For German car company Opel, 3D printed tools are not, as with many 3D printing applications, an experiment but rather an essential part of their manufacturing process. Each ADAM ROCKS car – sold by Vauxhall in the UK – requires the use of 40 custom 3D printed tools to complete each car’s assembly.
Virtual Simulations Engineer Sascha Holl leads a six-person team of specialists in the design and production of these reusable plastic assembly tools. Opel’s Eisenach facility is using them in the assembly of the new ADAM ROCKS car because they are cheaper, faster to produce and make the process quicker and more efficient. And this is a process that Holl expects to not only continue but to expand: “In the future, more and more 3D assembly tools will be integrated into the production process.”
ADAM ROCKS started production at the Eisenach facility last September using a 3D printed assembly jig to correctly install the vehicles logotype on the rear side window. An inlet guide was also 3D printed to easily allow the windshield to be installed quickly and precisely. Additionally tools were created to secure the chrome step plate in the door openings and install the cars’ canvas roof. All told, more than 40 of the custom 3D printed tools were developed for the ADAM ROCKS right alongside the car itself, so any changes to the final design could be reflected in the tools.
“It enables us to quickly adapt the parts. If something changes on the vehicle, we can easily modify the tool with just a few clicks,” continues Holl. “The 3D printing process enables us to produce every imaginable form and shape. Unlike conventional manufacturing technology, we don’t have to accept any limitations.”
The ADAM and ADAM ROCKS cars are only the first vehicles manufactured by Opel that will be assembled thanks to the use of 3D printed jigs and tools. Currently the Insignia and the Cascada convertible were both assembled with 3D printed tools and the Corsa, Vivaro and the Mokka assembly lines will all begin using them during the coming months.
Despite costing only 10% of traditionally manufactured assembly parts, the benefits of 3D printing custom tools extend beyond the cost. Not only are they ready to be used faster, typically within about 8 hours, but they can also custom print parts for specific users. Traditional tool manufacturing techniques could never offer this level of flexibility, not only because the process can takes weeks, but it would simply cost too much to create a tool for every individual worker. Allowing for both medical ergonomic requirements to be met, or simply making them more comfortable for the user to hold, user-specific tools can enable car assembly with an even greater level of speed and accuracy.
Opel is owned by General Motors Company and their cars are sold in the US but often rebranded as Cadillacs, Buicks or Saturns. They are also exported to markets as diverse as South Africa, China, Japan, Singapore and Chile. GM is currently one of the largest car manufacturers in the world, in fact between 1931 and 2007 they sold more cars than any other automaker. While multi-national car manufacturers like GM are really more a collection of smaller previously independent carmakers, they still share technology and manufacturing processes.
Currently Opel is one of GM’s leaders in using 3D printed tools. However if they prove to be the money and time savers that they claim to be it is reasonable to assume that the practice will begin to populate throughout the entire company, and then as you would expect the entire industry.
