Saving Time And Money With 3D Printing

An essential tool for everyone on the design team.
Dimension 3D printing can help you quickly fine tune Saving time and money with 3D printing.designs and cut weeks - even months - from your development schedule. Now you can test form, fit andfunction and explore as many design iterations as youlike - over your network, right from your desktop.
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Powered by leading Stratasys technology.What is 3D printing? one relatively simple part per week to an outside service
An ideal complement to CAD, 3D printing offers a fast, provider could, by comparison, pay for a 3D printer in a
low-cost alternative for building concept and working matter of months - and maintain control and confiden-
models. Designed for workstation and network access tiality internally.
much like a standard laser printer, 3D printing is growingin usage along with the unprecedented growth of CADsolid modeling.
Both rapid prototyping (RP) and 3D printing technolo-gies build models layer by layer from STL data. The costdifference per part between 3D print-ing and RP systems can be signifi-cant. Including material, machinedepreciation, system maintenance andlabor, a part built using RP technology3D printing makes exploring multiple design can cost nearly twice as much com-iterations more efficient and cost-effective. pared to 3D printing.
More expensive RP systems are often centrally locatedwith a dedicated staff functioning much like an in-house Change costs more over time.
service bureau. 3D printers are smaller, more affordableand suitable for installation near an end user providing Design cycles are fast becoming more compressed and
convenience and ease of use that eliminates "depart- accelerated. Speed to market is a significant competitive
mental delay." advantage. Studies show a product six months late tomarket will have already lost up to 33% of its gross
Outsource vs. Inhouse. profit potential.
Enlisting a service provider to build prototype parts 3D printing quickly enables better communication and
requires exchanging confidential STL data. Turnaround collaboration between everyone involved in the process.
time depends on the quality and complexity of the STL Poor communication, extensive changes and missed
file and can require additional CAD work. deadlines increase costs exponentially throughout eachstep of design and development. A Wohlers Industry
While there are many variables in comparing service Report notes that a modest engineering change costing
provider costs with internal 3D printing costs, i.e., part $100 in the Proof of Concept phase could escalate to a
complexity, size and tolerances, etc., a company sending staggering $1,000,000 when the product is in the field.
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