The supply and production of aftermarket parts will be be eased by 3D printing, Daimler says
German truck manufacturer Daimler AG has announced it will utilise 3D printing to cost-effectively and efficiently produce plastic spare parts from September.
Rather than warehousing and shipping parts from Germany to customers around the globe, the truck maker says it will be printing parts locally from a series of stored blueprints.
Printed with “state-of-the-art 3D printers based on the Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) printing process,” Daimler says a customer orders the specific part, a design is sourced from Daimler headquarters, and the part is then created.
The parts include covers, spacers, spring caps, air and cable ducts, clamps, mountings, control elements, and more.
“Every 3D spare part can be ordered by the customer using the special spare part number under which it is recorded in the order code lists and the spare parts catalogues at Mercedes-Benz Trucks,” it says.
Already producing over 100,000 printed prototype parts for its individual divisions annually, the move will enable Daimler to reduce waste and curate tailored parts for its old models.
“The printing itself can take place within a very short time following receipt of the design definition and order, considerably speeding up the production and supply of spare parts,” Daimler says.
“As spare and retrofit parts can still easily be ‘reprinted’ even after a long time using the data stored and supplied without any complex stocking, no warehousing is required either.”
Daimler says it opens the door to the previously uneconomical production of unique parts, which in the past had low demand and would have required dealers to store left-over copies for long periods of time.
“With the 3D printing process these challenges are a thing of the past,” it says. “For every 3D spare part is available on demand at short notice all over the world.”
The company says 30 designs will be available from September, with more to follow.
The designs will accommodate vehicles going back decades.