PLASTIC ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING AND ITS POTENTIAL EFFECTS ON A SUPPLY CHAIN : A case study concerning selection of beneficial parts for additive manufacturing through utilizing a methodological part evaluation framework

Sammanfattning: Recently additive manufacturing (AM) is rapidly growing and evolving due to the advancements made in speed, quality, resolution and performance. Consequently, AM is starting to become, beyond prototyping, increasingly important for the manufacturing of end-use parts. Several successful case studies are reported and companies are starting to investigate in the opportunities of using AM for production processes and supply chain integrations.   The purpose of this research is to evaluate the potential of using AM for manufacturing plastic end-use parts in a supply chain. Different AM technologies for plastic manufacturing are described and the main advantages and challenges are identified. Based on the company’s plastic part scope, a methodical framework for assessing parts regarding their AM suitability is established, in order to research the potential benefits of an AM implementation. The framework contains a methodical preselection and scoring process utilizing a top-down approach and an analytical hierarchical process (AHP), followed by a technical and economic assessment of the promising parts. In the research, only the existing design is taken into account: the same part, designed for conventional manufacturing technologies, is manufactured by AM without changes in geometry. Both cases, in-house manufacturing and purchasing from a service provider, were investigated with the employment of a cost model for FDM technology and a request for quotation from a general AM service provider. Both cases are compared to each other and the current conventional manufacturing technology.   It was found that, currently, utilizing an AM service provider is more beneficial for the company, due to the low number of parts that could be currently produced with AM. Hereby the lead time for AM profitable parts could be significantly reduced. Using AM, a centralized production with one AM service supplier is clearly seen as the preferable supply chain configuration in the case of the company.   The research provides guidance for the evaluation of part suitability concerning AM production of end-use plastic parts and contributes to the research concerning AM implementation in a supply chain in general and the aim of the company to acquire valuable AM knowhow in particular.