Technology

Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF), or Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) as it’s more commonly known, remains one of the most popular 3D printing technologies. And as the technology continues to evolve, FDM is finding more industrial applications on the manufacturing floor. The development of new polymer materials is a key factor behind this development.   In …

Imagine buying shoes that can self-adjust to your feet or developing a medical device that can perfectly adapt to a patient’s anatomy when triggered by a specific stimulus. These are just some of the potential uses of 4D printing — an exciting, growing area of research.    While 4D printing may seem like something out …

A deep dive into polymer 3D printing: technologies, promising developments, applications, and more.   2019 promises to be the year of polymer 3D printing. As major chemical companies are now joining the 3D printing world and industry mainstays are further advancing the capabilities of the technology, polymer 3D printing is given a tremendous boost.   To …

Industry 4.0: spend any time within additive manufacturing, or manufacturing more generally, and chances are you’ve come across the term. But what does “Industry 4.0” mean in reality? Is it merely an industry buzzword, or is it truly a meaningful description for the digital technologies currently disrupting manufacturing?   In this article, we examine 4 …

2018 was a successful year for additive manufacturing in many ways. From the development of new technologies to innovative software solutions, the year saw the industry begin to deliver on its promises of providing an industrial manufacturing solution.   In spite of these positive trends, there are still important questions for the industry going forwards …

2018 was the year in which 3D printing quietly solidified its position as a commercially viable, industrial manufacturing technology. With key developments across hardware, materials and software last year, 3D printing, or additive manufacturing, is becoming an increasingly important part of the manufacturing process.   With an impressive year for 3D printing in 2018, what …

Additive manufacturing is powering the shift towards distributed, digital manufacturing. The ability to produce parts from digital files opens up new and exciting opportunities for agile manufacturing, from virtual inventories to on-demand, localised production.    The agile, lean manufacturing approach facilitated by AM is understandably appealing. With traditional manufacturing, storing and maintaining physical inventories of …

Generative design is a software tool that enables engineers and designers to approach design problems in more innovative and efficient ways. Generative design algorithms explore all possible design solutions by defining goals and constraints, offering engineers numerous options to explore.   Although still in its infancy, generative design has shown remarkable potential for industrial applications, …

When it comes to 3D printing, bigger doesn’t necessarily mean better. That said, large-scale 3D printing systems do offer unique manufacturing solutions that smaller systems cannot achieve. They can, for example, produce large prototypes and parts and even multiple series of smaller parts simultaneously. The advantages of large-scale 3D printing being clear, this one area …

Rapid prototyping has, since its inception, been one of the main advantages of additive manufacturing. While prototypes could take days, weeks or even months using earlier technologies, with additive manufacturing, prototypes can be produced virtually overnight, speeding up the product design and development stage significantly.   The ability to create concept or durable, functional prototypes …