Part 2 of 2
by Cassandra Balentine
Many three-dimensional (3D) print technologies rely on additive manufacturing (AM) process. A range of materials, including powders and filaments are utilized for many builds, including prototyping and serial production, jigs, fixtures, and tooling.
Use and Pricing
While there is a wide range of AM technologies and materials, specific processes and substrates are well suited to certain builds.
For example, Tim Weber, global head of 3D materials, HP Inc. points out that steel materials are most commonly used for industries such as automotive, medical, consumer, and industrial applications. HP’s polymer materials are used for a range of applications including tools, jigs, consumer, and industrial products.
Henke;’s materials are commonly utilized for rapid prototyping, design validation, and end-use parts for industrial markets. “With distinctive material properties and validated workflows, our users can consistently create parts that rival traditional manufacturing with a fraction of the cost,” offers Cindy Deekitwong, global head of marketing for new business, Henkel.
Matt Torosian, director of product management, AM materials, Jabil, lists several additive materials and applications that he sees in the marketplace. Powders, including its polyamide 12 copolymer are utilized for prototyping and serial production, while thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) is primarily used for serial production. For filaments, he says polylactic acid is typically used for prototypes; polyethylene terephthalate glycol (PETg) for prototype and serial production; PETg electrostatic discharge for prototype and jigs, fixtures, and tooling; acrylonitrile butadiene styrene for prototyping; acrylonitrile styrene acrylate for prototype and serial production; polycarbonates for prototype and serial production; polycarbonate fire retardant for prototype and serial production; polyamide for prototype and serial production; polyamide alloy for prototype and serial production, jigs, fixtures, and tooling; polyamide carbon fiber for prototype and serial production; TPU for prototype and serial production; and styrene ethylene butylene styrene, for prototype and serial production.
In terms of pricing, Jabil focuses on developing low-cost materials with ever-increasing functionality to drive AM adoption for rigorous industrial applications.
While Toni Parker, marketing communications manager, Adaptive3D, admits that Adaptive3D doesn’t share pricing publicly, its materials are competitively priced to fit within the cost structure of parts in series production. “We encourage interested parties to contact our resellers worldwide for individual pricing,” he adds.
Henkel’s pricing is heavily influenced by market analysis. However, the company does take different approaches depending on a variety of factors including its partners’ go-to-market strategy, volumes, and key competitive advantages, according to Deekitwong.
Weber says material innovation is a key differentiator for HP. “We work closely with the leading materials companies around the world to offer our customers a variety of cost-effective materials that enable the development of new innovative final parts and applications across industries.”
For example, with BASF, a foundational partner in HP’s 3D printing materials ecosystem, Weber shares that the companies collaborated on materials innovation and joint development of new applications to realize breakthrough economics and faster design processes for high-quality 3D printed parts. “Together, we introduced a first-of-its-kind sustainable, industrial-grade polypropylene developed for HP’s Jet Fusion 5200 Series 3D printing system. Additionally, we’ve seen widespread application development with ULTRASINT TPU01 thermoplastic polyurethane, released last year.”
Supply Chain Considerations
The global supply chain is under extreme distress in many industries due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. However, rest assured that most 3D material manufacturers we connected with are not experiencing issues.
“We currently aren’t experiencing any major supply chain issues as all raw materials are readily available,” says Torosian. In some cases, he admits Jabil is experiencing slightly longer lead times when securing raw materials—of about four to 12 weeks, but overall have not been impacted much by these delays.
“Adaptive3D has amazing relationships with our global supply partners. As a supplier to manufacturers of end parts and products we cannot afford any lag in our system. Therefore we build redundancy into our supply chain and ensure that there is no weak link,” explains Parker.
Deekitwong admits that while COVID-19 has impacted supply chains across all industries, Henkel has been very fortunate to experience minimal disruption. “As a global company with experiences in a variety of industrial markets, we benefit from a parenting advantage to consistently source raw materials and packaging. By performing regular forecasting and maintaining open communication with our internal team and external partners, we can properly anticipate the market needs and add a buffer to cover any unexpected growth.”
Weber adds that HP has not seen any supply chain issues related to materials at this time.
Build Out
AM technologies rely on a range of materials to build a variety of end products and parts, either for production or prototyping. Material providers are hard at work ensuring fair pricing and availability during a global pandemic.
Read part one, Material Matters
Nov2021, Industrial Print Magazine