In the wave of Industry 4.0, 3D printing technology is revolutionizing the manufacturing industry with its unparalleled advantages. As an essential part of the industry, automotive manufacturing is also actively exploring the applications of 3D printing in rapid prototyping, component production, and personalized customization.
Today, we will delve into how KEXCELLED collaborates with partners INTAMSYS and Sika to provide cutting-edge 3D printing solutions for the automotive industry.
3D Printing and Automobile Manufacturing
The automotive manufacturing industry has always been a crucial domain for technological innovation, and 3D printing, as an emerging manufacturing technology, has infused new vitality into the automotive manufacturing sector. Especially in the following three aspects, 3D printing technology demonstrates significant advantages:
· Accelerate Prototype Development: By using 3D printing technology, automotive designers can quickly turn concept sketches into physical prototypes, significantly reducing the development cycle and enhancing the efficiency of design iterations and testing.
· Produce Lightweight Components: The precision and flexibility of 3D printing enable the production of structurally complex yet lightweight components, achieving automotive lightweighting and thereby enhancing fuel efficiency and dynamic performance of vehicles.
· Customization and Short-Batch Production: 3D printing supports highly customized and short-batch production, allowing manufacturers to produce components based on specific customer demands or special applications, breaking through the limitations of traditional manufacturing methods.
End-to-End Solution for 3D Printing Automotive Parts
▲Sika China Automotive Division Factory▲
Recently, KEXCELLED has collaborated with INTAMSYS to provide a 3D printing solution for Sika China Automotive Division. By utilizing 3D printing technology, the manufacturing process of automotive interior components has been successfully optimized, meeting the requirements for component design and printing stiffness while ensuring outstanding sound insulation and noise reduction effects.
▲Scene of 3D printing automotive components▲
3D Printing Equipment: INTAMSYS FUNMAT PRO 410, an industrial-grade dual-nozzle high-temperature 3D printing device, features a printing size of 305305406mm, wire filament sealed drying technology, and the capability to cover multiple materials. This equipment can print PA engineering plastics with exceptional precision and quality, creating intricate and high-quality printed components, accurately replicating the design models of automotive parts.
▲Finished 3D Printed Automotive Components▲
3D Printing Material: KEXCELLED PAHT K7 filament, a high-rigidity, high-performance, and user-friendly polyamide material based on PA6. The printed parts made with this material exhibit high rigidity and low creep characteristics, providing the structural strength and stability required for automotive components. Additionally, the material has excellent adhesion, allowing easy integration with other materials to form composite structures and components with specific functionalities, achieving effective vibration damping and sound insulation.
Adhesive Material: Sika EVA material, a new type of environmentally friendly plastic foam material. This material features excellent cushioning, seismic resistance, thermal insulation, moisture resistance, and chemical corrosion resistance, making it widely used in automotive manufacturing.
▲3D Printed Automotive Components + EVA Material Bonded Assemblies▲
Manufacturing and Verification Process: 3D printed components are bonded with EVA material and installed onto the vehicle body. During the vehicle body painting process, the expansion of the EVA foam adhesive fills the gaps between components and the body, creating a sturdy structure that ensures the required rigidity of the vehicle body while achieving vibration damping and sound insulation effects.
▲3D printed automotive components are bonded with EVA and installed onto the vehicle body▲
▲Simulated Automotive Bake-On Process – Foam Test: EVA material foam fills the voids between components and the vehicle body, demonstrating excellent results▲
Wrapping It Up and Gazing into the Future
In this case study, we explore the application of 3D printing technology in the manufacturing process of automotive components, particularly in the validation of design solutions for noise isolation in vehicle body cavities and structural reinforcement components, as well as the validation of modification schemes.
▲Sika White Body Showcase▲
This case vividly demonstrates the immense potential and significant advantages of 3D printing technology in the automotive manufacturing industry. By leveraging 3D printing technology along with high-performance 3D printing equipment and materials, additional rigidity is provided to the white body, thereby enhancing its passive safety performance during collisions, while also achieving vibration damping, sound insulation, and noise reduction effects.
As an internationally leading supplier of additive manufacturing materials, KEXCELLED has always been committed to driving additive manufacturing as an innovative manufacturing method. In the future, KEXCELLED looks forward to deepening collaborations with leading companies from various industries to explore the broader potential of 3D printing in a wide range of applications.
Introduction of Case Study Partners
About INTAMSYS:
INTAMSYS is a globally leading high-tech company that offers high-performance material 3D printing and industrial direct additive manufacturing solutions. Founded by a team of engineers with extensive experience in precision equipment development and high-performance material research from top high-tech companies worldwide. The company has research, marketing, and technical service centers in Shanghai, Dongguan, Stuttgart (Germany), and Minnesota (USA), establishing a comprehensive global marketing and after-sales service network.
About Sika:
Sika Group was established in 1910 with its headquarters located in Switzerland. Sika China is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sika Group in China, providing concrete, waterproofing, sealing and bonding, roofing, flooring and coating, repair and reinforcement, as well as industrial innovation solutions. In 2021, Blue Shield Waterproof officially became part of the Sika China family, expanding Sika’s waterproof product portfolio and capacity in the Chinese market.
