Production is becoming ever more flexible, diversified and decentralized. Without doubt, additive manufacturing processes make a crucial contribution to this, also initiating the transformation from production-based design to design-driven production. In this article, the 3D printing service provider FIT outlines a best-practice panorama of current technologies.

What Additive Plastic Manufacturing Can Do. The View of a Full-Service Provider

Verfahren für die additive Fertigung

Anlagen für die Additive Fertigung

Anlagen Additive Fertigung / 3D-Druck, Kunststoff

Anlagen für die Stereolithografie, Kunststoff

Anlagen Selektives Lasersintern, Kunststoff

3D-Druck-Anlage, pulverbettbasiert, Metall

Anlagen Additive Fertigung / 3D-Druck, Metall

SLA (Stereolithografie) Kunststoff

Flüssigmaterialverfahren

3D-Druck-Anlage, strahlbasiert, Metall

Selektives Lasersintern von Kunststoff, Metall, Keramik

Pulverbettverfahren

3D-Drucker (für FDM, FFF, etc.)

Additive Fertigung

Fused Deposition Modeling Kunststoff, Glas, Karbon, Metall

Freiraumverfahren

Werkstoffe für additive Verfahren

Andere Werkstoffe

Finer, Bigger, Faster

Arburg Plastic Freeforming is predestined for the additive manufacturing of medtech components. The associated Freeformer-type additive manufacturing systems process the same plastic pellets that are used in injection molding. That makes the open systems very economical to use.

Medical Product Manufacturers Are Processing Original Materials Using the Freeformer

Anlagen Additive Fertigung / 3D-Druck, andere

Biokunststoffe

Kunststoff Werkstoffe

Medizintechnik

Medizinprodukte

Arburg Kunststoff Freiformen

New Possibilities for Use  in the Human Body

Both companies aim to open up market access to new large-scale industrial applications in the higher temperature range.

Evonik and Farsoon Strengthen Collaboration

Farsoon Technologies is pleased to share news of doubled revenue growth in the Chinese market during Q1-Q3 of 2020 compared to the same period of time in the previous year.

Kunststoffverarbeitung: Maschinen und Komponenten

Farsoon Technologies Grows Revenue Despite Corona

New developments by the raw material producers are responding to current application trends. Requirements are changing due to the advent of networked and semi-automated electric vehicles and the different mobility infrastructure. Products for digitalization and energy and resource efficiency are also moving center stage.

New Mobility Forms and Digitalization Are Shaping the Development of Engineering and High-Performance Plastics

Polyetherketon

Thermoplaste

Polyacrylate

Oberflächenbeschichtung

Holz

Hybridwerkstoffe

Polyacetale

Verbundwerkstoffe / Werkstoffverbunde

Polyamide

Oberflächentechnik

Filamente für additive Verfahren

Oberflächenveredelung

Dienstleistungen

Lohnfertigung

Polycarbonat

Technology Made Easy

In no other field the possibilities and advantages of 3D printing are more pronounced than for medical devices. With the right high-performance materials, complex patient-customized implants can be produced that medical doctors are using to push the boundaries of the possible – for the benefit of patients.

New Ways for Production of Plastic Implants by 3D Printing

Custom Implants from the 3D Printer

With K 2016 in Düsseldorf, Germany, and formnext in Frankfurt/Main, Germany, professionals with an interest in additive manufacturing had two opportunities last year to gain a sense of the spirit of innovation in the industry. One issue was particularly prominent: the increase in production efficiency. This improves the economy of using the different 3D printing processes. 

A Diversity of Suppliers and Physical Cross-Linking Make Possible New Business Models and Application Scenarios for Additive Manufacturing  

Steuern, Regeln

Rapid Prototyping

Rapid Manufacturing

Selektives Laserschmelzen von Kunststoff, Metall, Keramik

Faserverarbeitung

Spritzgießwerkzeuge

Industrieroboter

Qualitätssicherung

All Elements at a Glance 

Is there a quantum leap on the horizon for 3D printing? The prototype of a newly developed 3D printer is able to process commercial pellets – also those of high-performance plastics such as PEEK, PPS, PSU, PA and PC, with or without fibers. The machine applies the usual strand-deposition process, though with a simply designed print head that includes a radial screw. 

A Novel Type of Print Head Gives Fresh Impetus to the FDM Branch 

Polysulfone / Polysulfide

Kohlenstofffasern / -matten

Faser- und Filamentextrusion

3D-Print with Affordable Pellets 

Much as when injection molding materials were being developed 30 years ago, the current trend in additive production is toward higher melting materials and materials with improved mechanical properties. The latter can be achieved, for example, by fiber embedding. In machine technology, the developments are increasingly aimed at adapting processing times, sensor systems, and quality monitoring to the demands of high-tech companies.  

Materials Manufacturers and Process Developers Face Growing Demands in 3D Printing  

Rapid Tooling

Pulver-Spritzgießen

Schleifen, Polieren

Additive Adolescence 

Hybrid production chains have been increasingly in the spotlight in recent years. This also applies to the combination of conventional manufacturing and additive processes in tool construction. With the example of an injection molding tool, it is shown how mold inserts produced by additive manufacturing can greatly shorten cycle times, and thereby significantly reduce unit costs. The important thing is to find a suitable combination of processes from the variety available.

Additive Manufacturing and Hybrid Molds in Combination with Conventional Machining

Spritzgießen

Kunststoffverarbeitung: Verfahren

HSC- / HPC-Bearbeitung

Spanende Verfahren

Werkzeugkonstruktion

Werkzeug-, Formen- und Modellbau

Werkzeuge für die Kunststoffverarbeitung

The Potential of Redesign and  Part Consolidation

On October 16, 2019, on the first evening of the K fair in Düsseldorf, Germany, Carl Hanser Verlag awarded the Dr. Richard Escales prize for the eighth time in memory of the founder of the journal Kunststoffe. Prof. Dr.-Ing. Andreas Gebhardt achieved the award for “outstanding achievements in the advancement of technical knowledge”, as the citation on the certificate states.

Award for Technical Author on Additive Manufacturing

Messe K-Kunststoffmesse

kunststoffe-international.com

Bildverarbeitungs-Software

Fertigungsautomation

Bildverarbeitung

Klotz, Karlhorst, Dr.

Outstanding 3D Achievements

In order to minimize the development time for new products, Geberit International AG manufactures many prototypes using 3D printing. Since 2016, the Swiss company uses a Sintratec S1 for design optimization and material testing in its prototyping laboratory. A visit to Switzerland.

Geberit: „Selective Laser Sintering Really Sparks our Imagination“

Sanitary Prototypes with  High Requirements

Fiber-reinforced plastic components, including those for load-bearing areas, are established alternatives to metals in vehicle construction. It is not just their low specific weight that makes them interesting, but also their acoustic properties, which reduce noise transmission.

3D Printing Shortens Development Times for Load-Bearing Parts under the Hood

Spritzgießsimulation

Software

Simulation

Functional Prototypes for  Car Components

Additive manufacturing processes count as future-oriented manufacturing techniques. Numerous studies and award-winning demonstrators underline the interest of the industry.

Plastic-Metal Hybrid Cuts Costs and Time in Additive Manufacturing

Bleche, Bänder

Metall Werkstoffe

Verbindungstechnik, hybride

Verbindungstechnik Verfahren

3D Printing with Pellet Extruded Plastics on Metal

Ineos Styrolution announced first results of the PolySLS project, which is focused on developing a new energy saving styrenics based material for additive manufacturing, otherwise known as „3D printing“.

Technik Trend

Polystyrol

Kunststoff-Erzeugung

Energy Savings with Styrenics Polymer Tailored for 3D Printing

Medical Applications of Additive Manufacturing

Status and Perspectives for Human Medicine

Anyone who introduced additive manufacturing (AM) in a company 15 years ago was a visionary. Anyone who did not do so ten years ago fell behind the early adopters. Anyone who still is not using additive manufacturing today is losing their edge over the competition. What this technology is considered capable of today and how it can be applied in many areas of application is shown (representative) by this expert’s view of medical technology.

What AM technology is considered capable of today and how it can be applied in many areas of application is shown (representative) by this expert’s view of medical technology.

Additive manufacturing (AM) is bringing about increasingly disruptive changes in traditional manufacturing strategies. Often classic procedures such as casting or milling are to be replaced. The benefits of a procedure not bound to a specific form, such as geometric freedom, re-engineering, and resource conservation, are complemented by great economic advantages and excellent availability.

But the essential merits are not just the copying of conventional parts but rather the new designs and bionic design approaches. Time-to-market as well as quick availability and idle time reduction also come into play. In light of the debate about long supply chains as a side effect of globalization, AM is also a viable approach for local production. Local production also means that value creation, product development, and product manufacturing will take place closer to the customers. Reducing logistic overhead contributes to achieving climate goals.

Classic material groups include metal, ceramics, and plastics. For the metals and the LaserCusing procedure, a powder bed-based metal laser melting process developed by me (market share approx. 80 % of all metal AM systems worldwide), very early adoption for medical applications was possible because we were always able to use certified original materials in powder form. A similar approach also works for ceramics-based solutions. The process is a little more complicated with polymers due to the variety and material behavior of that group. That is why metal applications have a head start of about five to ten years.

When we now shed some light on the medical industry, we will see many isolated application clusters: hip, joint, or spinal implants, cranial or dental prostheses in dental technology. Medical devices, laboratory equipment, or components used in high-tech medicine are added to the mix (Fig. 1); currently, the operative word would be valves for reanimation and ventilation devices. Even veterinary medicine knows a range of examples for 3D printed implants applications by now.

Market Development of 3D Printing Providers and Users

 As reported by the Wohlers Report 2020, the total value of additive manufacturing products and services was estimated at USD 11.9 bn with medical applications representing an estimated about USD 1.7 bn. The total value of AM machines, materials, software, and services for medical applications is projected to reach USD 2.2 bn by 2024. According to Wohlers Report, with such incredible growth, keeping up with developments can be challenging.

The projected global market size estimated by SmarTech Analysis company is approx. USD 55 bn in 2029. More conservative analysts such as 3D Hubs project an expected annual growth rate between 18 and 27 %. But even that outshines many other industries by far. The British market analytics company Context predicts double-digit growth rates for 3D metal printers (Table 1) as well for polymer printers (Table 2) for the coming years. Industrial mass and mid-scale serial production, however, account for the highest sales increase in the field of additive manufacturing. This includes only part of medical technology.

With regard to the global market, EY Research reports that in 2019 722 AM companies hailed from Europe, 421 from the Americas, and 168 from Asia. AM providers in the industry, however, are currently in a consolidation phase. The enormous growth of the past ten years in particular, its numerous innovation pushes, and the consolidation of prices are taking effect. While major players may feel a stronger effect, small start-up companies are still pushing into a dynamic market with creative solutions, a market that is still far from saturation or fights for survival.

For users, on the other hand, things are still going extremely well. That is true for the medical industry as well as others. But it also applies to the numerous 3D printing service providers who guide numerous industries into the world of 3D printing with their AM expertise and manufacturing capacities. The possibilities of improving existing products with AM are just too tempting. Buzzwords include bionic design, lightweight construction, patient-specific components, the one-shot approach drastically reducing the number of components in an assembly group without any assembly required, decentralized manufacturing, and rapid availability.

Example Titanium: Implant for  an Acetabulum

In light of the boomer demographics in the West, orthopaedic implants for the human musculoskeletal system play an increasingly important role. Applications for the hip, knee, and spine are considered a relevant emerging market in medical technology. Stryker from Cork, Ireland, therefore developed a new 3D titanium acetabular system (Fig. 2) using electron beam melting (EBM) technology. The system received clearance from the US Food and Drug Administration in 2016. Stryker calls this product Trident II Acetabular System and emphasizes that it is a cementless solution, which massively improves its longevity in the body.

The 3D printing process allows for highly complex geometries which cannot be produced using conventional means. The complete implant has the durable mechanical properties of kinematics consisting of a titanium acetabular system, a ball head and a shell-shaped insert made of metal, ceramic, polyethylene, or an aluminum-ceramic composite, depending on compatibility and load, and a locking mechanism.  Of course, the providers of such 3D solutions are manifold. For the sake of proportion, here are also B. Braun, Surgival, SurgTech, ImplanTech, Imeco, Medacta, Link, or Rentec.

Example Polyamide: Venturi Valves  for Reanimation Devices

Back in March 2020, the EU responded to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic by reaching out to the European AM industry. The idea was to use 3D-printing strategies, among others, to tackle the lack of protective equipment, such as N95 respirators, masks, face shields, or gowns as well as reanimation and ventilation devices in healthcare and the strong dependence on global supply chains. Major providers such as Draeger in Lübeck, Germany, but also many other plant and machinery installers and processors from a variety of industries heeded the call for help. Many companies had never manufactured products like these before.

Venturi valves for reanimation and ventilation devices are a good example (Fig. 3). The challenge here is to 3D-print a conventionally manufactured expendable part within a narrow time frame. That is what happened at the hospital in Brescia, Italy: the Milan-based company Fab Lab set up a polymer 3D printer in the hospital. The hitherto used valves were scanned, and new valves were printed, so the reanimation devices never stopped running. Later, Lonati Spa took over serial production using the polymer laser powder bed melting process in order to print the polyamide parts and supply Italian hospitals.

This is known in our industry as “spare parts on demand”: an essential element whenever a solution requiring a specific form is no longer available or takes too long to procure. We must also not forget to mention re-engineering in this context. If you redesign a spare part on top of everything else, an assembly part with many components may be turned onto a 3D-printed component with no assembly required in one shot.

Protective Face Shields for Nose and Mouth for Clinics

Protective equipment for healthcare professionals was a major global challenge when the pandemic broke out. Firstly, there were only emergency stocks lasting, and secondly, a lot of it was not produced in the European area. Supply chains and delivery times were too long. Prices skyrocketed unrealistically, and the quality was often dubious. If more healthcare professionals had been unable to work, the crisis could have turned into a catastrophe the way we have seen it happen in some other countries.

In this uncertain situation the emergency room of the Bamberg clinic in German asked whether there was a 3D printing solution for face shields. Basically, this is a very simple design consisting of a headband and a sheet of acrylic glass. It was not possible to recreate any certified models, but to produce makeshift equipment consisting of a face shield, protective gown, and respirator mask. And another thing was absolutely clear: this can only work in a proper network, because 3D printing can only ever be part of the solution and not the solution itself.

In this case, the network was the Lichtenfels Center of Next Generation Digital Technologies (Forschungs- und Anwendungszentrum für digitale Zukunftstechnologien, FADZ) currently under development, which brings together numerous companies in the region. Innocept, a Neuses-based company in Germany, developed a new type of respirator mask. The idea was to design a reusable respirator mask that was comfortable to wear, consisting of two soft polymer half-shells between which various filters could be inserted (Fig. 4). The benefits: the respirator filter does not sit directly on the face, making it much easier to breathe compared to makeshift fabric masks. Moreover, the large batch production of the respirator mask allows for favorable manufacturer’s prices. It is environmentally friendly because not the whole mask must be disposed.

To speed up the development process, five prototypes were produced overnight using the multi-jet fusion HP technology at the company Hofmann – Ihr Möglichmacher in Lichtenfels, Germany. Two and half weeks later, the product reached maturity. The patent was filed by Innocept. But there is another essential advantage to digital processes: STL printing files can be used as a common basis on many printers regardless of the manufacturer.

State of the Art Using the Example  of Cranial Implants

Artificial intelligence, digitalization, and automation are the pillars of the Industry 4.0 strategy. But they also inspire additive manufacturing. They will also shape the future of 3D printing as well as accelerate, innovate, and help spread it more broadly. This is only of marginal importance in medical technology, where solutions are often patient-specific. But there is still enormous leeway for a digital product. For instance, an operating surgeon can have a perfectly fitting cranial implant custom-made based on the X-ray images and their conversion into STL files (Fig. 5).

A defined porous surface makes sure that the implant is optimally accepted into the human tissue structure. But what really stops the show for seasoned medical practitioners is the design at the points where the implant meets the cranium. Thanks to that design, the component can be implanted faster and the surgical risk reduced. Quicker healing is a benefit for the patient, but so is increased quality of life. Both is a major mission of medical AM technology.

AM plants and machinery make full use of the potential of design, digital process chains, and the synergy of hardware and software. With regard to hardware, installation spaces and construction rates (assembly speed) used to play a bigger role. Currently, the required installation space in powder bed metal printing ranges between up to approx. 800 cm3. Standard installation spaces are 187 cm3 or 125 cm3 in multi-laser environments. These installation space dimensions are absolutely sufficient for any medical application nowadays. Assembly speed, too, has risen impressively due to the use of multi-laser systems. Construction rates today are up to 50 cm3/h with several 1000 W lasers.

The binder jetting technology has the potential to increase these rates in the future. That technology, developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), will become increasingly relevant for simple applications with certain tolerances. In binder jet 3D printing, also known as “powder bed and inkjet”, the parts are built up layer by layer as “green bodies”. 3D data serve to calculate the geometry of every individual cross-section or layer. During 3D printing, a bed of powder or granulate is spread on a height-adjustable tabletop and then a binder is deposited to glue the parts together in the places that form part of the component.

The developments of the past ten years also led to a large increase in batch sizes. Quality assurance and automation are becoming more and more important. Quality assurance is one of the main tasks of the software, though not its only task. The software controls the build-up of a 3D-printed part. It controls the data preparation of the part and design-related tasks and it suggests an exposure strategy and parameter choices, also for the surface or density of the part. The software optimizes the orientation of the part in the installation space as well as the necessary supporting structures.

For quality assurance purposes, it also facilitates thermal behavior simulations (thermal simulation) and warpage simulations (mechanical simulation) based on a part’s density or strength. Last but not least, the software provides for a “digital twin”. The recorded optimized process parameters of the part can be saved one-to-one. This means maximum reproducibility, which only a digital part can provide.

Additive Manufacturing as a Holistic Manufacturing Strategy

Automation and the digital supply chain round off the development. Automation means the elimination of as many disturbance values as possible, to make the process safe in a protective gas atmosphere, and to design it fast and automated. It ranges from the preparation in containers and the actual setting up of the 3D printing machine to the automated post-processing such as removal of supporting structures, thermal aftertreatment, or surface processing. Maximum automation means that the whole process, from powder to the finished part, is handled without any manual activity.

The digital process chain, since its inception a challenge but also a necessity for plant and machinery installers to fully tap into the potential of AM, has been extended by now. One of its core points is the direct yield of digital STL files. Nowadays scanners can be used to capture the files directly. This can be done at the patient bedside, but also for conventional parts which are now to be produced using AM. But the digital process chain also happens in another dimension. The operative word here is modern AM plants with continuous digital process chains for production and process control (Fig. 6). This modern type requires data flow in material staging and preparation, parts production, post-processing, and intra-plant logistics, including even autonomous transport systems (automated guided vehicle systems).

Step by step, this technology will become more effective and efficient, even though the development stages are now somewhat more moderate than ten or twenty years ago. We are certainly going to see new bionic products, new designs, new materials, more sustainable products, and a broadening of applications.

Humans are now starting to join technology in the spotlight as a designing factor. While many companies are pioneers, the mainstream remains guarded: in 2019, 71 % of companies stated that a lack of expert knowledge was the greatest factor against 3D printing when it came to choosing alternative methods of manufacturing. But in contradiction, 79 % of companies stated that the number of parts manufactured by 3D printing in the next three to five years would at least double (source: Jabil survey 2019). In effect, this contradiction means that we may not know how it works, but we do know that it is becoming more important.

Companies are realizing that something is happening, but they are still reluctant to act. There must be a plus in “digital knowledge” in the future in order to shape this transformation in more concrete terms. Training and development of the “Generation 3D Printing” will be the key to the future. A training and development will give everyone anywhere in the world the advantage of site, because AM is a key way to develop and build products locally. I am also saying this in light of the debate about long supply chains all the way to China. AM permits us to manufacture locally, close to demand. There is no need for long transport routes or dependencies. Digital AM plants around the world have similar cost structures.

So we need local AM centers, “digital hot spots”. For this to happen, we must provide the technology with developers, draughtspeople, designers, and operators who understand 3D printing and are able to use it. That is the only way for us to translate traditional manufacturing strategies into the new possibilities offered by 3D printing, and to fully utilize future innovation opportunities. 3D will become a competitive factor for many companies and industries.

I do not want to end my outlook on the future of AM without mentioning the 3D consumer market. Just like for any other hardware, there will always be a market for industrial 3D printers and consumer 3D printers. The British market analytics company Context states a market volume ratio of 70 : 30. There are real quantum leaps in the market here: a state-of-the-art consumer 3D printer costs around 1000 EUR these days. I dare say that around 15 years ago an industrial 3D printer of similar parts quality would have cost between 100,000 and 200,000 EUR. This means that 3D printing is now spreading horizontally instead of vertically.

A home 3D printer – the HP multi jet fusion technology currently being the most popular – will be as much of a staple in the future as an office laser printer. It is therefore conceivable, based on geometry licenses, for numerous practical products to be manufactured at home by “people like us”. That outlook is none too bad, I believe, considering that during a pandemic such as SARS-CoV-2 you are longing to print your own protective visors or masks, without leaving the house. Using data found online.

CONCEPT Laser GmbH  

https://www.concept-laser.de

Ausgabenartikel

To enhance the mobility of the spine, the upper and lower shell of this disc prosthesis are connected with an elastic double spring made of titanium. The core also contains a cushioning silicone filling. The prosthesis can be manufactured according to the patient’s anatomy using the LaserCusing process 

Table 1. Top 5 providers of metal printing (systems worth 20,000+ USD)

Table 2. Top 5 providers of polymer printing (systems worth 20,000+ USD)

Fig. 1. Several parts for the automated suturing device for heart surgery are made simultaneously on a building board

Fig. 2. 3D-printed titanium acetabular system

Fig. 3. 3D-printed polyamide Venturi valves for ventilators

Fig. 4. Reusable respirator mask, the filter elements are inserted between two soft plastic half shells

Fig. 5. High precision fit: additive manufactured craniofacial, patient-specific implant

Fig. 6. Tomorrow’s factory requires a data flow from material supply (left) through component production to post-processing (right), which also includes the operation of driverless transport systems © GE Additive / Concept Laser

Name - Hauptartikel

<b>Frank Carsten Herzog</b> is founder and Managing Partner of Concept Laser GmbH, Lichtenfels, Germany, and with over 300 patent applications is regarded as one of the pioneers of industrial 3D metal printing as we know it today.  As Managing Director of the HZG Group, Coburg, Germany, he supports start-ups, particularly in the field of digital future technologies; <br/><a href="mailto:info@hzg-group.org">info@hzg-group.org</a>