3D Printed Tooling
Tooling refers to items that shape, form or hold material, or otherwise assist, some other manufacturing process. That includes injection molds, composite layup forms, sheet metal dies, foundry patterns and forms, workholding solutions, jigs, assembly fixtures, inspection fixtures, and hand tools. End of arm tooling for robots and other items that assist automation are an important application. Arguably, cutting tools fall here as well.
ESSENTIAL READING
VIEW ALL
Copper, New Metal Printing Processes, Upgrades Based on Software and More from Formnext 2023: AM Radio #46
Formnext 2023 showed that additive manufacturing may be maturing, but it is certainly not stagnant. In this episode, we dive into observations around technology enhancements, new processes and materials, robots, sustainability and more trends from the show.
Listen
Ford is Saving Millions through 3D Printing (But Maybe Not How You Think)
Two longtime workers at Ford’s Sharonville Transmission Plant near Cincinnati grew tired of experiencing the delays and downtime resulting from expensive and hard-to-get replacement parts. The solution? Learn additive manufacturing and save the company time and money.
Read More
10 Examples of 3D Printed Tooling
Additive manufacturing can aid conventional manufacturing through the production of tooling. This article showcases 10 clever uses of 3D printed tooling.
Read More
Video: Additive Manufacturing Offers a Tooling Alternative
3D printing can offer a cost-effective alternative to conventionally produced tooling for those processes that depend on it.
Watch
Latest Tooling News And Updates
HP, GKN Additive Partner to Qualify Diverse Range of Materials for Additive Manufacturing
The collaboration focus is to combine HP’s Metal Jet S100 technology with unique material offerings to take tooling to the next level while addressing unique customer challenges.
Read More
AddUp, WBA Investigate Additive Manufacturing for Moldmaking Tooling Study
The additive manufacturing (AM) tooling study focused on six select companies, offering them the opportunity to test the introduction of AM and specifically implement the technical and economic advantages of AM technology for their injection molds.
Read More
DOE Awards Nearly $3 Million to Develop Additive Manufacturing of Modular Wind Blades
The industry partners received the award to develop automation in additive manufacturing of tooling for large-scale wind blades that can accommodate continuous changes in blade geometry and scale.
Read More
German National Railway Certifies Essentium HSE Printing Platform, Materials
Essentium’s additive manufacturing solutions will enable Deutsche Bahn to increase its fleet availability through easy and fast replacement of parts and tools.
Read More
Westec Plastics Partners With Mantle to Speed Tooling Production
Using Mantle's technology, Westec says it can complete up to 70% of the job and have its toolmakers handle the specialized steps only humans can do.
Read More
Research Partners 3D Print MIM Tool With Near-Contour Cooling
Compared to a conventional approach in machining, the use of an additive manufacturing process to produce a MIM tool reduces the total production time from around 8 weeks to approximately 5 days.
Read More
Featured Posts
4 Weeks from Design to Molded Part for Medical with Metal 3D Printed Tooling
Mold builder Westminster Tool applied the Trueshape process from Mantle to produce tooling to take a medical device from prototype mold to full-scale production in a matter of weeks.
Read More
8 Ways the Plastics Industry Is Using 3D Printing
Plastics processors are finding applications for 3D printing around the plant and across the supply chain. Here are 8 examples.
Read More
Copper, New Metal Printing Processes, Upgrades Based on Software and More from Formnext 2023: AM Radio #46
Formnext 2023 showed that additive manufacturing may be maturing, but it is certainly not stagnant. In this episode, we dive into observations around technology enhancements, new processes and materials, robots, sustainability and more trends from the show.
ListenFeatured Media
Foundry Lab: How Casting in a Day Will Improve the Design of Metal Parts (Includes Video)
The company’s digital casting process uses 3D printing, but the result is a cast part. By providing a casting faster than a foundry, the company says effective prototyping is now possible for cast parts, as well as bridge production.
Watch
3D Printing Molds With Metal Paste: The Mantle Process Explained (Video)
Metal paste is the starting point for a process using 3D printing, CNC shaping and sintering to deliver precise H13 or P20 steel tooling for plastics injection molding. Peter Zelinski talks through the steps of the process in this video filmed with Mantle equipment.
Watch
How AM Enables Cobot Automation for Thyssenkrupp Bilstein (Includes Video)
The shock absorber maker has responded to its staffing shortages through extensive use of collaborative robots. In-house 3D printing makes this possible by providing the related hardware needed to complete the cobot-automated cells.
Watch
FAQ: Tooling
What is tooling?
For Additive Manufacturing Media’s purposes, tooling refers to items that shape, form or hold material, or otherwise assist, some other manufacturing process.
What is EOAT?
EOAT stands for end of arm tooling. This is the component of an automation system that interacts with the workpiece. For example, in injection molding this is typically a vacuum gripper or gripper fingers that remove parts from a mold. Source: 3D Printed End of Arm Tooling Aids Automation
What is conformal cooling?
Conformal cooling is distributing cooling fluid through channels that follow the shape of a part, rather than straight-line channels that are drilled into a part. Conformal channels can be 3D printed into mold tooling as seen here.
What are 3D printed tools made of?
3D printed tools can be metal, polymer (especially reinforced polymer), ceramic or sand in the case of foundry tooling.
What are examples of tooling?
Tooling includes injection molds, composite layup forms, sheet metal dies, foundry patterns and forms, workholding solutions, jigs, assembly fixtures, inspection fixtures, and hand tools. End of arm tooling for robots and other items that assist automation are an important application. Arguably, cutting tools fall here as well.
