UOIT |

Milestone Proposal 1
TOPIC: 3D PRINTING IN THE
AUTOMATIVE INDUSTRY
BY: GROUP 8
SECTION: 3

Milestone 1: Proposal

The idea of 3D printing first came about roughly 35 years ago.

However, it wasnt put into actual use until the early 1990s. Initially, the
idea was conceived to make small, plastic components for various industries.
Currently, it is purposed to create actual finish products for use. Recently,
Local Motors build an entire car using only 3D printing. This sounds like a
major breakthrough, but at this point in time with the current technology we
have, it is not financially sensible to build cars in this manner. For this
reason, 3D printing has become useful in making molds which will
subsequently be used to make the real car parts. The reason why 3D printing
of cars is inefficient at this point is because many auto parts have to be very
precise.
The information systems that we have chosen to focus on are those
related to Human Resources (HR). Upon the 3D printing technology entering
the industry, companies will need fewer low-level assembly line workers. This
could lead to severance pay, layoffs and overall job loss. However, the pay
level will increase because more high-skilled workers will be required to
operate the new technology. Due to the job loss, employee morale may be
affected in a negative manner.
As a group we will be looking at the use of 3D printing in the
automotive industry. At this point in time, most cars are manufactured and
assembled on an assembly line.

In the future, this could be dramatically

changed with the implementation of new technology, including 3D printing.

We will be analyzing the automotive industry as a whole rather than a
specific company because we feel the majority of companies within the
industry will follow similar processes.
Currently, automotive companies need to pay various suppliers for the
parts they will then bring to their assembly lines to put together to create the
final product. The information system that would be used in this scenario

Milestone 1: Proposal
would be related to the ordering, shipment and payment of the parts. If 3D
printing was implemented, companies would own the technology to create
the parts in-house via 3D printers. Therefore, they would need to adjust their
current systems used for ordering to a new process that would include
ordering materials for the printer, maintenance, etc.
3D Printing is one of those technologies that would have huge impact on
automotive companies. Over the past few years, 3D printing have changed
ways in which products are developed and manufactured. For automotive
industries, these changes have led to new designs, safer products, low costs
and less time in production process. 3DP, formally known as Additive
Manufacturing, is likely to upend the last two centuries of approaches to
design and manufacturing with profound geopolitical, economic, social,
demographic, environmental, and national security implications that will
unfold over the coming two decades and beyond(Garrett 2014). According
to Banning Garrett, The new industrial revolution would shrink supply chains
and change business models and thus would offer number of structural
benefits in manufacturing over traditional manufacturing.
Traditional manufacturing method (when 3D printing was not invented)
lead to decrease in production levels and increases in cost which also
included high labour cost. One of our strategic issue is the cost reduction and
we would like to emphasize that 3D printing would increase the speed of the
production at an inexpensive cost. Automotive industry currently uses sand
casting technique (metal casting process by using sad as the mold
material) for high volume production. Producing sand molds and cast metal
parts is relatively straightforward and suitable for automated methods that
can reduce cycle time and labor. However, fabricating the patterns is often
difficult, time-consuming and expensive. Because this process increases
length of time 3D printing would ultimately increase the speeding process of
the product and therefore save cost, labour and time.

Milestone 1: Proposal
Still to this day organizations in the automotive, manufacturing and high
tech industries have long been active consumers of outsourcing services
(Lepeak & Seigler). Automotive companies continue to outsource parts and
services to help reduce costs and increase productivity. Along with the use
of outsourcing, majority of automotive manufacturers use assembly lines to
produce parts and assemble vehicles.

The assembly line made building

cars more efficient. Because of the increase in efficiency, the cost to produce
a car went down and when production costs were lowered (Deaton, 2009).
To be more specific the use of production lines and outsourcing are primarily
used together to create the cars we see on todays highways and local
streets. The two sources tie into each other as many of the parts that go
into assembling a car aren't made on-site. Instead, car companies buy parts
(like brake rotors or transmissions) from other companies -- suppliers -- many
of which have their own assembly lines (Deaton, 2009). These outsourced
parts are in turn used in the assembly of the automobile by the production
line.
The current use of 3D printing in the automotive industry is emerging and
being used more and more. Today, nearly every automaker and many
suppliers have made 3-D printing an element of product development. A
Toyota Motor Corp. spokesman said it's "widely used" to assess the
ergonomics, feel and response of parts -- qualities that can't be easily
replicated on a computer model (Bunkley,2014) . The use of 3D printing is
increasing efficiency, lowering costs and saving time for automotive
companies that rely on this technology. 3D printing takes raw materials and
forms them into objects one ultrathin layer after another (Bunkley,2014).
Companys such as Ford and Local Motors rely on 3D printing for the
production of their cars. Ford uses it to build prototypes and make product
testing more efficient, but Local Motors is going even further by making the
chassis and body of its cars in giant, $1 million printers (Bunkley, 2014).
The advantages of this technology are already evident and being relied on by

Milestone 1: Proposal
companies such as Ford and Local Motors to help produce parts for their
cars. The technology is still in its infancy and will continue to grow and
emerge as time goes on.

References
Garrett, B. (2014). 3D Printing: New Economic Paradigms and Strategic Shifts. Global Policy, 5(1),
70-70. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1758-5899.12119/pdf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sand_casting
http://www.stratasys.com/solutions-applications/digital-manufacturing/tooling/sandcasting

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwPWLCVekGc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMs_MjYXXgQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SObzNdyRTBs

Milestone 1: Proposal
Bunkley, N. (2014, October 27). Auto industry uses 3-d printing heavily in
product development. Retrieved from
http://old.citationmachine.net/index2.php?
reqstyleid=2&mode=form&reqsrcid=APAWebPage&srcCode=11&more=yes&
nameCnt=1
Deaton, Jamie Page. "How Automotive Production Lines Work" 11 May
2009. HowStuffWorks.com. <http://auto.howstuffworks.com/under-thehood/auto-manufacturing/automotive-production-line.htm> 28 January
2015.
Lepeak, S., & Seigler, J. (n.d.). The issue: Outsourcing trends in the
automotive, manufacturing and high- tech industries. Retrieved from
http://www.equaterra.com/_filelib/FileCabinet/Research/EquaTerra_Perspectiv
e_Outsourcing_Trends_in_Auto_Manuf_and_High-tech_Industries.pdf?
FileName=EquaTerra_Perspective_Outsourcing_Trends_in_Auto_Manuf_and_Hi
gh-tech_Industries.pdf