Can additive manufacturing solve supply chain issues?

Faster lead times

Additive manufacturing allows for faster prototyping and low volume production, helping companies accelerate the design iteration and product validation processes to get their products to market faster. For example, in response to COVID-19, we developed a face shield that was first produced using additive manufacturing, but — in response to increased demand — was later shifted to injection molding in order to scale production.

Plus, since there’s no need for tooling, you can print end-use parts within a few hours or days instead of spending weeks or months for setup associated with designing and fabricating tooling, like a mold, as you would when injection molding. Essentially, you can start the production run as soon as the final design is complete and a printer is available.

Increased flexibility and agility

3D printers enable companies to print parts on demand, offering incredible flexibility and agility. Not only can companies quickly and cheaply create custom products with 3D printing technology, but they can also easily produce more or less of a product as demand shifts.

While ramping up production with injection molding, design changes after release can mean waiting weeks or months for another tool to be created. With the elimination of tooling, 3D printing enables companies to shift gears quickly. For example, during the early stages of the pandemic, HP printed over 2.3 million medical components, including nasal swabs, personal protective equipment, and ventilator parts when the demand was dynamically growing. Had they used injection molding, they would have needed to design and manufacture a mold, which could have taken months.

Decentralized production

Using 3D printing technology will also enable companies to decentralize production. Instead of producing goods in a single location and shipping them worldwide, companies can manufacture goods close to or at their point of use. Distributed production can drastically shorten the supply chain, eliminating many potential bottlenecks and accelerating a product’s time to market, so it’s hardly surprising that 52% of companies were considering localized production in 2021.

By manufacturing products closer to their final destination, companies can sidestep many traditional problems associated with imported products, from delays caused by clogged ports to COVID-19 lockdowns to rapidly rising prices and tariffs due to trade wars. Shifting towards additive technology and a decentralized production system can also help companies get products in consumers’ hands faster, avoid the cost of long-haul shipping, and cut back on transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions.

Reduced warehousing costs

3D printers allow companies to manufacture goods on-demand, meaning you can produce the exact number of parts you need and then ship them directly to your customers, more perfectly matching supply and demand. Instead of buying or renting a warehouse, you can rely on digital inventories and produce parts whenever a customer submits an order.

Since warehouse vacancy is at just 3.6% and demand will likely only increase as more companies reshore manufacturing and diversify their supply chains, printing on demand and shifting to a digital warehouse rather than storing physical inventory can help save a significant amount of capital.

Read the Full article….

https://www.fastradius.com/resources/can-additive-manufacturing-solve-supply-chain-issues/