Polymer AM Cuts Costs of Small-Batch Replacement Components

Mosca, an international manufacturer of end-of-line packaging solutions, prides itself on efficiency, reliability and a customer-oriented outlook. “We have installed more than 100,000 strapping machines worldwide,” says Stefan Kessler, innovation and technology manager at Mosca’s German headquarters in Waldbrunn.

But all machines require replacements for components at some point in their lives, and with over 2,000 individual components in each Mosca machine, the manufacturer found itself hard-pressed to build an inexpensive supply of replacement parts. Reprogramming and repurposing its CNC machines to produce these parts would be inefficient for the cost and make them unavailable for their main functions. Outsourcing production through traditional methods would also prove expensive — so Kessler began to consider whether additive manufacturing could provide a viable solution for replacement parts.

Settling on Freeforming

“First, we identified over 100 different components or spare parts that were too costly to manufacture using conventional methods,” Kessler says. “Then it was a matter of finding out which 3D printer could additively manufacture these parts in a way that would meet our strength requirements.”

This search led Mosca to Arburg’s Freeformer system. The Arburg plastic freeforming (APF) method processes standard plastic granulates, which the company says is suitable for both prototyping and industrial additive manufacturing of functional components.

Arburg's Freeformer system met Mosca’s requirements for strength, dimensional stability and speed, and the elimination of traditional tooling made small-batch production feasible.

Reduced storage requirements and potential for unmanned production further enhanced the Freeformer’s value-add to the manufacturer. The partnership enabled Mosca to additively manufacture parts overnight and ship them to customers immediately, rather than wait through lengthy lead times.

Cost and Inventory Efficiency Through Digital Warehousing

“We print all the time,” Kessler says. “Depending on the size and geometry, the production time for a component can be less than three hours. For example, a strap guide can be additively manufactured in 80 minutes and costs, in this case, can be reduced by 75%. The ability to produce complex, lighter components significantly helps reduce our energy and transport costs.”

Programming times on CNC systems are no longer a bottleneck, and on-demand additive manufacturing has eased Mosca’s fears of over- and under-utilization of machines. The move towards digital warehousing increases efficiency and further eliminates bottlenecks for the production team.

Even with the concerns over economic utilization that typically surround AM systems, production has proved less expensive than with conventional manufacturing. Part of this is down to materials: the PA10 (nylon 10) feedstock Mosca is using has proved inexpensive compared to the aluminum or POM or PE plastics the manufacturer previously needed, even while maintaining the same quality levels.

The Future of AM at Mosca

The Freeformer has been in operation since October 2019. Mosca predominantly uses the Freeformer for production parts (around 75% of its capacity), with the rest of its use focused on prototyping, product development and innovation — enabling Kessler and the rest of the process team to explore the design freedom and diverse possibilities of the APF process. “We see great technological potential for the Freeformer when it comes to qualifying more materials and combining different materials,” he says. “We want to make two-component-parts, too.”