Daimler Truck 3D Printing Parts Will Reshape Supply Chain

Daimler Truck 3D Printing Parts Will Reshape Supply Chain

Instead of transporting auto parts from other countries, Daimler simply sends a digital blueprint of the parts to a printer that can convert special inks into hardened plastics without having to store or transport parts from elsewhere.

Daimler local time April 13, 2017 said that starting from September of this year, Mercedes-Benz trucks will use 3D printing to produce plastic parts, including spring covers, air and cable ducts, wheel locks, brackets and control element.

Daimler said that the company now has more than 100,000 printed prototype parts and will use 3D printing methods to expand its parts production.

The “printing” component is mainly produced by a selective laser sintering (SLS) printing process and is produced by a 3D printer. By assigning specific numbers to parts, even some parts models that were decades ago can be recognized for printing.