AdvancedTek Part of the Week – 2/4/16
No ears, guns or cars – just real parts and real applications.Today’s part of the week is a great example of how 3D printing can complement traditional manufacturing methods. It is a custom 3D printed vice chuck for a CNC machining center. CNC machined parts often require post operations. Many of these parts are highly complex and therefore are difficult to hold with a universal vice. 3D printing allows users to take the exact shape of the part and create a custom chuck or vice jaw in order to hold the part precisely off the exact geometry of the part. This increases repeatability and therefore accuracy of the post operations.
Many people initially see 3D printing as a threat to traditional manufacturing technologies, but once they gain direct access to the technology it is almost always used as a complement to current methods. 3D printing can be used to increase the efficiency of an internal machine shop by offering an automated method for validating designs before “cutting chips” and by producing custom work holding fixtures like these vice jaws.
Please contact us if you’d like additional information about 3D printed CNC fixtures or other applications. Please consider following AdvancedTek for future samples and customer stories.
Posted by Matt Havekost, AdvancedTek Director of Sales – Additive Manufacturing