Datum3D Featured in “How Design-For-Assembly Helps Additive Manufacturing Succeed”

Datum3D was recently featured in two online publications titled How Design-for-Assembly Helps Additive Manufacturing Succeed. In both DigitalEngineering and Designfax, Datum3D was referenced as an authoritative voice on how subtractive processes enhance additive manufacturing. “Whether cutting and polishing the inside of an AM-generated titanium acetabular cup for a hip replacement or preparing an AM-plastic prototype for a tight-tolerance functional test prior to mold-making, machining implements AM in a wide range of applications. Simply put, machining (a subtractive process) is a major enabler of additive processes and, in some cases, a better prototyping method”.

At Datum3D—a product development company with over 20 years of design and manufacturing experience—the approach taken to each project is grounded in product simplification. In-house machining is a central tool utilized for prototyping, conducting small volume runs and testing full-production sequences for OEMs. A recent project on a medical device showed the role of machining in improving performance over that of a matching AM prototype. The company began the effort by using design for manufacture and assembly software to reduce the part count on the original design by 50 percent. Next, they developed both CNC-fabricated prototypes and AM prototypes and tested each for functionality, performance, durability, and cost.