Connect with Google
Connect with Facebook
3D Learning Hub
POLYMER POWDERS
PHOTOPOLYMER RESINS
POLYMER FILAMENTS
Login
If you have any trouble logging in to your account, contact us.
Sign Up
To start 3D printing or Laser Cutting, you'll need to create an account here. Once done, you'll be able to upload your files and get live quotes of yours parts
Already have an account? Log In
Taking care of our planet is one of the most critical challenges of the 21st century, as being more sustainable is one key aspect for many companies and businesses.
There are many ways to be more sustainable and respectful of our environment. Production is one of the many levels we can act upon.
How can this process become more sustainable while still being competitive? Increasingly, additive manufacturing has been discussed and implemented to answer this question. Indeed, 3D Printing sustainability is an important topic to ponder on, as AM takes more and more space in the manufacturing landscape with its innovative production technologies.
But what exactly are the benefits of using 3D printing for sustainable manufacturing? Let’s find out!
3D printing is a collective term for all additive technologies under this manufacturing umbrella. Additive manufacturing adds layer after layer of material to create the desired product.
On the other hand, traditional manufacturing methods usually need a mold or a material block to start the production process.
There are quite a few different 3D printing technologies, depending on the type and form of the base material, like powders, filaments, or resins.
Here are the main ones:
Powder Bed Printing
Filaments
Resins
If you want to know more about how 3D-printing works, check out our ultimate 3D-printing guide.
Additive manufacturing offers many sustainable aspects that make it stand out compared to other technologies. A few of them overlap with one another, but there are about five core aspects. Let’s take a look at those five!
Freedom of Design is a term that is heavily linked to additive manufacturing. As 3D printing is a computer-to-part method, computer-based models are indispensable, and this is where freedom of design comes in. While creating those models, the prospect of 3D printing gives the designer the freedom to design a piece that traditionally could not be manufactured. The focus shifts from developing a part that is producible to a part that is printable as well as sustainable within that. Lattice structures can be added during the design process, or unnecessary material can even be reduced from the model. In this context, the word “Topology Optimization” is often mentioned. It is a software feature that improves the geometry of a part to figure out where an object needs material and where the material has no use for the efficiency and performance of the later product and is simply there for aesthetic reasons. Creating the best optimization of a part is often interrelated with less material and thus less use of raw material in the process.
Freedom of Design can also allow for designing integrated parts. Frequently while manufacturing traditionally, parts have to be split, produced separately, and then assembled again to create the finished product. Additive manufacturing skips most of these steps by directly printing the needed part in one go, saving material, time, and money in the process.
However, the sustainable aspect of freedom of design does not end there. Parts that, for example, are used within the transportation sector also help to relieve the environment. Because the more a plane or a car weighs, the more carbon dioxide is emitted. But if lighter parts are installed, it can help reduce carbon emissions.
As mentioned in the paragraph above, freedom of design can help reduce the needed material within production. However, additive manufacturing usually needs less raw material than traditional manufacturing, even without an optimized part. This is due to the fact that the 3D printing method only prints precisely as much as the model from the 3D file requires by adding layer by layer. Subtractive manufacturing processes operate the opposite way. A material block is required, and the product is created by removing part of that material rather than adding it. In some cases, the removed parts can be reused, but often they end up in the bin as waste.
Filaments are printed directly, while powder-printed parts are made within a powder bed. During that process, not all powder is used. However, it is possible to mix the unprinted powder with new powder and then use that combination for the next print run. This also minimizes the material waste within 3D printing.
Using additive manufacturing can revolutionize any inventory. Usually, businesses are owning huge inventory buildings, where spare and overproduced parts are stored. This way has many disadvantages. The physical inventory costs a lot of money for energy, labor, etc., and depending on how long the parts are kept there, they may break or are no longer usable and need to be disposed of. Thus being a waste of material and energy.
Additive manufacturing offers the option to use a digital inventory. If a part is needed, it can simply be printed on demand and sent to the customer. This does not only help to fight overproduction nowadays but also is exceptionally cost-effective and more efficient. Overproduction is a big problem, especially in industries like fashion. Many pieces that were not sold after a season or two are quickly disposed of, which means that the raw materials used to produce the product were used for nothing or stored in a physical inventory.
A digital inventory also comes in handy when a customer needs spare parts for a product bought many years ago. For traditional manufacturing, those spare parts must be stored and kept for years. With additive manufacturing, the spare part can be printed out of the digital inventory and does take up space in a physical inventory.
Printing spare parts through a digital inventory can also have another advantage – when additive manufacturing is used to repair older products like cars or machines. If the parts are no longer available, they can be remade with 3D printing and then used to repair the broken part. With this practice, fewer products have to be disposed of. And less raw material has to be used to produce brand new products.
Of course, this practice can not be applied every time and is a case-to-case situation.
Sustainable materials can be found within every type of additive manufacturing technology.
Whether it be powder or filament materials, they can be made out of recycled material, based on bio materials, highly renewable materials or materials that use less energy while being produced. The type of material available depends on the chosen 3D printing technology.
Here are examples of some of these materials:
Ultrasint® PA11 is a Forward AM powder material printed using Selective Laser Sintering. It is based on a 100% renewable biomass – castor seed. Oil is made from the seed, converted into a monomer, and polymerized into Polyamide 11. This PA11 material is a sustainable alternative to PA12.
PLA (polylactic acid) plastic is a filament material and often uses cornstarch as a raw material. It is one of the most popular 3D printing materials.
Ultrafuse® rPET is another sustainable filament material from Forward AM. rPET is a recycled material made from PET medical equipment, post-industrial, and not out of virgin plastic. Ultrafuse® rPET reduces the carbon footprint by reducing the need to collect new raw materials and conserves energy and natural resources.
Other companies like Fiberlogy offer recycled materials as well. Fiberlogy uses recycled, non-virgin materials to produce their rPLA, rABS, and rNylon line.
The Ultrafuse® TPC 45D is a high-performance filament elastomer that uses 40% rapeseed oil instead of mineral oil. This bio-based and flexible material delivers high performances without a significant environmental impact.
The company Redline Filaments produces an “Industrial Recycled” PETG from injection molding PETG waste. The waste does not come from virgin PETG and was not in contact with potential contaminants.
The company Reflow offers an rPETG filament. They use medical tray production waste to produce recycled filament.
3D Printlife Algix ALGA does not recycle old materials to create sustainable options but instead chooses another way. They use algae to produce various filaments like PLA, ABS, and Nylon. However, the product does not consist entirely of algae but also contains virgin PLA.
Fishing nets are one of the biggest environmental problems in our oceans, and there are a lot of nets that can’t be used anymore for their intended purpose. Fishy Filaments have used those nets and converted them into a Nylon filaments. As the company tries to renounce additives as much as possible, the filaments have a green color.
However, as of right now, additive manufacturing is not the perfect cure-all, and even though many aspects are heading in the right direction, there is still room for improvement. There should be more sustainable material options and less 3D printing material made out of virgin plastic. Plus, additive manufacturing can make more progress when it comes to recycling initiatives, especially for produced prototypes and iterations. So it is important to have steady progress toward those improvements to become even more sustainable.
In the mean time, companies like Sculpteo are taking steps to help further achieve a more sustainable future within the industry, with initiatives such as our RE-cycleo program, where customers and companies can send their end-of-life 3d printed parts for recycling.
The importance of sustainability in manufacturing as well as in general will only grow in the future and has to be addressed. 3D printing is an innovative manufacturing technique, and experts all over the industry are expecting it to play an even bigger role in the upcoming years. How big this role will be is difficult to predict, however, there is still great potential for new sustainable materials and even less waste production.
If you want to use 3D printing to make your business more sustainable and have questions concerning that topic, our expert team at Sculpteo is happy to help!
Of course, 3D printers are not very cheap if you want to print a part or a series. But there is a solution! You can upload your 3D model and we as an online 3D printing service are doing the rest and sending the part your way, as soon as it is finished. Get an instant SLS 3D printing quote right now.
If you want to learn more about 3D printing, we encourage you to subscribe to our newsletter and check out our extensive Learning Hub with many interesting articles.
3D printing demonstrates aspects of sustainability due to its unique production process. Unlike traditional manufacturing methods, 3D printing minimizes material waste by building objects layer by layer. While this reduction in waste is advantageous for the environment, it’s crucial to note that the overall sustainability of 3D printing depends on various factors, including material choices, energy consumption, and end-of-life considerations.
Certainly, there are environmentally friendly practices within the realm of 3D printing. The eco-friendliness is often determined by the materials used. Some manufacturers, such as Sculpteo, offer bio-based or recycled filaments, contributing to a more sustainable approach. However, it’s essential to consider the entire life cycle of the product and the energy efficiency of the printing process. As the industry evolves, there is a concerted effort to enhance the environmental aspects of 3D printing, making it a more eco-conscious choice.
3D printing is poised to be a significant player in the future of sustainable manufacturing, given its potential benefits. The technology’s capacity for customization and reduced material waste aligns well with sustainability goals. However, it’s essential to acknowledge that challenges, such as energy consumption and material choices, need ongoing attention. While 3D printing presents a promising avenue for sustainable manufacturing, its widespread adoption will depend on continuous advancements and a holistic approach to environmental considerations within the industry.
Get the latest 3D printing news delivered right to your inbox
Subscribe to our newsletter to hear about the latest 3D printing technologies, applications, materials, and software.
