If you’re as geeky about 3D printing as we are, you love seeing innovative applications of 3D print technologies in the news every day. This week’s story of the US Olympic Luge team utilizing FDM technology to manufacture prototypes of its racing sleds is another example of ingenuity in the application of additive materials.
The Team USA story reinforces the extensive use of FDM technology. FDM reigns as the most used 3D print technology for good reason – it offers advantages with its excellent strength-to-weight ratio and durability, low cost, and range of material options. However, with FDM prints, you are left with support material and seam lines between layers, requiring additional processing to become a functional part.
Today’s current methods of post-printing FDM parts certainly don’t align with the creative nature of the application of the technology…hand-held picks, pliers, sandpaper, and tubs using harsh chemicals requiring face masks and chemical-resistant gloves are the results you will return with a quick web search.
That’s why we’ve pioneered efficient and effective automated and intelligent support removal systems for advanced polymers like FDM. Our Support Removal Spray machines utilize multi-directional nozzles at high mass flow rates to provide an environment best suited for additive materials – hands-free, effective removal of support materials with low damage rates. Our systems adjust parameters such as speed, distance, direction, temperature, pressure, and pH all under software control. Driven by an intuitive software program, the system purposefully varies the levels of key parameters such as changes in spray pressure, duration of pause, and speed of travel to clean even the most complex geometries seen in additive manufactured polymer parts.
The PostProcess solution doesn’t end with hardware. In the constantly growing field of additive manufacturing, agile and responsive chemical development is constantly needed to optimize operations. Using a unique blend of eco-friendly detergents (aqueous in nature) at low concentrations in water, generally less than 10%, and a comparatively low pressure, the PostProcess solution is a faster, easier to use, and more production-oriented solution.
Our Support Removal Spray machines routinely achieve a 75% reduction in support removal cycle times when compared to old-school tub systems, largely due to our tireless chemical development. This is all achieved with an eye on the bottom line. Efficient support removal on FDM, SLA, and Polyjet parts is possible without exposing the workforce to harmful solutions, at a price that is marginal compared to the cost of traditional operations.
We promise to keep innovating to alleviate the post-printing bottleneck, so you can free up your precious time and resources and fill up our news feed with the newest and neatest applications of 3D printing.
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