Alex and Matt discuss the transition from prototyping to production with 3D printing. Emphasizing the importance of design FOR additive manufacturing (and not just printing any file you found on the internet). They highlight the power of iterative prototyping to refine designs and the variety of plastics available for 3D printers, and what they are good at.

They close the podcast out discussing the big picture ideas of producing parts for someone like managing expectations, part quality, and the amount of work it really take to produce parts in bulk at the quality the customer is happy with.

A great introduction to the grind that is 3D printing and making lots of parts. It's VERY rewarding...but it's also no picnic. If this episode get's you excited about making parts with a 3D printer, you might be built for this life. Join us!

Links:

Alexander G. Orphanos | AG3D Labs: ag3d-printing.com

Matthew Guy | Niche 3D LLC: Niche3D.io

Timestamps: 00:00 Scaling from Prototyping to Production in 3D Printing 02:21 Designing for Additive Manufacturing 03:00 Challenges in Prototyping and Production 17:33 The Power of Material Selection and Print Settings 33:49 Post-Processing and Surface Finish 40:52 Industrial and Specialized Materials 44:08 Customer Communication and Expectation Management 44:56 Prototyping and Production Workflow 45:44 Training and Maintenance for 3D Printers 47:15 Final Thoughts and Future Directions