Industrial 3D printing enables complex component geometries or bionic structures, it favors lightweight construction and greater functional integration. When it comes to product customization and needs-based manufacturing, additive part production scores highly in terms of efficiency and cost-effectiveness. The components that Kuhn-Stoff produces in Weingarten near Ravensburg for its special machine construction customers using 3D printing are all produced on EOS systems. "We've simply had the best experience here for years," explains Managing Director Hannes Kuhn. "With EOS machines, we have complete design freedom, are flexible and can manufacture efficiently thanks to our high system utilization. The packing density we achieve is nine to 18 percent, which is ideal." This means that many different components for different customers can be produced economically in one print job.

Kuhn-Stoff works with the Formiga P 110 Velocis, among others, and exclusively with polyamide. This compact 3D printer from EOS impresses users with its high reliability, ease of use, reproducible component properties and high-quality end results. After the layer-by-layer production process using laser sintering, the system cools down from 170 degrees Celsius to manageable temperatures, after which the components are glass bead blasted to remove adhering powder and then rolled in a vibratory finishing stone bath. This gives the parts a smooth, flawless surface. Finally, post-processing includes coloring according to customer requirements.

Low weight, individually designed

Volker Jauch, Managing Director of Sarissa, with the receiver housing of the Local Positioning System LPS. © P. Born

At the customer Sarissa, also based in Weingarten, housings for transmitters and receivers of the "Local Positioning System" (LPS) are produced in this way. It is used to determine the position of tools and hands in various work processes in industrial assembly and during order picking or packaging. Depending on the task, the positions of a tool moving freely and wirelessly in space or of the worker's hands are detected and controlled. In this way, the work process fulfills the zero-error strategy in production.

The transmitter housing can be freely designed depending on the LPS application - for example for hand-held tools and their position detection, for position sensors on motor mounts, for hand-held tapes for gripping monitoring in assembly, handling and picking processes or for the receiver housing. In each case, the housings can be individually designed and perfected, for example with a mounting clip for attaching to the tool or a quick-release mount on a glove. Volker Jauch, Managing Director of Sarissa, and Hannes Kuhn work closely together and complement each other on design details. "Hannes Kuhn always has ideas on how something can be improved. That is very valuable for us as a customer," states the Sarissa boss. This in turn enables him to offer his customers high-quality, lightweight LPS enclosures for their quality assurance in production.