SAP, a Norwegian company that makes parts for marine environments (like oil-drilling facilities in the North Sea), bought a Fused Deposition Modeling System to save time and money in prototyping. To SAP's surprise, its prototypes were strong and attractive enough to become end-use products.
SAP's move to direct digital manufacturing (DDM) grew out of necessity. An extensive redesign of a driller-operator chair involved many intricate parts and was running up against a tight deadline. So SAP manufactured the parts on its Fortus 3D Production System, skipping the traditional tooling process.
"The FDM parts simplified the designs for complex moving and interlocking mechanisms. They stood up to all our testing," said Andy Smith, SAP industrial designer.
DDM is now integral to SAP's business: About 70 percent of its Fortus system's output is end-use parts. You can read SAP's full case study here.
Is your company engaged in DDM? Did you plan for it, or was it a surprise?
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