International. Half a centimeter wide, two centimeters long and crescent-shaped. That's the brief description of the component that Danfoss Heating's factory in Silkeborg, Denmark, recently developed together with Danfoss Additive Design and Manufacturing Center, Nordborg, in everyday language, the 3D printing center.
The component is now within a series of so-called return temperature limiting thermostats that are on their way to a British distributor of heating and ventilation solutions. And this marks the first time a 3D printed component ends up inside a finished product from the Silkeborg factory.
So far, the factory's R&D researchers have used 3D technology for prototyping and to print components for use on machines on the shop floor.
"Now we take the last step towards the customer. The technology is mature and of very high quality. 3D printing was definitely the right way to produce this component," says Sander Skovhus Michelsen, 3D printing segment leader at Danfoss Heating.
The customer has ordered 3,000 thermostats, a relatively low number. And this is why 3D printing was the most cost-effective production method. The alternative, injection molding, requires you to first make a mold that can easily cost up to 10,000 euros.
This means that for molding to be competitive, you typically need relatively large orders. In the specific case with 3,000 components, molding, according to the Silkeborg factory, would have increased the cost of production by about 80 percent.
It would also have been slower. Third-party suppliers, who make the molds, usually need up to 12 weeks. The Danfoss Additive Design and Manufacturing Center spent just five weeks developing and printing the components.
"Speed in product development and delivery is absolutely key for customers. And, here, 3D rules. Therefore, we are likely to see many more 3D printed components in finished products from now on," says Bjørn Sejr Nielsen, Director of Business Development, Danfoss UK, who has been involved in the project.
