Mifa: Or how 3D printing helps in production

There are many ways 3D printing can be used: prototyping, final products, gadgets, investment casting, art, etc. But companies, especially the ones where physical products are being made, are increasingly  looking at 3D printing for something else: tools, fixtures and parts in production. Like Mifa does. Mifa is a nearby company specialized in aluminium profiles.

 

Mifa is a leading company in the extrusion of magnesium profiles and aluminium profiles. They produce fully-finished precision products with dimensional tolerances from ± 0.02 mm. This level of aluminium extrusion precision means unprecedented possibilities. It gives designers enormous freedom in design, without the restrictions of standard specifications. As a result of this it is possible to achieve the optimum product.

About a year ago Mifa made the decision to purchase a Stacker S4 printer. Because internally there was not enough capacity in house to have tooling made the conventional way, they started with their first Ultimaker at the end of 2015. We talked with Daan Broeksteeg, project engineer, why they use 3D printing and the Stacker in combination with colorFabb filaments in particular.

Testing 3d printed clamping parts at Mifa

“The primary goal was to print clamping devices for our CNC machines. However, we found that 3D printing has many advantages and is being used in almost all departments of our company one way or another,” says Daan. “For instance, molds to bundle packages in or verification molds.” The Ultimaker printers were a great start for Mifa to get to learn to process of 3D printing and get people familiar with the process, but the need arose for a more industrial printer. With colorFabb as Stacker’s distributor in the vicinity the contacts were easily made.

Daan says: “Stacker has added value because of the tight tolerances that are very important in CNC milling. Because Stacker produces four parts at the same time, the dimensional deviation between the prints is minimal. This is definitely the main advantage of the Stacker.” As from the beginning Mifa uses colorFabb_XT for its parts. colorFabb_XT is made with Amphora AM1800 3D polymer is a low-odor, styrene-free choice that is uniquely suited for 3D printing applications. Daan explains why:

“We have done extensive research for the best material we should use. We found that colorFabb_XT has minimal moisture absorption (<1%) which is a benefit in a CNC environment with coolant nearby.”

It is clear that the Stacker 3D printer in combination with the right materials has advantages for Mifa’s CNC department. And it doesn’t stop there. Daan explains that as 3D printing is used in multiple departments, the printers are moving around a bit. It is the goal to have a dedicated print lab in the near future.

We thank Daan Broeksteeg for his contribution to this blog.

 

After our blog about Optima Staaltechniek Mifa is another great example of how 3D printing brings added value to a company that needs reliability and quality delivered to its customers. The match of the Stacker printer with our range of functional co-polyesters, is a perfect all-in-one solution.

The Stacker S2 and S4 are industrial grade FFF 3D printers. Multiple print heads and a large build volume make them versatile printers. Small series production or large scale prototyping are no problem for the Stacker printers! This US based printer is very reliable and is a perfect match for any professional looking for serious 3D printing. You can find the full product specifications on our dedicated Stacker page.

For Stacker the term “industrial grade” is not a hollow marketing term. It means their printers are designed for extra long service life, extremely low maintenance and that the printer will maintain its positional accuracy throughout its life cycle. This printer has been designed to be used in a professional environment, be it for large prototypes or small series production.

As many of you know, we are the distributor of Stacker 3D printers in Europe. We have been working with Stacker ever since their first prototype and now have several in our print lab. In the past 5 years we have seen 3D printing emerging from a hobby market to more professional uses. A lot of our users are using 3D printing to make a living or at least support their business in one way or another.

Interested? Get a quote or contact us!

Coming Soon: Color on Demand

Color on Demand is a new groundbreaking service by colorFabb that allows users to have their preferred color matched and produced. Starting with RAL color references in PLA, this new service offers unique colors to be printed and to be ordered at a low MOQ. You will be able to order as from 2kg of filament in the color you need.

Due to a new innovative production method we are able to meet the immediate color needs of our users. This allows us to offer more colors than ever, whenever they are needed. To ensure the proof of concept works dozens of RAL colors have already been matched with more to follow on a weekly basis.

 

You can also request a certain color that has not been matched yet and we will start the process for you. We offer this service on spools containing 2kg of filament (the MOQ) or pellets (MOQ 5kg). You will also be able to order a color plaque to approve the color first before ordering a spool.

Pricing will start at € 75 per 2kg spool (ex VAT / shipping) with tier pricing as from 4 and 10 spools.

Lead times will be:
– Existing colors: 5 – 8 business days
– New color matches: 2 – 3 weeks

The full list of colors that have already been approved and will be available as from day one:

PLA 500001 Sky blue RAL 5015
PLA 600001 Pastel green RAL 6019
PLA 200002 Bright red orange RAL 2008
PLA 300001 Raspberry red RAL 3027
PLA 100001 Beige RAL 1001
PLA 200003 Red orange RAL 2001
PLA 300002 Signal red RAL 3001
PLA 100002 Oyster white RAL 1013
PLA 400001 Telemagenta RAL 4010
PLA 500003 Turquoise blue RAL 5018
PLA 500004 Sapphire blue RAL 5003
PLA 600003 Emerald green RAL 6001
PLA 900001 Traffic white RAL 9016
PLA 900002 Pure white RAL 9010
PLA 100003 Melon yellow RAL 1028
PLA 600006 Yellow green RAL 6018
PLA 800001 Nut brown RAL 8011
PLA 700001 Silver grey RAL 7001
PLA 700004 Black grey RAL 7021
PLA 700005 Graphite grey RAL 7024
PLA 700006 Yellow grey RAL 7034
PLA 700008 Quartz grey RAL 7039
PLA 700009 Silk grey RAL 7044
PLA 700010 Telegrey 4 RAL 7047
PLA 300003 Light pink RAL 3015
PLA 400002 Red lilac RAL 4001
PLA 700011 Window grey RAL 7040
PLA 400003 Claret violet RAL 4004
PLA 200005 Vermilion RAL 2002
PLA 800002 Signal brown RAL 8002
PLA 900003 Signal white RAL 9003
PLA 100004 Zinc yellow RAL 1018
PLA 600008 Light green RAL 6027
PLA 600010 Pure green RAL 6037
PLA 500010 Azure blue RAL 5009
PLA 600011 Mint turquoise RAL 6033
PLA 600012 Leaf green RAL 6002
PLA 700012 Signal grey RAL 7004
PLA 700013 Iron grey RAL 7011

Note that all filaments will be specifically produced for you. Color on Demand will be available as from June this year. A full announcement will be made when we launch. Stay tuned…

Spring Break Sale 2018

We’re having our annual spring break sale this week for a limited time. Now it’s time for you to try our latest filament or get back to some of our classics like PLA/PHA, bronzeFill or woodFill!

 

 

Here is the current sale:

10% off on all value packs! – A great deal has just been made greater! We even have a value pack containing all our latest filament… Click here.

 

Some, not all, of our value packs on sale right now.

 

20% off on all spools! – One spool or a dozen: 20% off right away! Go straight to our webshop!

 

10% off on all desktop 3D printers – Both Robo3D and Lulzbot printers, all of them shipping from stock and with free spools of filament!

This sale does not work in combination with other discounts and does not apply to samples. Sale lasts for the entire long weekend until Sunday (May 13th 2018), midnight CET. We ship worldwide and from stock!

Use coupon code SPRINGBREAK in our webshop or simply click here.

Can’t choose? Make life easier by flipping through our updated catalogue. Our filaments, nicely sorted and with all the information, tips and tricks you need:

 

3D Maps

Another application that 3D printing has made more accessible is the creation of 3D maps. We all have seen the 3D maps at tourist attractions and information centers of mountainous regions. Making these maps is quite expensive. We were recently approached by a customer to look into the possibilities of making a 3D map for the region he is active in. We may publish about that project later, but in the meantime we produced a map of our own, using the full print bed of the Stacker S2 and using PLA Economy White. When choosing a mountainous region to print we settled for nothing less than the mountain range on this planet – the Himalayas to be exact.

The black thread indicates the Everest base camp trek, approximately, and in real life takes about 8 days.

The region printed here is the Sagarmatha National Park in Nepal, the region where one can walk the Everest Base Camp trek. From Lukla airport, at the bottom of the print it takes up to 7 or 8 days to reach base camp – a stunning trek in real life and marked in black on this printed model.

We created the file by using Terrain2STL – a great online application to make your own custom 3D maps. We printed on the Stacker S2 at 0.16mm layer height, using a 0.8mm nozzle. The making of the print took 67 hours, using the full print bed size of the S2.

 

For this print we used our trusted PLA Economy, a highly popular filament used for bulk projects by many of our users… and ourselves.

PLA Economy is a fantastic PLA grade which we launched in November of 2016. Initially we released four colors: white, red, black and silver. Recently added the always popular Dark Blue, which is similar to our very own Ultra Marine Blue that we offer in our portfolio of PLA/PHA filaments.

PLA Economy offers a great value for your money. One spool consists of 2.2kg of filament for a dirt cheap price of a little over € 35 (ex VAT and shipping). It is a different grade than our range of PLA/PHA, but we guarantee the same colorFabb quality. Our filaments are readily available from our webshop. You can use the standard PLA settings if your printer has these pre-defined and these should work fine.

You can also opt for the PLA Economy Value Pack: order four spools as a value pack and receive an immediate 10% discount!

Buy PLA Economy                                      Buy PLA Economy Value Pack

PLA Economy is very well suited for the maker who needs quality at an affordable price. It is a perfect filament for large volume and small series production, made with the guaranteed colorFabb quality that we are known for.

 

About the Stacker

Both the Stacker S2 and its larger sibling Stacker S4 are industrial grade FFF 3D printers. Multiple print heads and a large build volume make them versatile printers. Small series production or large scale prototyping are no problem for the Stacker printers! This US based printer is very reliable and is a perfect match for any professional looking for serious 3D printing. You can find the full product specifications on our dedicated Stacker page.

For Stacker the term “industrial grade” is not a hollow marketing term. It means their printers are designed for extra long service life, extremely low maintenance and that the printer will maintain its positional accuracy throughout its life cycle. This printer has been designed to be used in a professional environment, be it for large prototypes or small series production.

The Stacker S2 in the middle

As many of you know, we are the distributor of Stacker 3D printers in Europe. We have been working with Stacker ever since their first prototype and now have several in our print lab. In the past 5 years we have seen 3D printing emerging from a hobby market to more professional uses. A lot of our users are using 3D printing to make a living or at least support their business in one way or another.

Interested? Get a quote or contact us!

PA-CF Low Warp Design Challenge

3D printing made functional… by you

We like our challenges and for once we ask you to challenge us. With PA-CF Low Warp we think we have developed one of the most durable and functional filaments in the market. And we want to demonstrate that it. We ask you, the creative community, to send us your designs that we will then print with PA-CF Low Warp.

 

Why PA-CF Low Warp?

We launched PA_CF Low Warp late last year. It is a one of a kind polyamide formulation with the ability to print nearly warp free on non heated buildplatforms. Low infill prints come out perfectly flat on cold bed for higher infill prints 40/50C temperature is enough to obtain flat prints. The formulation has been modified to reduce the uptake of moisture by half compared to PA6 and it also takes about 4 times longer to reach the saturation point. This makes PA-CF Low Warp less sensitive to moisture than most other nylon filaments available in the market.

This tailormade formulation of polyamide features the mechanical properties of a PA6. Tensile strength was measured at 77,99 MPa and impact strength (notched) was measured at 5,44KJ/m2, test specimens both printed on Ultimaker 2+, 260C 0.1mm layerheight with 100% infill.

PA-CF Low Warp allows continues use at 120°C while retaining sufficient properties for the intended application. For those looking to print with nylon, moisture is a serious topic. PA-CF low warp has been modified to lower the uptake of moisture and slow down the time it takes to fully saturate by 4 times. In practice this means the filament is quite forgiving and user should be able to print with the material without noticing extreme influences of moisture uptake.

Users can now print high strength material without the need of heated chambers. The materials shows very good results for 3D printed parts compared to injection molded data, with only minimal loss in performance. This is a result of the excellent printability of the material, enabling users to acquire optimal performance on desktop FFF 3d printers.

 

What are we looking for?

There are filaments for vases and trinkets and there are filaments that need to be functional. This is the latter one. With this design contest we aim for original designs that, when printed, can be used in real life. We’re not going to make it easy for you. Below is a summary what we are looking for:

  • The design needs to be functional
  • The design needs to be for everyday use (in a domestic, business or industrial environment)
  • The design needs to be original (no copy-pasting existing parts without any adjustments – you can however make an existing part “better”)
  • The design needs to be IP-free
  • The design needs to be printable within a day 24-48 hours on a normal printer
  • The application needs to be suitable for the toughness of the filament (nothing that can also be done in, say, PLA)
  • Preferably the application of the print can be done by us, in-house so we can test your design
  • You can send in multiple entries (one by one, please)

 

Who’s judging?

Of all the entries we will receive, a jury will pick out the five best and those will be printed by us. These five winning designs will be picked by a jury of experts and your peers. The jury is:

  • Steve Cox, UK – 3D printing expert when it comes to our metal filled filaments & much more!
  • Brent Wright, US – founder of LifeNabled and changing lifes by using 3D printing. See some of his amazing work here.
  • Gijs Houdijk, NL – technical development manager at colorFabb, knows 3D printing and our filaments better than you know yourself.

Check out our recent blog about printing with PA-CF Low Warp to see some excellent examples of the filament is being used in real life.

What’s in it for you?

For the five entries we choose and will print:

  • You’ll receive the print
  • You’ll receive 2 spools of PA-CF Low Warp filament
  • We’ll share your mad design skills with the world
  • So even if you don’t have a printer, you can have your design(s) printed by our team!
  • All valid entries will receive a 15% discount on colorFabb filaments. For life.

 

How?

The hardest part is desiging… and that is entirely up to you. Remember, we are looking for awesome ideas. After that it’s simple. Click here to go to our form. Fill it out, upload the files and sit back.

You can submit your entry until May 31st 2018. After that we will choose five designs to print and test in real life. We will keep you updated through social media of the progress of the prints, etc.