It’s August and that means back to school for most kids around the country. In honor of our students and teachers heading back to the schoolhouse this month we created the Realize 3D Printed Apple. We created this fruit prototype in one of our SLA Viper machines and then had our custom finishing department give the part a realistic feel by using custom paint and clearcoat. Best of luck in school this year to all!
We are calling this photo November Rain. Yes it looks cool but it’s just resin dripping from a completed build. 3D Printing can look artful at times. #3dprintingart
3D Printed Toilet by Realize, Inc.
Realize Featured Project: The 3D Toilet
Here is a summary of this recent project from Realize, Inc. General Manager Brian Cazzell:
“The client needed a working SLA model of their toilet design to use at a trade show. The primary requirement was that it needed to be clear in order to demonstrate water flowing through the internal channels. Due to the platform size restraints of the SLA5000 machine, we needed to build the model in sections and create an inter-locking structure that when bonded together would maintain a water-tight seal for the duration of the trade show. The model also needed to be completely free of support material not only for aesthetic purposes but also to allow the water to flow freely through the channels. In the end, the client was very happy with the functionality and the overall fit and finish of this model.”
Realize works extensively with Indesign on a wide variety of projects. We are excited and proud of the long relationship we have established with this fantastic company. We talked with Jerry Gotway, CEO of Indesign, to find out how their business uses Additive Manufacturing and where they are headed in the future.
Tell me about your business…
We are an electronic product design engineering company. We develop a wide variety of electronic products for our customers. We do full turn key product development. That means we do the mechanical design, the electrical design, and embedded software design. We create all the design information for a product then send it to a factory for manufacturing.
How is Rapid Prototyping used by your company?
In our product development process we go through several steps. In the front end of the process we are working on the development of requirements and concepts with the client, then we move on to the detailed mechanical design. As soon as that is completed we need to take that design which exists in our CAD systems and turn it into a working prototype. It’s absolutely critical that we get working prototypes of the designs for us to validate the design. Those working prototypes include the kinds of things that Realize can provide. The Stereolithography models, the cast models and sometimes the rubber parts are needed for the physical elements of our prototype. The critical need that we have is to get those rapid prototype parts. We need to very quickly get a physical embodiment of what we have designed so we can run that through our testing process.
What types of projects do you partner with Realize on?
We have worked with Realize on a wide variety of projects- from medical to consumer electronics, industrial, and they have provided us with parts to support our clients in many different markets.
How has your experience working with Realize been?
Our experience has been very positive. Everything that we do here has to be done very quickly. We have very rapid product realization intervals. Realize has been extremely good to Indesign in delivering parts very quickly. Speed isn’t everything, the other thing that is very important to us is quality. We have received high quality parts using the prototyping capabilities of Realize. Speed and quality are the two things that are most important to us and we get both of those from Realize.
Where is your business headed in the future?
Our company has been in business for 16 years and it’s been on an evolutionary path. We started exclusively in the telecommunications area and now we are into many different industries. The technologies have changed dramatically over time. When we started we were almost all wired types of products, now half of our business is wireless. We are going to follow where technology leads.
Indesign is an engineering design services firm with a proven track record of helping companies develop new electronic devices. Engineering disciplines consist of electrical/circuit design, RF/wireless design, software/firmware design, mechanical design, human factors design, and testing/validation with a strong emphasis on products utilizing embedded microprocessors and DSPs.
Realize has a long working relationship with Delta Faucet Company and we could not be prouder of the parts we have created together over the years. We talked with Michael Connell, Prototype Manager, about the industry and how they use prototypes in their business.
About Delta® Products
There is a philosophy at the heart of every Delta® product: there is a better way to live with water. It goes beyond excellent design to incorporate smart thinking that anticipates people’s needs. From proprietary Touch2O® touch faucet Technology that turns faucets on and off with just a touch to H2Okinetic™ shower technology that sculpts water into a unique wave pattern – giving you the feeling of more water without using more water, Delta products incorporate thoughtful features that delight. Paired with beautiful, inspirational design, it’s another way that the Delta® brand is more than just a faucet. Delta products are offered by Delta Faucet Company a WaterSense® manufacturing partner of the Environmental Protection Agency. Delta Faucet Company is a worldwide leader in kitchen faucets, bath faucets, shower heads, shower systems, Toilets and related accessories and sells products in more than 53 countries. For more information, visit www.deltafaucet.com
Michael Connell- Delta Prototype Manager
How long has Delta been working with Realize?
I’ve had a relationship with Realize for 14 years, that’s the longest vendor relationship since I’ve been here.
In what ways does Delta use Rapid Prototyping?
Fit and function, industrial design and market research. We have gone as far chrome plating and finishing and used them in kitchen and bath shows. We test them here in our lab. We run water through them to look at flow.
You have been working with prototypes and additive manufacturing for many years, what are the biggest changes you have experienced in the industry?
The increase in cycle times. A part that I can get in 24 hours from Realize used to take me a week get. Today with the desired speed for getting things out to the market you can’t take that long to get prototypes. Keep in mind we may make the part 15 times until we get the right part we want to build. The technology has improved and it’s really sped up the process.
You have machines in house, how does Realize come into play?
Workload. I’m so busy on my printers. I built three thousand parts last year on one printer. Delta Faucet as a company builds upwards of ten thousand rapid prototypes a year. I build in house, and use Realize and Delta has another in house facility that we send work to. Realize is also helpful when you are limited in materials. My guys may be building snap details with a 3D Printer and the parts will just snap off on them and we want a more durable material. At Realize I can get get a wide variety of materials.
How challenging is managing and maintaining your own Additive Manufacturing machines?
It works three days a week, and the other two days its down! It is a headache. We bought a second machine this year. Not to increase volume, but as a backup. If one is down we need the other to keep up pace and have it available. If I need a part in a hurry most of the time it goes to Realize.
What are your thoughts about the future of Additive Manufacturing and how 3D Printing has become the blanket buzz term used for the entire industry?
Technology hasn’t stopped. Now we are going to be getting direct metal parts off of the machines. I think it’s moving forward quick. There are 3D Printers in stores for less than $1200, but at the same time, it’s not as simple as you think. It’s just not that easy.
3D Printing/Rapid Prototyping & Manufacturing