Fathom is hiring for multiple positions across our 12 nationwide sites! To see all open positions, click here.

logo fathom

3D Printing Jigs Fixtures FDM Polyjet

PolyJet Fixtures / / 3D Printing Jigs & Fixtures Application Story

On production floors worldwide, people depend on jigs and fixtures to enhance manufacturing processes—custom-made tools that enable steps such as alignment, assembly and work holding with optimal efficiency and minimal scrap. These crucial components are often made with CNC machining or other in-house fabrication equipment, commonly in one of the final steps before production can begin. Switching jig and fixture fabrication to 3D printing instead results in faster turnaround, improved efficiency and performance through greater design freedom and frees up production equipment to focus on production. In this featured blog post, Fathom takes a look at a Stratasys application story that demonstrates the use of 3D printing as a fast and cost efficient alternative for making jigs and fixtures.


FEATURED APPLICATION STORY

Rutland Plastics, located in Rutland, United Kingdom, delivers custom injection molding services and products to a variety of companies and industries. Many of the manufacturing and inspection operations Rutland performs require the use of jigs and fixtures to hold and position its injection molded parts.

Rutland-Fixtures-(Parts)-940x

Most of the fixtures Rutland creates are designed specifically for each client’s unique parts. This meant that Rutland needed a low-cost solution for producing numerous jigs and fixtures within a day, something not possible with traditional CNC machining. A typical CNC machined aluminum fixture took at least three days to make and cost about $1,500.

Another obstacle was that Rutland was machining its fixtures on the same machines used to make injection molds and Rutland managers were reluctant to stop production of revenue-generating molds to make fixtures. In addition, identification labels and soft-touch pads had to be added to conventionally-machined fixtures, requiring secondary steps and added time.

As a solution, Rutland engineers took advantage of the multi-material capability of their Connex Technology-based 3D Printer, previously used for in-house prototyping, to make jigs and fixtures. This allowed them to quickly produce custom fixtures with a rubber-like interface to prevent marring and an embedded identification label, all in a single operation.

Carl Martin, technical manager for Rutland Plastics, noted that the cost of producing the typical fixture has been reduced to $900 and the lead time dropped to 24 hours. The process is also more efficient since engineers can simply set up the 3D printer and walk away, letting the 3D printer do its work overnight.

 “We can produce jigs and fixtures in a fraction of the time and cost on the Objet 3D Printer, without tying up production machinery,” said Martin. Additive manufacturing eliminates the constraints of CNC machining, which makes it possible to improve the productivity of our operations by improving the functionality of the fixtures.”

3D

To speak with an additive technologies expert about your jig or fixture application, start a conversation using the contact form on the right.

Thanks for reading a Fathom blog post! With so many developments in a fast-changing industry like additive manufacturing, the headlines can really stack up. To cut through the clutter of 3D printing news, follow our weekly blog Change is Additive for our staff picks of the week.

Comprehensive Capabilities for Rapid Manufacturing

At Fathom we offer a unique advantage of speed and agility-our experts help companies go from concept to prototype to manufacturing in ways not previously possible. 

90+ Machines  
SLS / / Two-day  SLA / / Next-day 
FDM / / Next-day DMLS / / Three-day 
PolyJet / / Same-day MJF / / Two-day
   

Get A Quote

30 Second Quotes
Prototype Tool / / As soon as 10 days
10K Parts / / 10 days
Production Tool / / As soon as 3 weeks
 

Get A Quote

3 & 5 Axis Milling & Turning
(Plastics, Composites and Metals)

Tolerance Accuracy Range
from +/-0.001″ to 0.005″

Get A Quote

Injection Molding Adjacent
without High Costs of Metal Tools

Most Commonly Used for High-Volume
Prototyping & Bridge to Production

Get A Quote

Finishing, Production Painting and Color Matching

Assembling, Including Embedded Electronic
Components, Threaded Inserts, and More

Get A Quote

CAD, DFAM and DFM Services

Apply Methods to Increase Speed
and Decrease Total Cost

Get A Quote

Highly Trained Staff / / Full-Time & Part-Time
Support as Short-Term & Long-Term Strategy

Decrease Downtime with Customizable
Staffing Accelerates Implementation

Get A Quote

Let’s get started.

Fathom is driven by advanced technologies and methods that enhance and accelerate today’s product development and production processes.

GET YOUR 30 SECOND QUOTE

Manufacturing Locations Across National Time Zones
Manufacturing Locations Across National Time Zones
The Fathom Advanced Manufacturing Platform
new map update 3
HEADQUARTERS

1050 Walnut Ridge Drive
Hartland, WI 53029
ISO 9001:2015
AS9100:2016
ITAR

ARIZONA

444 W. 21st St. Ste. 101
Tempe, AZ 85282
ISO 9001:2015
NIST800-171 Compliant
ITAR

COLORADO

7770 Washington St.
Denver, CO 80229
ISO 9001:2015
ITAR

MINNESOTA

13758 Johnson Street NE
Ham Lake, MN 55304

TEXAS

1801 Rowe Lane
Pflugerville, TX 78660
ISO 9001:2015
AS9100:2016

1513 Sam Bass Rd
Round Rock, TX 78681
ISO 9001:2015
ISO 13485:2016

CALIFORNIA

46758 Lakeview Blvd,
Fremont, CA 94538
ISO 9001:2015 Design Certified
NIST 800-171 Compliant
ITAR

FLORIDA

14000 N.W. 58th Court
Miami Lakes, FL 33014

NEW YORK

1920 Slaterville Rd
Ithaca, NY 14850
ITAR

401 W. Shore Blvd.
Newark, NY 14513
AS9100:2016
ISO 9001:2015
ITAR

ILLINOIS

1207 Adams Drive
McHenry, IL 60051
ISO 9001:2015

1401 Brummel Ave
Elk Grove, IL 60007
ISO 9001:2015 Design Certified

fathom yellow color logo