Manufacturing businesses strive to find ways to increase productivity on a daily basis. Whole departments are tasked with ensuring that production runs as smoothly and efficiently as possible. Cycle times, machine performance and tool change-overs are just some of the factors impacting on productivity – each in its own way.
3D-printed production tools offer a new approach to all of these challenges. Improve the tools and fixtures – by changing the way they are made - and you can have a direct impact on the productivity of your line overall.
Discover how your production could benefit with 3D Printed Production Tools.
5 Production Line Challenges 3D Printing can Solve
Applications - 3D Printed Production Tools
3D Printing offers a way of drastically improving or completely changing the way production tools are made. With 3D Printing, tools such as jigs, fixtures, nozzles, feeder bowls and brackets, can be made lighter, stronger, better, more fit for purpose. They can be made in less time for less money. They can be redesigned to do more, increase throughput, improve quality, boost competitiveness.
In use on production lines every day the purpose of these tools is to make or assemble products quickly, easily and accurately. They can be manual tools, or installed on automated machinery or robots - what they have in common is that each is designed to perform a very specific task.
These tools, and their performance all have a direct impact on the output off the line. When you consider their collective impact it all adds up. What if you could change even just one or two tools and see an effect on your productivity – surely that makes 3D Printing worth a look?
Reasons to use 3D Printing
- Reduce weight
- Improve air or liquid flow
- Reduce lead times, costs and stock
- Shorten time to market
- Facilitate new product introduction
Food Extrusion Nozzle
Patterns for Investment Casting
Custom 3D Printed Finger Grippers
Vacuum Gripper
Metal Suction Gripper
Stainless Steel Suction Gripper
Metrology Fixtures
Flexible Finger Grippers
Customer Cases
Discover how other businesses are benefiting from 3D Printed Production Tools:
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If you’d like to discuss production line applications with a member of the Materialise team, simply complete the form below and we will be in touch!
About Materialise
Materialise incorporates 30 years of 3D printing experience into a range of software solutions and 3D printing services, which together form the backbone of the 3D printing industry. Materialise’s open and flexible solutions enable players in a wide variety of industries, including health care, automotive, aerospace, art and design, and consumer goods, to build innovative 3D printing applications that aim to make the world a better and healthier place. Headquartered in Belgium, with branches worldwide, Materialise combines the largest group of software developers in the industry with one of the largest and most complete 3D printing facilities in the world.