PSI - Issue 59

O.M. Zaika et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 59 (2024) 786–792 O.M. Zaika et al. / Structural Integrity Procedia 00 (2019) 000 – 000

792

7

A special shelf is provided for the materials on this rack, as the spools of material need to rotate during material feeding. These materials are wound on special spools or bobbins. The print heads themselves are mounted on special sliding supports to reduce friction and improve the smoothness of the material feed. There is also a separate area for material removal. This compartment protects the material from dust, which could otherwise clog the extruder, caus ing blockages and reducing the print quality of these components. The enclosure for this compartment is made from the same material as the thermal curtain, allowing visual monitoring of material usage. The design of the thermal curtain cabinet incorporates special openings through which Teflon tubes have been threaded. Each of these tubes connects directly from the material source to the 3D printer's extruder. This adjustment was made in response to problems with dust contamination of the material, which was affecting print quality. After installing these tube con nections, the problem of material contamination was eliminated, resulting in a noticeable improvement in print qual ity. 5. Conclusions Improving the quality of 3D printing and reducing energy consumption can bring significant benefits to both manufacturers and consumers, delivering high quality products at lower cost. As a result of the above equipment improvements, the rate of defective products has been reduced to just 1.5% and power consumption has been cut by 10%. The implementation of 3D printing technology in the company resulted in a cost saving of 1,500 eu-ros for an or der of 1,000 units of a particular type of holder, which is just one of many types. Overall, the company is realising monthly savings of around €4,500 through the use of additive 3D printing technologies. This technology not only speeds up the development of new prototypes, but also reduces the cost of producing parts and facilitates the rapid integration of necessary changes into the company's operations. By combining this technology with finite element analysis for essential calculations, the company can design a prototype, produce the required part and implement its own production process within a matter of hours. As a result, the research objective has been achieved, leading to an improvement in the quality of printed objects, a reduction in the number of defects, a reduction in power consumption during printing and full compliance with environmental standards throughout the printing process. There are still several avenues for further investigation, such as exploring wear-resistant coatings for 3D printed parts, programming and optimising 3D printers to meet the company's production needs, and fine-tuning temperature parameters during the 3D printing process.