The technological innovation in 3D printing, which is called additive manufacturing, has transformed the face of things in the world, especially relating to the design of products and prototyping. Businesses can make prototypes and models of high accuracy and with minimal time. However, the disadvantages of 3D printing design services in product prototyping and new design development also come in many forms.
In this article, we will take a closer look at the obstacles and constraints in the adoption of 3D printing by a company in the design process. You will also learn how to possibly handle these problems as and when they pop up along the way.
Material limitations
One of the notable drawbacks of 3D printing for prototyping and new design is the lesser productiveness in material diversity. Traditional manufacturing techniques using materials such as metals, plastics, and composites are plentiful compared to 3D printing, which is still limited concerning material diversity. Most 3D printers work only with a few types of plastic like PLA, ABS, PETG, resins, metals, and ceramics in some cases.
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Material properties of most 3D printed objects generally will not meet the strength, durability, and heat endurance of similar applications made using methods such as injection molding or even CNC machining. As a result, in some cases, the end product may never pass a standard performance test with regard to some final end-use application, primarily for functional prototyping or some end-use purposes.
In addition, the mechanical properties of 3D printed materials are very sensitive to the printer and the printing process, which makes it challenging to achieve consistent results. Companies making complex products requiring specific characteristics of the material may not find the right solution with 3D printing. In spite of all the research work in the area, which continues to add more to the palette of materials suitable for 3D printing services, this technology has numerous limitations with regard to material selection.
Surface finish and accuracy
Surface finish quality is another disadvantage of 3D printing. Layer lines or “stair-stepping” are typically seen in objects that are 3D printed since the printer lays down the object layer by layer. It would lead to an irregular or abrasive surface, more so on surfaces that require an even finish due to aesthetic requirements or functionality requirements. These surface finishes have been improved by post-processing techniques involving sanding, polishing, and chemical smoothing of the surface, but these are tedious processes that come at a higher cost during prototyping.
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Moreover, accuracy may be another area where 3D printing lags. Although high-end 3D printers are highly accurate, the accuracy can still be lacking compared to some of the more traditional manufacturing techniques, such as CNC machining, where parts are manufactured with very tight tolerances. Companies working on prototypes that must fit into assemblies or interfaces requiring extremely tight tolerances may find that 3D printing does not always meet those requirements.
Speed and scalability problems
While 3D printing has been widely advertised as speedy for 3D prototype design creation, the actual speed advantage is somewhat overstated. The actual printing sometimes even takes hours or days, depending on the size and complexity of the object to be printed. The slower rate of 3D printing may arise due to iterations and amount of prototypes needed.
This may be the less time-efficient choice for companies that require a high volume of prototypes at a very tight schedule, especially when different printing processes, such as injection molding and casting, are needed to produce the prototypes. Another problem with 3D printing is its limited scalability. It can be a good choice for small productions because few samples are needed, but it doesn’t come close to traditional forms of manufacturing for actual mass production.
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Cost of 3D printing technology
3D printing may save you some pennies when it comes to rapid prototyping firms. But, it can also be extremely costly in different ways, such as choosing high-end 3D printing and industrial-grade 3D printing. For high-quality prototypes, Industrial-grade 3D printers are commonly used and may cost you tens of thousands of dollars. Meanwhile, basic desktop 3D printers also require a huge capital investment in materials, equipment, and operational costs.
These large purchases for businesses also cover the 3D printers’ maintenance, repair, and buying of the software. Also, the filament or resin used can make the 3D printed material very costly in terms of printing cost. The unit cost of a 3D printed product may be much higher than mass-produced parts produced by other methods depending on the amount of energy that must be expended to power the 3D printer for such long periods.
At first, the initial investment is quite high in the technology of 3D printing, so it is inapplicable to small businesses and start-ups. Another method would be to outsource 3D printing; however, it also turns too expensive, at least if the project requires several revision rounds or it has several parts. In this case, companies have to seriously decide whether the use of 3D printing designers is worthwhile, considering the overall design and the production requirements.
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Limited range of printing technologies
Selecting the printing technology to be used on your item is important to produce high-quality results and also to save you time and costs. Each printing technology has its own application, but restrictions on material selection, build size, and the complexity of the parts can severely limit the number of designs and quality prototyped using 3D printing. There are various kinds of 3D printing technologies, each with strengths and weaknesses. Listed below are the common Printing Technologies.
- Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM): The most commonly used 3D printing technology. However, there is a limited range of available materials and finishes on the surface of the parts. Fused Deposition Modeling parts also have poor detail resolution and a rough finish.
- Stereolithography (SLA): These machines are suitable for prints that need extremely high-resolution prints. However, photopolymer resins can only be used with this printing technique due to its specificity. It’s important to note that photopolymer resign doesn’t offer the required mechanical properties for specific uses.
- Selective Laser Sintering (SLS): This printing technique is more expensive compared to other printing technologies listed above. Selective Laser Sintering services is suitable if you want to use stronger materials like nylon and some metals, but it will require substantial post-processing.
For companies making products that necessarily involve a composite of several different materials or assemblies with high levels of detail, multi-part models, 3D printing may not be the best fit.
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Post-processing and finishing work
Although 3D printing might be fast prototyping, that’s where it often stops for many parts that print off a printer. There’s much post-processing that has to be applied to the finished part, maybe the removal of supports and smoothing its surface or possibly even joining parts into a complete single piece. Depending on how intricate the design is, post-processing may take almost as long as the time it took to print and may result in stretching the project timeline further.
Also, for products that require flawless finish, post-processing operations like sanding, painting, and chemical smoothing may not be perfect sometimes. Doing this add-on step it increases the cost and labor involved in the product, making 3D printing less alluring to companies.
Lack of IP protection
In light of this concern, the technology of 3D printing is criticized for providing less IP protection. Because reproducing a physical object is made easier, reproducing and replication of the same product becomes pretty easy for counterfeiters. This can quite easily attract such companies to invest in product innovation since their design will be made easy to steal or even reproduce without even being consulted or requested to so end.
Patent protection allows some recourse to the law courts, but enforcement of IP rights is very difficult. Companies that outsource their 3D printing services cannot be too sure if the designs are protected. Then, there is the chance that digital files would be duplicated and modified or even sold by these scoundrels.
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Environmental impact
Though hope for sustainability is seen in 3D printing, the process does bring with it some environmental issues. More precisely, fossil fuel consumption and waste generation are related to the production of 3D-printed materials like plastics. However, there are still some ongoing trends in using biodegradable and recyclable materials in 3D printing. Thirdly, 3D printers are typically energy-hungry machines, especially when producing large or complex parts.
Longer print times and additional post-processing may further contribute to energy use and, for some applications, make 3D printing less sustainable. Despite the benefits of 3D printing, such as fast prototyping and possible complex design production, 3D printing has some major limitations for companies who are looking into 3D printing for prototyping and new product design services. They must balance the constraints in this area: material, surface finish quality, speed, scalability, cost, and environmental impact.
How Cad Crowd can help
If you want to integrate 3D printing technology into your operations and fit with your production needs and long-term goals, Cad Crowd can connect you with reliable experts to help your business make better decisions. Request for a free quote today.
This was a refreshing take on 3D printing that goes beyond the usual hype. The point about material limitations and post-processing challenges really resonates—especially for teams assuming it’s a plug-and-play solution. It’s a reminder that while 3D printing is powerful, it’s not a silver bullet for every prototyping need.