Schneider Electric relies on the F170 for a
range of production applications, including
assembly-line tools, jigs, fixtures, robot grippers
and other end-of-arm tools – all of which were
previously outsourced to third parties and
produced using expensive injection molding or
CNC processes. The company uses Stratasys
PLA, ABS and ASA materials to replace a wide
array of previously aluminum tools. One such
example is the production of grippers for robotic
arms. Leveraging its F170 3D Printer, the team
discovered a method to not only improve the
performance of the robots, but also secure major
cost savings.
“It’s not uncommon for aluminum parts of the
mold to break when they collide, and when they
do, be very expensive to replace,” explained
Otamendi. “To circumvent this, we are now able
to replace costly aluminum grippers for robotic
arms with 3D printed alternatives using PLA.”
The 3D printed tool offers the same mechanical
performance properties as the traditional tool,
and helps protect more expensive aluminum
parts when the molds collide.
“Should the 3D
printed tool break, we can quickly 3D print a lowcost replacement within hours. To put the costsaving into perspective - outsourcing a machined
gripper used to cost us 200 euros per tool. Now
we can 3D print one on-demand for around 100
euros each,” Otamendi said.
The F170 also lets the team design and
implement customized tooling on-demand.
They
have 3D printed various customized assemblyline tools with cavity inserts to hold key items
in place during production, ensuring optimal
efficiency and precision.
“Another great application are the tools used for
our hand presses – we’re able to design and 3D
print both the bottom and upper part of the tool,
tailored to each specific final product to increase
performance,” said Otamendi.
“Not only are we able to efficiently produce our
manufacturing tools in-house, but we now also
have the capability to design the tools we need in
the exact shape, size and quantity required.”
In addition to the more streamlined production
workflow, Otamendi believes integrating FDM
technology has led to significant cost savings
and reduced time-to-market in key areas.
“In the past year, using Stratasys FDM additive
manufacturing we’ve achieved a saving of about
€20,000 in the production of assembly-line
tooling alone,” he said. “The time-savings are
equally important to us as a business. Using
the F170 we’re able to produce new highperformance tools in just one day, whereas
it would have taken at least one week to
outsource the same tools previously. This
reduces our dependency on suppliers and gives
us much more control over tool production,
which has increased the overall flexibility of our
manufacturing process and accelerated our timeto-market for many products.”
Schneider Electric relies on the F170 for a
range of production applications, including
assembly-line tools, jigs, fixtures, robot grippers
and other end-of-arm tools – all of which were
previously outsourced to third parties and
produced using expensive injection molding or
CNC processes. The company uses Stratasys
PLA, ABS and ASA materials to replace a wide
array of previously aluminum tools. One such
example is the production of grippers for robotic
arms. Leveraging its F170 3D Printer, the team
discovered a method to not only improve the
performance of the robots, but also secure major
cost savings.
“It’s not uncommon for aluminum parts of the
mold to break when they collide, and when they
do, be very expensive to replace,” explained
Otamendi. “To circumvent this, we are now able
to replace costly aluminum grippers for robotic
arms with 3D printed alternatives using PLA.”
The 3D printed tool offers the same mechanical
performance properties as the traditional tool,
and helps protect more expensive aluminum
parts when the molds collide.
“Should the 3D
printed tool break, we can quickly 3D print a lowcost replacement within hours. To put the costsaving into perspective - outsourcing a machined
gripper used to cost us 200 euros per tool. Now
we can 3D print one on-demand for around 100
euros each,” Otamendi said.
The F170 also lets the team design and
implement customized tooling on-demand.
They
have 3D printed various customized assemblyline tools with cavity inserts to hold key items
in place during production, ensuring optimal
efficiency and precision.
“Another great application are the tools used for
our hand presses – we’re able to design and 3D
print both the bottom and upper part of the tool,
tailored to each specific final product to increase
performance,” said Otamendi.
“Not only are we able to efficiently produce our
manufacturing tools in-house, but we now also
have the capability to design the tools we need in
the exact shape, size and quantity required.”
In addition to the more streamlined production
workflow, Otamendi believes integrating FDM
technology has led to significant cost savings
and reduced time-to-market in key areas.
“In the past year, using Stratasys FDM additive
manufacturing we’ve achieved a saving of about
€20,000 in the production of assembly-line
tooling alone,” he said. “The time-savings are
equally important to us as a business. Using
the F170 we’re able to produce new highperformance tools in just one day, whereas
it would have taken at least one week to
outsource the same tools previously. This
reduces our dependency on suppliers and gives
us much more control over tool production,
which has increased the overall flexibility of our
manufacturing process and accelerated our timeto-market for many products.”
