Rapid prototyping with thermojet object printer offers flexibility for testing parts

摘要

The introduction of a Thermojet 3D solid object printer 10 months ago at the Victorian firm A.W. Bell, has more than halved the lead time for the production of prototype parts. According to the Patterns Manager Mark Smith, a part can now be produced in three weeks whereas using conventional tooling methods could take from 6 to 10 weeks depending on the complexity of the shape. "Today casting accuracy and lead times are very critical. To make tooling by conventional means can take up to 10 weeks depending on the complexity of the part and a customer still can't be confident that the part is what they require. Using the Thermojet technology, we can make three or four parts for the customer to use for machine testing before they spend large amounts of money on hard tooling. Any modifications can then be made prior to producing production tooling."