While 3D printing’s final goal is to one day drastically cut the use of plastics to only use the necessary amount, the truth is that it is not just about using less plastic, but also using it better. The main idea is to make better and more useful things that can be disposed of, or recycled, more efficiently. At the latest NPE, the huge International Plastics Showcase that just took place in Orlando, Florida, 3D printing applications stole the stage.
The plastic industry is actually finding out that 3D printing is a great ally, both in terms of media visibility (let’s be honest: no one ever really cared about injection molding equipment making lots of identical things in far away places) and, in terms, of feeding the next round of creative ways to use plastics, including the products that 3D printing can manufacture (let’ be honest: while 3D printing is awesome, most products we use need to be made with injection molding).
At the show, over 2,000 companies exhibited the emerging technologies that are shaping the future of plastics. Making its US debut in the midst of several 3D printers and robots was Arburg’s Freeformer, a main attraction at the last two Euromolds. Stratasys was also present to show the capabilities of its plastic materials and PolyJet 3D printers.
The show also focused on virtuous applications of plastic manufacturing with “The Zero Waste Zone”, where state-of-the-art recycling equipment and innovative recycling technologies were on display and offering demonstrations. More noble applications included the largely 3D printed, next-gen prosthetic arm, designed by teen prodigy Easton LaChappelle, and created using PolyOne materials.
“We are working to find ways in which 3D printing can take our customers to a new level of innovation. Together with our design resources, we are exploring this technology to help customers evaluate multiple iterations faster and optimize their manufacturing process, as well as their product’s performance and aesthetics,” Cathy Dodd, Vice President of Marketing, explained.
PolyOne is a huge US-based plastics manufacturer and the US plastics industry has never been this healthy: exports are on the rise, work is being re-shored, the rise in natural gas production is cutting costs and making it more competitive. Plastics is one of the few industries whose workers are seeing wage growth and all this is also being channeled toward increased sustainability commitments, new technology, and applications to improve, and even save, lives.
Some of the most fascinating 3D printed products displayed at NPE were cars: specifically two very famous, 3D printed cars that demonstrate two very different capabilities of 3D printing. One was the Strati, which Local Motors used to show the extreme possibilities of extrusion 3D printing.
The other one was the Shelby Cobra, which President Obama, in a recent talk, used as an example of the extreme possibilities of industrial 3D printing processes such as large-scale stereolitography and laser sintering/melting. Techmer, which supplied the carbon fiber compounds to 3D print the body and chassis, exhibited it at its stand. Needless to say, it stole the stage, even within the over 3 million square-feet of the show floor.
