TriMech Blog

3D printing processes are easy to implement and offer a wide variety of materials to support a part’s requirements while eliminating cost, lead time and design barriers for adopting manufacturing aids on the shop floor. 3D printed composites are an exciting new trend. Whether it is chopped carbon fiber filled into a thermoplastic or continuously laid inside of a 3D print geometry, the benefits of the strength-to-weight ratio are far superior to traditional 3D printed materials. In this blog post, we’ll compare continuous fiber, chopped fiber filled nylon and Stratasys Nylon 12CF and when it’s best to use them while 3D printing parts or prototypes.

Today, quadcopters, more commonly referred to as "Drones," have evolved into many different categories. From Scenic Quads that are GPS controlled, used to capture amazing scenery and widely used for movie/video photography to a $5 toy for an indoor flying session, drones have become instinctively popular. Now with the advancement in 3D printing materials such as thermoplastics in the Stratasys FDM family, for years we have been replacing traditional manufacturing tools and end-use parts.

We want to tell you about a great application for our Stratasys FDM printers: 3D printing sacrificial cores. This is perfect for creating composite parts (such as hollow carbon fiber auto parts) with higher precision than traditional methods. Perhaps the best part is that it doesn’t require much complexity or expense on the 3D printing side, and the results are arguably better than you get with traditional methods. You’re getting the end-use part, in the real composite material, but with more design flexibility and smooth surfaces inside and out.

3D printing processes are easy to implement and offer a wide variety of materials to support a part’s requirements while eliminating cost, lead time and design barriers to adopting manufacturing aids on the shop floor. 3D printed jigs and fixtures open up new possibilities for manufacturing-floor productivity, with fast and nearly labor-free production that doesn't require the overhead of highly skilled CAM programmers and machinists.

The fact that most companies have had 3D printers or an additive manufacturing center in-house for years now is not surprising. Stratasys systems are more than capable to do whatever we throw at them. For the purposes of comparing a week's worth of productivity with and without 3D printer training, I decided to explore one of our current client's workflows. This client owns two of Stratasys' newest FDM systems, the Fortus 450mc and an F370mc. 

Things are getting spooky in the TriMech office, as we demonstrate how you can maximize your scan-to-print capabilities on a real pumpkin. Watch the on-demand webinar below for tips on optimizing your reverse engineering workflow and integrating scanning, design and printing solutions.

Think of an object or scenario that you want to capture and render into a CAD software. Imagine the color, transparency, surface finish and size. Is it compatible to 3D scan? If so, what 3D scanning technology (or technologies) make the most sense to use?

In this blog, we explore how to choose and use multiple scanners in the same scanned file. Here's how:

3D scanning is growing in popularity, becoming incorporated in every vertical from Engineering and Design, to Architecture and Science, to Sculpture reconstruction and Healthcare. This technology is nimble, showing off its speed for reverse engineering, data acquisition and communication. Many industries are benefiting from 3D scanning applications — particularly the Medical Industry.

Here is how 3D scanning can be used in the following medical sectors:

Depending on your manufacturing sector, you likely use a variety of applications from tooling to jigs and fixtures to production parts. In this blog, we cover three of those tooling applications, specifically highlighting injection molding/blow molding, metal hydroforming/thermoforming and carbon fiber layups/soluble cores.

If you have not heard about the term 3DIM or 3D injection molds, it has been around for several years. Originally, this started with prototype injection molds out of aluminum and served the purpose of pre-phase or beta versions and functional testing for the R&D process. While this process was faster than using traditional P21 tooling, it still required a large investment of time and money to get a simple tool. Thanks to 3DIM and Stratasys PolyJet 3D printers, we now have a more streamlined process.

3D scanning is an increasingly popular technology, especially when it comes to reverse engineering. In this blog, I outline why 3D scanning solutions are making their way into companies, their relationship with reverse engineering and how you can incorporate this technology in your design workflow.

Our Q&A blog series looks at different members of our team and their perspective on the most current 3D printing and SOLIDWORKS CAD technology. This month’s Q&A features Juan Carlos Gandiaga and 3D Scanning.