EDITOR ’ S CHOICE ROLLING IN THE DEEP
3DPRINTUK
A case study in the use of 3D printing for exacting production applications
By Nick Allen , Managing Director , 3DPRINTUK
3D printed parts are now common-place in end-use applications , but not all are used in as exacting an environment as the ones used by Planet Ocean , based in in Camberley , UK .
Planet Ocean is a specialist in the provision of high quality , marine scientific instruments for research , survey , naval and operations support . The company represents some of the world ’ s foremost manufacturers of oceanographic and marine meteorological equipment covering a wide spectrum of disciplines from radar wave measuring systems , to seabed assessment systems , and autonomous underwater and surface vehicles . ecoSUB Robotics — a company spun out of Planet Ocean to engage in the design and manufacture of underwater vehicles — regularly utilises 3DPPRINTUK as a supplier for a number of key 3D printed parts . These 3D printed components have to operate in salt water , in very low temperatures , and under extreme pressure some 2,500m below sea level , while at the same time remaining water-tight and intact .
We recently caught up with Jeremy Sitbon , Chief Robotics Engineer - Marine Robotics Systems at ecoSUB Robotics to find out more about these applications . Sitbon told us , “ For sure , the parts that we use in our underwater vehicles have to be strong and robust , and absolutely conform to design intent . 3D printing is preferred over injection moulding as we find the technology more versatile , and the design freedom allows us to innovate great parts . Also , our volumes are low ( maybe 10 parts per month ) so injection moulding would not be economical . Add in the fact that with 3D printing we can customise designs for individual clients , and the choice is clear . We use 3D printing for prototyping and production applications , and transitioned from Additive to 3DPRINTUK as the two companies merged in 2021 . For us , it is vital that the prototype and production parts that we order are competitively priced , high quality , and speedily delivered , and in 3DPRINTUK we find all of this and more . Key to the success of our relationship is the inherent knowledge and experience that resides within the 3DPRINTUK team .
36 PECM Issue 55