After collecting data from GrabCAD users (maybe even from you or your company), we have created a premium version of GrabCAD Print which will solve common 3D printing issues.  

This enhanced software reduces costs, print time, and manpower by utilizing automated processes, templates, and cost estimations.   

Welcome to GrabCAD Print Pro. 

GrabCAD Print Pro focuses on typical customer needs that will accelerate 3D printing, including:  

• Reliability
• Consistency 
• Traceability 
• Speed 
• Throughput 
• Part cost and quality 
• Reproducibility 
• Part design optimization 
• Rapid prototyping 

“New GrabCAD Print Pro geometry analysis, correction, and optimization capabilities eliminate the need to also use Magics or Insight for high performance parts.” - Aerospace Print Programmer

Therefore, by upgrading to GrabCAD Print Pro, you will experience reduced prep time to print as well as less scrap. This leads to greater savings and better efficiency.

GrabCAD Print Pro Features:

 

Accuracy Center  

Achieve unprecedented part accuracy for mission-critical projects and volume production.  

Manufacturing Templates  

Save print settings for common print job types to speed up workflow and synchronize your team.  

Nesting

With GrabCAD Print Pro, you can build more parts in a single print.

3rd Party Partner Plug-ins  

We are working with the best in the industry for MES, DRM, PLM, and analytics to provide a complete software solution.  

FIPS

GrabCAD Print Pro runs on FIPS compliant computers. 

Per-Part Time Estimation  

When printing multiple models in one build, quickly see the time estimate for each model instead of one grouped estimation.  

GrabCAD Releases:

GrabCAD Print Pro will be officially available for FDM and SAF on May 16th.

Additional features like labeling, sustainability calculations, DFAM checks, and textures are planned to be released in the coming months.  

Also keep an eye out for the Polyjet, P3, and Stereolithography to be added to GrabCAD Print Pro. 

Learn more about GrabCAD Print Pro here.

Throughout 2023, supply chains will continue to experience challenges and delays, affecting production and shipments worldwide. 

According to PR Newswire, Coupa Software found that 82% of supply chain leaders believe that these problems will remain the same or become even worse over the next 6-12 months.  

During 2022, four out of five organizations experienced one notable supply chain issue and 50% experienced three or more setbacks.  

Is this starting to sound familiar? 

Do you feel like we are living in a strange, recurring Groundhog Day? 

If so, Dr. Madhav Durbha, Vice President of Supply Chain Innovation at Coupa agrees with you. He believes that, “with climate change and geopolitical tensions expected to impact food and cause disruptions, now is the time for supply chain leaders to take initiative and be creative as to how they can invest and improve their operations.” 

So how can we resolve these supply chain delays? 

By utilizing additive manufacturing, companies can control output and will no longer have to rely on the supply chain. 

Cheaper and quicker prototypes

Additive manufacturing enables businesses to prototype products and designs faster, resulting in greater cost-efficiency. After utilizing the Stratasys J55 Prime 3D printer, SEONG YUN TECH decreased the cost of prototyping from KRW 10 million to KRW 100,000. 

Since their manufacturing schedule was shortened from a month to a few days, SEONG YUN TECH implemented design changes immediately. With this quick turnaround, the semi-permanent makeup machine models were ready within two to three days.  

According to the CEO of SEONG YUN TECH, Dongmin Lee, “using Stratasys’ 3D printers delivered tremendous synergy in product development, and these printers have been essential for the company’s development. We experienced that expanding into additive manufacturing enhances the agility of product planning and manufacturing.”

Overcome part shortages

When Stratasys first began producing the H350 3D printers, the PCB Stepper Controller Board was discontinued due to COVID-19 delays. Since this was vital for the printer to operate correctly, the team replaced the part with a different electronics board. The only drawback was that this new board required air cooling.

In order to solve this problem, the H350 Production team used the H350 3D printer to produce a circuit board bracket. This part easily secures a fan to the electronics board. The bracket doesn’t need any tools or screws, streamlining product assembly. By printing this optimized part in-house, production for the H350 could continue and was no longer affected by supply chain delays.

Another instance when the H350 effectively resolved shipping issues was in March 2021. Eighty large housing parts were stuck on the Ever Given container ship in the Suez Canal. Philipp Götz, CEO of Götz Maschinenbau, a mechanical engineering company, was asked by one of his customers for assistance. With the H350, Götz was able to finish this order in only two weeks, enabling his customer to complete their machines and meet required deadlines.  

Instantly print replacement parts

Each month, at Siemens Mobility’s flagship site RRX Rail Service Center, a hundred trains enter and leave the depot. In order to be equipped for issues and maintain flexibility, Siemens utilizes the Stratasys Fortus 450mc 3D printer.

As a Siemens representative stated, “this is where FDM additive manufacturing fits in perfectly. [It provides] us with the capability to rapidly and cost-effectively produce one-off, customized production parts.” 

Parts print within hours, as compared to the weeks or months it may take with casting. According to Tina Eufinger, Siemens Mobility Division, “within a week, we can iterate and optimize the design. [And] then 3D print a final, customized production-grade part. This has [allowed] us to reduce the manufacturing time of each part by up to 95%. [This] has significantly sped up our ability to respond to customers.” This is essential in the railway industry since repairs are constantly required, typically after an accident.

Taking matters into their own hands

Additive manufacturing allows suppliers to break free from their reliance on supply chains and finally end this Groundhog Day-esque cycle.

By printing in-house and on-demand, companies can gain control over their operations and production.

Whether it be prototypes, acquiring that last part, or repairs, additive manufacturing enables companies to be self-sufficient.

3D printing technology is now used in almost every major industry, but how exactly is it galvanized in the music world? This may not be a sector you’d immediately associate with additive manufacturing, and yet there are some interesting ways in which the technology is being harnessed.

3D printing is a viable alternative to traditional subtractive manufacturing, since it encourages innovative designs, the use of unique materials, faster lead times and an even greater scale of mass production.

The Music Industry Today

Within the arts at large, 3D printing is making its mark in areas such as fashion preserving history, film making and sculptures. The most common and well known commercial collaboration of 3D printing and the music industry tends to be in creating musical instruments such as ukuleles and guitars.

Indeed, there are companies that exclusively make 3D printed musical instruments and products, including Oddguitars, Monastudio, and 3D-Varius.

Then there’s the instances of 3D printing instruments within the hobby community. However, we’re now seeing 3D printing be utilized for the production of headphones, speakers and microphones, among other things.

What’s more, larger companies within the music industry are increasingly beginning to look to 3D printing and what it can do to further their success.

The benefits of using 3D printing within the music industry

There are numerous benefits to a 3D printing and music industry ‘collab’. To name but a few:

• Additive manufacturing process can allow for non traditional product design with innovative shapes and aesthetics
• Additive manufacturing can shorten the production time of products which could increase mass production and potentially mass customization for a consumer
• Additive manufacturing can also encourage the use of more exotic/non-traditional materials when constructing these products.

Instruments

Ordinarily, musical instruments are relatively expensive. However, 3D printing can make them more affordable whilst enabling the musician to tailor the instrument to their needs.

Various instruments can be 3D printed, from guitars and flutes, to pianos and violins.

Speakers

To date, most speakers have been presented as simple cuboid structures, restricted by traditional manufacturing design limitations. However, sound waves are not able to travel optimally from a cuboid speaker enclosure.

The 3D printing of speakers gives companies the chance to quite literally ‘think outside the box’ and create newly shaped, potentially smaller, more visually appealing and more sonically rich speakers for the market.

UK based industrial design company, Node, created the HYLIXA speaker (which comes as a set of two) and hits those very targets. Smaller than a traditional cuboid speaker with the same capabilities, it features a Helical Transmission Line which enhances the overall sound, in particular any base frequencies.

Importantly, its unique curved design – enabled via Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) additive manufacturing processes – helps to reduce any unwanted vibrational frequencies.

• Quick recap on SLS: SLS fuses powdered materials using a heat source such as a laser. The layer-by-layer process enables much more complex shapes to be created vs traditional manufacturing methods.

David Evans, industrial designer and founder at Node said:

“[The speaker] has almost a ceramic-like quality to the touch, which helped us both structurally and sonically. As designers, we could freely exploit SLS production to create the internal structure, but also design something that looked as beautiful as it sounds.”

Headphones

There are in fact several companies now offering 3D printed headphones.

Armadillo headphones: Ultra foldable headphones that protect damage to the ear-cups when not in use. 98% of the headphones can be created via 3D printing. No screws are needed to assemble the Armadillo Headphones (the parts all snap together to form a solid product). The design works with PLA, ABS, and all other plastics that are sufficiently flexible and strong. Can be adjusted to four different sizes once made. Option to build these using an at home 3D printer.

Moondrop Blessing 2 earbuds: The buds have high transparency, hardness and precision. Accurate seal within the ear for greater control over internal or external sound filtering and resonance.

Print+ headphones: At home 3D headphone printing kit that consists of the electrical components such as speakers, push button remote, mic, cushions, audio cable and headband. All you need to do is print the plastic components. No screws, glue or soldering required for assembly. Option to tailor headphones to the design, material and color you like. With the headphones being produced on demand, production is made sustainable through the elimination of waste from overproduction, pollution from transport and faster turnaround times.

Print+’s founder Patrick Schuur explains the ethos behind the product: “The core idea of print+ is to inspire people to move away from this wave of hyper consumption to one in which we connect with our goods through being their producer. By producing ourselves we in turn gain the ability to fix them, upgrade them and appreciate their functionality.”

 

Microphones

UK-based instrument manufacturer Sonuus offers a 3D printed microphone known as Loopa. Its the world’s very first microphone with a built-in looper engine, which enables vocalists to loop their voice using just a handheld microphone as opposed to foot pedals and footswitches, or using digital recording software.

 

Final thoughts

3D Printing is impacting the music industry in numerous ways. The creation of instruments, speakers, headphones and even microphones via additive manufacturing is providing more opportunities for greater efficiency, increased personalization and greater innovation within the music sector.

Most industries that have integrated 3D printing into their manufacturing processes have made revolutionary steps forward in terms of production efficiency, product quality and opportunity for growth at scale. The music industry is therefore no exception and the implications for the future of design within the sector are enormous.

Additive manufacturing has been making great strides in the field of medicine. Through AM’s rapid production, we were able to combat the spread of disease during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. When surgeons and young medical professionals needed training, additive was able to create hyper-realistic medical models. In a more recent story we even covered the world’s first 3D printed ear.

On the other end of the spectrum for printing, some militaries have used additive to aid in the manufacture of spare parts for things like fighter jets and tanks. Jigs and fixtures which have applications across industries are also widely used by militaries. One use of additive manufacturing that we have only started to see however is its capacity to save lives in active warzones or conflicts.

The 3D Printed Tourniquet In Ukraine

In war, one of the major causes of death in relation to battlefield injuries is loss of blood. According to researchers at Sun Yat-Sen University “In military settings, severe hemorrhages account for 50% of deaths, among which 80% are caused by the non-compressible injuries. This number used to be significantly higher before Jean-Louis Petit invented the tourniquet in 1718.

The tourniquet is a medical device used to stop the flow of blood through a vein or artery by compressing an affected limb via a cord or bandage. There are currently 3 types of tourniquets: surgical, rehabilitation, and combat variants. Due to continuing disruptions to global supply chains, these life saving devices have been in short supply. This impact had been especially felt by the combatants in the Russo-Ukrainian war.

Seeing these shortages and rising death toll. Jakub Kaminski, a graduate from the Worcester Polytech University (WPI) along with other volunteers designed a tourniquet that was robust, easy to print, easy to assemble, that was high quality for use in armed conflicts. Shortly after its inception the design has since found its way onto the internet. Companies and individuals alike have started to create and send these tourniquets to Ukraine.

3D Printed “Bone Bricks”

Within the conflict in Syria, improvised explosives, mines, and aerial bombardments were heavily used within the years of 2012-2018. These weapons caused great damage to buildings but also killed more than 11,000 civilians. Those who weren't killed during these instances often suffered grievous injuries and one of the most common ones were various bone fractures.

These fractures could range from mild to severe enough to require orthopedic surgery or intervention. Depending on the field conditions, proper medical equipment can be hard to come by or take time to reach the hands of medical professionals. This is especially true to those operating out of refugee camps. Even if proper medical procedures were able to be conducted, it would be difficult for those treated to then recover and implement any form of post care without duress.

Thankfully during the Syrian War, researchers at the Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) have been researching a temporary, “bone brick” that could be configured, stacked, and placed into an affected bone to stabilize and encourage recovery. The brick is a mix of polymers and ceramics that allow the bone to grow with support then start to dissolve as new bone continues to form.

“The 3D-printed microcage technology improves healing by stimulating the right type of cells to grow in the right place, and at the right time,” said OHSU postdoctoral scholar and study co-author Dr Ramesh Subbiah in July. “Different growth factors can be placed inside each block, enabling us to more precisely and quickly repair tissue.”

Recovery Being a Print Away

Additive manufacturing has the potential to do great things in medicine even in the face of conflicts. More than ever, the world is using 3D printing to fabricate lifesaving ideas and send them to people who need them. Whether we like it or not there are intersections where almost any major technology can be used to conduct war but there is also a way that it can be used to benefit the lives of others. In the future, other tensions may cause challenges to the additive manufacturing industry however the technology will continue to grow and meet the world head on.