term applications of AM will eventually begin to bear fruit. When they do—that is, when the additive challenge is solved—then it will be time to emphasize the manufacturing of these prod- ucts going forward. One way rp+m frequently serves Thogus is by supplying mold tooling, including tooling made on the FDM machines here. Hlavin sees short-run moldmaking as one of the most valuable uses of 3D printing.