Building the Future, Layer by Layer (Pt 2)
A conversation with a 3D printing entrepreneur on the future of Additive Manufacturing
Additive Manufacturing (AM), also known as 3D printing, is poised to transform the manufacturing sector. In its recent report, Just Press “Print”: Canada’s Additive Manufacturing Ecosystem, ICTC found that the global AM ecosystem is growing at a brisk 24% a year and is set to generate US $35.0 billion of revenue a year by 2024.
AM represents a diverse group of technologies and manufacturing processes which can be used with materials ranging from plastic filament to resins to metal powders. Use cases for AM range from rapid prototype, to customization, to the creation of highly complex manufactured goods that are cost-prohibitive or impossible to make with other technologies.
Following the release of the ICTC report, Just Press “Print”: Canada’s Additive Manufacturing Ecosystem, ICTC’s Chris Herron spoke with AM entrepreneur Zander Chamberlain about his work in AM and the state of AM in Canada.
Chris: To begin, why don’t you tell me a bit about your business, 3DAF, and what it does.
Zander: We are a manufacturing, design, and art products startup. We use a lot of cutting-edge technology like AM. AM is our core technology. We also do laser cutting, generative design, and we have skills in traditional techniques like machining.
Chris: What AM technologies and materials do you work with? And what AM-based services do you offer?
Zander: We do prototyping, design testing, and even produce finished products. In terms of technologies, we offer Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF), Stereolithography, Selective Laser Sintering (SLS), and Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS). Sometimes we work with partners who specialize in technologies and processes that we don’t have on site. In terms of materials, we mostly use plastics and metal, but we have done some work with wood as well.
Chris: What are the markets that have the biggest demand for your projects?
Zander: Industrial is our biggest market. We do prototyping and design. Also we build our own FDM [fused deposition modeling] and SLA [stereolithography] printers. We make the printers mostly for on-site use, but we also rent and sell them. Our other main market is arts-related products. We use AM for sculpting. We have a lot of versatility in that area; we can make everything from multi-component sculptures bigger than 8 ft3 to small and detailed figurines.
Chris: Where are most of your clients located?
Zander: In terms of total number of clients, our biggest market overall is international. We have sold to Romania, Israel, Russia, the UK. Our biggest single market is the US. Our parts can go all over world. In terms of the total value of our sales, we are still more focused on Canada, because the contracts from Canada are usually bigger.
Chris: How did you get involved in AM and how did you start your own AM business? What inspired you?
Zander: I have had this business for 11 years now, and I started to focus specifically on AM seven years ago. In terms of inspiration, I come from a manufacturing background. I don’t have any formal AM training. When I was working in machining, I first became interested in AM because I saw you could use AM to produce really interesting shapes without having to remove a ton of material. It was just more efficient and easier. For example, we were making a large 3D figurine. It took around 300 hours to make it and its production cost was around $500. To produce that figurine using traditional manufacturing technologies, would have cost $6,500 to produce and taken much, much longer to make. That’s to say, we saved about 90% on both cost and time by doing it with AM.
Chris: What are some of the most interesting projects you’ve been involved in?
Zander: At 3DAF, we synergize our manufacturing projects, so we seldom manufacture products that are purely AM. In the last year, we have developed prototypes and short-run production to make replacement production lighting lenses, experimental medical devices for evaluation, emergency response supplies to help fight COVID-19, and a plethora of artistic and marketing displays.
Chris: Looking forward, what developments in the world of AM do you find the most exciting?
Zander: In terms of technologies, there are many interesting developments. In plastic AM, we’re seeing larger and more capable AM platforms. In metal AM, we are excited about the developments in Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM). That is a system that utilizes traditional Tungsten Inert Gas (TIG) welding technologies integrated into a robotic arm to create 3D metal prints. You get a full 9-axis range of motion. It will be terrible to program, but once we know how, it will be able to make big things very fast. Anyone with three or four million dollars could be printing big parts like engines on site. It could simplify logistics massively in the automotive industry. At this point, the technology is very young. Still, I’m optimistic that WireArc will be common in 10 to 15 years.
Chris: What are some of the key challenges for AM entrepreneurs such as yourself?
Zander: It’s always challenging to be an entrepreneur, regardless of what industry you are in or how experienced you are. But there are definitely some challenges that are unique to AM.
The first is process validation. In the current market, there are no standards for process validation and regulation, and this has led to a general mistrust of AM within the international and domestic manufacturing community.
The second major hurdle is funding. AM entrepreneurs face serious obstacles when it comes to gaining access to funding. This is due to the large initial startup costs that are required in manufacturing along with the lack of clear market and process validation. This can make the return on investment difficult to calculate and validate with financial institutions and investors.
The third biggest challenge is finding talent. There are few marketable employees with skills in AM. This can limit the growth capacity of small enterprises in AM. Once successful, they can only grow at the pace at which they can train employees due to the complexity of AM. Of course, many industries have issues with talent, but it’s exaggerated in AM because AM is still a relatively new player in the labour market.
Finally, there is also the fact that AM is just not well-known as a technology. That kind of relates to the funding and the cost issue. Basically, there’s a lot of technical knowledge that is factored into the cost, and it’s not always easy to communicate. For example, I had a customer who wanted to make 3D printed masks. They handed me a scribble, a few 3D images. It was beautiful. I came back with an $8,000 quote for five prototypes. They just stopped talking to me because they were so astonished with the cost. They didn’t understand that just because it can be quick, it doesn’t mean it will be cheap. Sure, things may take less time than with injection molding, but the cost is often the same.
Chris: You mention a shortage of talent and skills. What opportunities in Canada are there for professionals to reskill or upskill for AM? That’s one avenue to address the skills shortage. Which of these would you consider the best?
Zander: There is a lot of potential for reskilling or upskilling for AM. That said, from what I know, there are few options outside of pursuing a doctorate that allow for traditional upskilling. My opinion is that upskilling is the best way to enter into AM, although this may be biased, as our entire team has upskilled from traditional roles in manufacturing and design to work in AM. As it stands, these opportunities are few and far between, and a better collaboration between industry, post-secondary institutions, and government could increase these opportunities dramatically.
Chris: How did your organization respond to the challenge of COVID-19?
Zander: We were keeping our eyes on COVID-19 from the outset while it was just in China. We were able to start work on new devices and designs ahead of the Canadian landfall. Since then, lots has happened. We were able to coordinate with several institutions, agencies, and other industrial partners to ramp up the design and the manufacturing process of medical supplies. We developed visors and ear protection apparatus to help protect Canadians. We also worked on developing ventilator regulators and other medical equipment. We also did some more academic-style work; we helped to develop proper testing, safety, and sanitization methods for plastic AM materials as well as writing several articles on additive medical devices.
Chris: What do you think is the outlook for the Canadian AM sector in the next 1–2 years?
Zander: I believe that the Canadian AM sector is going to see strong overall growth as there has been more adoption across the Canadian manufacturing infrastructure. That said, the same adoption is happening across many other countries. I think it would be in Canada’s best interest to help kickstart the AM revolution in Canada to ensure we develop at the same pace as our international peers.
Chris: Thanks for speaking with me. I’ve really enjoyed learning more about AM.
About the Interview Participants:
Zander Chamberlain, RSE is a veteran of the manufacturing sector and has worked in fabrication, reverse engineering, toolmaking, machining, material science, additive manufacturing, R&D, and project management. Starting off his career as a fabricator and assembler, Zander studied as a Machinist at St Clair College and achieved a Red Seal Designation in General Machining. Zander is certified as an Electrical Mechanical Engineering Technician and a General Machinist. Zander has worked in the Canadian Tooling Industry and helped several large tooling manufacturers to develop new manufacturing process and adopt new processes, including Additive Manufacturing and Electric Discharge Machining. Zander was a founding member of the startup 3D Additive Fabrication and serves as its Director of Manufacturing.
Chris Herron is a Junior Research Analyst at ICTC. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of British Columbia in 2019. He has worked with ICTC since graduating, and his research has covered a range of topics including cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, additive manufacturing, smart transportation, intelligent retail, digital competitiveness, and Canada-EU trade in the ICT sector.
