Scaling a 3D printed product with injection molding
The Objective
Convert a family of 3D printed products into injection moldable products.
The Challenge
Shop Nation designs and manufactures miter saw dust collection adapters in a 3D printer farm. Shop Nation also produces a set of adapters to allow end-users to connect their shop vacuum hoses to the dust collectors. Shop Nation wanted to transition the manufacturing of the hose adapters to injection molding to allow their print farm to focus on manufacturing the highly complex dust collection attachments. The original designs of the adapters were optimized for 3D printing rather than injection molding.
The Solution
PDI engineers worked with Shop Nation to update the hose adapter designs to be injection molding-ready. PDI went through several rounds of design optimizations and validation via 3D printing until the customer was satisfied with the updated design.
PDI then coordinated the mold build process with our tooling partners. As with all our new tooling projects, PDI handled the communication and design reviews with the mold builder. After the first article samples were approved, the mold was shipped to PDI for in-house sampling and approval. After dialing in the process settings on our machines, the customer signed off on the products and we began production.
Shop Nation can now focus their efforts on manufacturing their core products, while PDI’s partnership ensures the hose adapters are on hand and high-quality. PDI’s make-to-stock program ensures short lead times and on-time delivery.
Watch Shop Nation / 3D Print Farm Academy’s featuring PDI, on moving from 3D printing to injection molding: