Additive Manufacturing in Practical Use

Today’s product designer is being asked to develop high quality, innovative products at an ever increasing pace. To meet this need, Additive Manufacturing has shown the possibilities of enabling complex geometry and economic small batch production. As a result, AM opens a new opportunity for designers to create innovative products that were unfeasible to be manufactured economically before. Examples of AM applications include aerospace and automotive components, packaging, medical implants, hearing aid shells and surgical guides, and consumer products as diverse as light shades, furniture and jewellery. Many of these products have creative design elements such as aesthetical features, light weight structures, reduced number of parts, complex geometric forms etc. This paper gives an overview over the possibilities of Additive Manufacturing and shows methods of its popular use.