Will Additive Layer Manufacturing herald the age of the Universal Factory?
The universal factory has long been a utopian dream and a science fiction staple, but next-generation Additive Layer Manufacturing (ALM) could make it a reality. Success would radically change our economy. A factory capable of manufacturing to order almost any part rapidly, at a scale, when needed would be revolutionary.
The implications are enormous, from reshoring jobs to shortening supply chains and reducing transport emissions. But ever since the first ALM experiments decades ago, the technology has struggled to scale outside some particular applications in the manufacturing world.
The application of ALM is typically confined to low-volume parts. This is due to the high cycle times required to print products. New ALM technologies are coming online that significantly increase manufacturing speed. Greater speed unlocks the door to high-volume manufacturing industries. This will create a virtuous circle of ever-greater industrial adoption, lower cost, and innovation.
If your product or part is made of one and only one material, ALM is a powerful manufacturing option. But many products and parts consist of multi-materials and often contain embedded electronics. Think of a piece like the dashboard of a car, for example. Advances in multi-material printing are coming thick and fast. We are already beginning to see a new generation of hybrid products combining both additive and conventional manufacturing techniques.
The final part of the ALM puzzle is increasing the consistency and quality of ALM parts and the time to find the manufacturing process to achieve this. Simulation is deeply rooted in part engineering. It is moving into production control systems, enabling them to adjust the printing in real time. When combined with high computing power and more refined control algorithms that use Machine Learning, the result is ever-better process control (temperature, speed, etc.) and increased part consistency and quality.
Breakthroughs are being made in ALM speed, multi-material ALM, and greater quality and consistency. Each offers a significant commercial advantage. But the most fantastic prize is for those who master all three, for they will hold the keys to a new manufacturing age. Game on.