3D
printing has been taken to the next level by Mercedes-Benz Trucks. The company
has produced its first printed spare part made of metal. The part – a
thermostat cover for truck and Unimog models from older model series – has
passed all the stages of the stringent quality assurance process.
Mercedes-Benz
Trucks believes that with this advancement the company is now the technological
leader in the challenging segment of cutting-edge 3D printing processes for
metal components.
“With
the introduction of 3D metal printing technology, Mercedes-Benz Trucks is
reasserting its pioneering role among global commercial vehicle manufacturers,”
says Andreas Deuschle, Head of Marketing & Operations in Customer Services
& Parts at Mercedes-Benz Trucks.
“We
ensure the same functionality, reliability, durability and cost-effectiveness
with 3D metal parts as we do with conventionally produced parts.”
In
the Customer Services & Parts division of Mercedes-Benz Trucks, automotive
3D printing began its increasing success in the production departments for the
after-sales and replacement parts business a year ago. Since then, Customer
Services & Parts has worked together with the researchers and
pre-developers at Daimler AG to constantly improve and expand the use of
the latest 3D printing processes for plastic parts. 3D printing of high-quality
plastic components has now successfully established itself as an additional
production method, and is particularly suitable for the production of smaller
batches.
Opening up new possibilities
Metal
parts from the 3D printer excel with their very high strength and thermal
resistance, and the process is therefore particularly suitable for the
production of mechanically and thermally stressed components required in small
numbers.
Metallic
components can be produced at the touch of a button with any geometry and in
any numbers.
Conceivable
areas of use are peripheral engine parts made of metal, in-engine parts and
also parts in cooling systems, transmissions, axles or chassis. Especially when
they have complex structures, 3D-printed metal parts in small numbers can be
produced cost-effectively as infrequently requested replacement parts, special
parts and for small and classic model series.
“The
availability of spare parts during a workshop visit is essential for our
customers – no matter how old the truck is, or where it is located. The
particular added value of 3D printing technology is that it considerably
increases speed and flexibility, especially when producing spare and special
parts.
“This
gives us completely new possibilities for offering our customers spare parts
rapidly and at attractive prices, even long after series production has
ceased,” Deuschle concludes.
In
the future, 3D metal printing might allow decentralised and therefore much
faster, local production directly in the worldwide Mercedes-Benz production
locations. This would further improve parts availability: expensive warehousing
and the associated, complex transport processes would be unnecessary, with
delivery times made shorter for customers.
Rapid global availability
The
new thermostat cover is an example of cost-effective spare and special parts
production in top quality, made possible by use of the 3D printing process for
highly resistant metal parts made of die-cast aluminium alloy.
This
replacement part is only ordered in small numbers, and is used in older truck
and Unimog models whose production ceased around 15 years ago. This example
shows that Customer Services & Parts is able to produce and offer
components that are no longer installed in current series production vehicles,
or are only produced in very small batches as special customer requests, at a
reasonable cost.
Thanks to advancing digitisation, even highly specific metal components can be ordered from Mercedes-Benz Trucks and delivered anywhere in the world on request, even after many years: quickly, cost-effectively, in requisite numbers and in consistently high OEM quality.
Article
first appeared in: 
http://www.infrastructurene.ws/2017/08/13/3d-printing-the-first-metal-spare-part-for-trucks/
