Additive manufacturing software developer Castor has released a report on 3D printed part sustainability, and it has some interesting reveals.
If you’re not familiar with Castor, they have developed a unique system for evaluating the printability of part designs. Basically, they scan through CAD files and perform multiple analyses to advise the part owner.
The problem they are solving is the dilemma of a manufacturer with hundreds of part designs that wishes to start using additive manufacturing. They don’t know which parts would be feasible to print, or whether it would be worthwhile financially to do so. CASTOR figures that out automatically.
Castor is one of a few companies that provide this type of analysis, but they offer an additional analysis that I don’t believe exists elsewhere: sustainability.
Just as they are able to compare the cost of manufacturing a design using, say, CNC milling vs. additive manufacturing, they are also able to estimate the energy required to create the part, and the consequent CO2 emissions. This is where things get interesting...