Mining editorial

The mining boom may has slowed in recent times, and mining companies all over Australia are looking for ways to reduce costs and improve efficiency. One such tool that has already helped so many other industries in this country is also ideally suited to the mining industry.That tool is 3D Printing.The mining industry in this country is yet to embrace the benefits of 3d printing.We are not talking about the home hobby printer here that is getting so much attention these days. Looking at most media reports, you would be forgiven for thinking 3d printers produce roughly built trinkets the size of a coffee cup.Instead, we are talking about hi-end professional, accurate, commercial 3D Production systems.Yes, that’s right, 3D “Production” systems. Systems capable of building parts up to 900x600x900high.You choose the material you wish to build your parts, from a range of traditional thermoplastics including ABS, Polycarbonate, PC-ABS blends, and ultra-high performance Ultem and PPSF. Some of these 3D printed materials withstand temperatures of 160 to 180 DegC.

With the mining boom slowing, now is the perfect opportunity to learn how 3d printing can help reduce overall business costs while improving product quality. The business costs 3d printing can reduce are wide and varied. Low volume production parts, reduced cost of tooling, R&D development, reduced time to market, product development time and cost, producing scale models of mines or plants, marketing and sales models and the list goes on…

Traditional manufacturing and or prototyping can be a slow and costly option compared with the speed and low cost manufacturing of 3d printed parts."We commonly see cost savings of 50-80% compared with traditional manufacturing and prototyping methods. Time savings can be even greater for parts or tools such as jigs and fixtures that are 3D printed”, states Matt Minio, Managing Director of Objective3D, supplier of Stratasys 3D Printers, the largest 3D printing brand in the world.“And don’t think that because the parts and tools are plastic that they won’t perform.Stratasys Production systems use the same thermoplastic materials that are traditionally used in the injection moulding process, so you can be sure our 3d printed parts will produce tough, durable and functional parts.”

The following example is a Polycarbonate 3D printed tool that was printed on a Fortus 400 3D production system. The metal blank is hydro formed over the Ultem 3d printed plastic tool at a pressure of 10000 PSI. You won’t get 100,000 parts off the tool, but for low volume production runs, 3D printing offers many compelling advantages:This tool was printed on the morning the cad design was finished with the first part off the tool later that day. Compare this with traditional tooling where the cad data is sent to a toolmaker who CNC machines the tool and returns it a few weeks later.The time and cost saving is dramatic and immediate. 5 days turnaround reduced to 1 day for the 3d printed tool. $1500 to manufacture the steel tool vs $450 to 3d print it.

Who would have thought you could form a metal part over a plastic tool?

Now multiply this over a number of tools, and your time and cost savings can be dramatic.Need to make a design change?No need to modify and machine the original tool at great time and expense either. 3D print the revised tool design and have it ready for use the same day.3D printed tools can also be used to get production parts under way while the hi-volume steel production tool is still being manufactured, thereby drastically reducing your time to market.

These benefits combine to produce an extremely strong argument for investing in your own on site system. It's a simple case of doing the math and counting the savings."There are numerous mining (and related) companies in Australia that have embraced 3d printing in recent times, but I believe there are huge advantages that are going unrecognised today. Australia has the opportunity to take advantage of this situation as global industry leaders and benefit from the cutting edge technology and benefits 3d printing can bring to mining companies here” states Minio.“Whether you are at the mine site or developing related products for the industry itself, there are fantastic benefits and savings utilising 3d printing technology.”Time to market, reduce costs (development, tooling and manufacturing) improved product quality and protection of intellectual property are all major benefits of utilising 3d printing within your organisation.

Other industries that have already embraced the power of 3d printing include automotive, defence, aerospace, education, consumer products, animation and entertainment, consumer electronics, architecture and dental.

There are many applications for 3d printing in the mining industry today:

Scale models of mines to physically view progress of tunnels Scale models of mine sites and plants in preparation for full construction of plant. Prototyping of mining equipment Functional testing of mining equipment Low volume production parts. Why spend big $$$ on tooling when you can print production

parts straight off the printer.

Our own Fortus400 3d production system prints 130 of its own parts including functional and/or aesthetic components.

Improve product quality by 3d printing more prototypes in less time to perfect your designs and get to market faster.

We now have materials that withstand temperatures of up to 180degC with excellent chemical resistance capability also.

3d printers are being used in the Sand Casting process to produce 3d printed patterns instead of traditional metal or wood patterns at a fraction of the cost in a fraction of the time.

There are countless applications where Assembly jigs and fixtures for assembly or cmm measurement can be 3d printed instead of using traditional expensive and time consuming tooling methods where the mining industry can save on major expenditure.

Producing you own 3d printed parts or functional prototypes in house provide the ultimate protection of your valuable IP.

The mining industry is renowned for its typically large parts.Inkjet based 3d printers today can print models up to 1mtr long.FDM extrusion based 3d printers can produce parts up to 900mm long.Both are ideal candidates for larger scale parts required in the mining industry.

The following images are examples of some of the applications relevant to the mining industry today.

3D printed scale mode of a plant layout printed on Inkjet 3d printer with exquisite detail

Heavy duty gps device with rubber 3d printed perimeter

Multi material 3d printed joystick controller built in one piece using rubber like and hard plastic materials in a single print.

Fully functional hi-performance parts such as the impellor shown here printed in Ultem material

3d printed Assembly jigs and fixtures

Full size 10ft propeller assembly functional at low speed

3d printed functional product design

Truck wheel guard 3d printed in hi-performance Ultem material

For more information about how 3D printing can benefit your business, please contact:

Matt MinioManaging DirectorObjective 3D Pty Ltd+613 9785 2333