Presenter: Jyrki Savolainen
Co-authors: Ilkka Poutiainen, Marika Hirvimäki, Kari Ullakko, Ville Laitinen
The interest in additive manufacturing (AM), commonly known as 3D printing, has grown enormously over the last decade. AM is a novel way to produce unique parts offering new business opportunities and improved environmental sustainability of production. The current literature on AM emphasizes its positive effects on the sustainability of global production supply chains. We claim that the AM design and production can either positively or negatively influence the final product’s overall cost and resource efficiency.
Metal powders for AM are expensive, and manufacturing these powders consumes significantly more energy than sheet or bar materials. In this paper, we discuss how cost-effectiveness and sustainability are achieved when parts are redesigned using, e.g., lattice structures, an optimal printing position, and minimizing the need for post-processing.