Environmental Benefits of 3D Printing for the Manufacturing Industry

In the current landscape, it can be challenging to determine if a company's environmental efforts are authentic or merely a form of greenwashing. On the latest episode of the BLUEPRTING Vlog, Bjorn Hannappel sits down with Sherri Monroe, the head of the Additive Manufacturing Green Trade Organization (AMGTA), who works with numerous companies dedicated to sustainability. They discuss the necessary requirements for classifying #3Dprinting as a sustainable technology.

Links in this episode:

• Watch BLUEPRINT #7 featuring AMGTA member Siemens talking about sustainable 3D-printed gripper
• Learn more about AMGTA

What is BLUEPRINT for Responsible Manufacturing?

Today’s environmental and social challenges demand action. As technology experts, we are committed to accelerating the world’s transition to Responsible Manufacturing with industrial 3D printing. This podcast delivers insights into projects, concepts, and ideas on how to make Responsible Manufacturing the new normal. Meet Björn, our Head of Sustainability, and his guests. from customers, suppliers, research institutes, NGOs, and EOS colleagues. Join us on this exciting journey of exploring Responsible Manufacturing!

Björn: 00:42

Hello and a warm welcome to episode number 8 of BLUEPRINT, our responsible manufacturing video blog. My name is Björn. I'm driving the sustainability agenda for EOS. Today, we are at a very special occasion. We're here at Formnext in Frankfurt, which is the additive manufacturing trade show. And this gives us the special opportunity to meet Sherry Monroe from AMGTA, here today.

Björn: 01:13

So today, you will learn about the role sustainability can play for additive manufacturing, how to promote this, and also how to avoid greenwashing. And I'm really happy to have you here today with us, Sherri. Thanks for joining us. Thanks for coming.

Sherri: 01:29

Thank you for having me. This is a great opportunity.

Björn: 01:31

Yeah. Thank you. Before we, start into the questions, may I ask you to please shortly introduce yourself and also your role at AM GTA? And most important, what does AM GTA stand for?

Sherri: 01:43

Sure. So, Sherri Monroe. I'm the executive director of the AM GTA. And in my role, I work with our members to really find opportunities to promote additive, practices to support more sustainable manufacturing.

Björn: 01:57

Okay. Thank you. So AOS was one of the first members, I think in 2020 shortly after the, AM GTA was founded. Mhmm. So what is AM GTA doing, actually?

Sherri: 02:08

So we're a global organization, made up of members throughout the the manufacturing ecosystem. So everything from source material providers, printer manufacturers, software, through the the end users. The manufacturers actually using additive technology, to to achieve their business objectives.

Björn: 02:26

Mhmm. Okay. You probably have a vision, or purpose or mission. Sure. Can you can you tell us what that is?

Björn: 02:34

And and how do you how do you work with your members?

Sherri: 02:37

Sure. So our goal is really to better understand and promote the environmental benefits of additive practices. So design and manufacture. So that to do that really means we need to understand it better. So we work with our members to find opportunities to collaborate, to do use case studies, research, that sort of thing, so that we can understand this better, and and work together to increase acceptance and adoption.

Björn: 03:01

Mhmm. Okay. So research studies you said, we'll come to that Okay. Point a bit later because I think that that's very interesting. But maybe generally, the manufacturing industry as such, what are the challenges you see, this industry is facing today?

Sherri: 03:17

Sure. So I think some of it, the in terms of, adoption of additive is for the manufacturing industry to better understand what additive can do for them. So in terms of production, in terms of, better managing supply chains, inventory, things like that. Really understanding this new technology. Although it's not completely new, but in many ways it feels very new for manufacturers to really understand what this can do for them, and help them work through those adoption, challenges that they have internally.

Björn: 03:49

And can you give us some examples? I mean, what how can additive help to solve some of these, challenges? Sure.

Sherri: 03:56

So some of the things that additive can bring to manufacturing are, on demand or closer to demand. Now closer to demand may mean geographically closer, or it may be just mean closer in the decision tree. You know, do we need to make more of the red item or the blue item? That type of thing to really impact overproduction. That is one of the most, unsustainable parts of manufacturing is overproduction, and then what do you do with this stuff?

Sherri: 04:22

Also, some of the other things for for redesign, being able to lightweight parts, use less material, use less energy in the production. And so what we're also finding is that quite often those economic factors and the sustainability factors actually track together rather than, you know, picking, economic viability versus sustainability. We see that those go together.

Björn: 04:45

And that's a good message, I think, we hear here. You mentioned studies in the beginning. So what kind of studies is ARM GDA doing or commissioning, and and and why? Right. Why is it needed?

Sherri: 04:58

It's, we feel like it's really important for for manufacturers who are looking to adopt additive or adopt it in a bigger way. It's not enough to think this is more sustainable or to think it will use less energy or less material. It really needs to be quantified. And so that's the work that we're doing with members like EOS and our other members to find use cases that will not only, give us very specific information around that, use case, but also provide us with information that is transferable to other use cases, so that it can be better understood, Find out where it's better, where it's worse, where our opportunities are, and it tends to be very situational. And so we really wanna understand those situations, so that we can, implement this in the best way.

Björn: 05:43

And is it easy to do that? I mean, is I guess you need some data, to do it. Is that Sure. Available? Or is that one of the reasons Right.

Björn: 05:51

For the studies?

Sherri: 05:52

So part of the reason that we do this with our members is they're the ones that are able to provide this primary data. And so we work with them. We bring on you know, we find identify a use case, some part or component that needs to be manufactured. And we work with our partners, whether it's a printer manufacturer, source material, the end user and producer, to work together to really identify the specific situations, to be able to get that primary data. But then we commission this out to a respected research institution to be able to actually do the research, so that it's very independent, very objective, so that it can be trusted data and transparent.

Sherri: 06:30

We feel like that's very important.

Björn: 06:32

And you've done already, a couple of studies. Can you give us some examples and and and what the results were?

Sherri: 06:37

Sure. So one of our first studies was actually looking at powder bed fusion, manufacture with metal, for a part that goes on an airplane. So we really looked at both the production phase of that part. How did it compare to traditional manufacturing processes? And then also, the use phase of this part that had been redesigned for additive, in a way that could not be have been manufactured traditionally.

Sherri: 07:00

This light weighted part going on an airplane, therefore, using less fuel, having a smaller carbon footprint, and so understanding how that worked. We've also done, studies looking at industrial components compared to binder jetting versus casting. And we're release, talking about one here at Formnext this week, Actually talking about, material jetting, polymer in the fashion industry. So very different look at additive, but we think it's really interesting. And and for an industry, the fashion industry, that really has some sustainability challenges.

Sherri: 07:36

And so we think this will be a a really interesting study for them.

Björn: 07:40

Mhmm. Okay. So it seems there there's a lot of technologies, a lot of, things you're looking at, and a lot of very good examples. Now is it fair to say that additive manufacturing circumstances where it maybe is not.

Sherri: 07:58

It really depends on the circumstances where it maybe is not. It really depends on the situation. It depends on things like location, quantity, the technology, and really the circumstances around, producing that product. It may be, the actual production is more sustainable, but sometimes it's not the production. It's what does this apart this part allow us to do?

Sherri: 08:22

Does it allow us to get equipment up and running sooner? Does it allow us, one one example, I I look to the future and think, I can't imagine electric flight really being a viable option without additive, without the design for additive. So it may not be about the actual part that's being produced and the sustainability about the part. It's what is it enabling us to do. And so I think for many businesses, it's really important to have this very wide view.

Sherri: 08:52

What does it do in terms of the inventory you're having to store? That has very big, economic impacts of the the capital that's tied up in that, but also parts that are being produced, potentially overproduced that eventually go in the waste bin. So there's some bigger aspects of this that really need to be looked at.

Björn: 09:11

And, so but sustainability in general is gaining traction, I feel, in in our industry. What is your perspective on this? Is this is there a real change happening, or is it just a few front runners doing something? What is your what is your take on this?

Sherri: 09:27

Yeah. I I I believe that in the AM technology development, there's just so much potential for implementing sustainability right into this. I always think of it as a little bit of unsettled ground. It's not the processes and technology that's been in place for 40 or 50 years. There's so much technology development happening, and sustainability is being factored into that right from the very foundation.

Sherri: 09:48

And so, you know, in Europe, a lot of that, demand for sustainability has more to do with regulation. But even in the US where there's less about regulation, stakeholders are demanding it, whether that's customers, shareholders, employees are really pushing that, and most of those companies are operating globally anyway. Mhmm. So, it's really, not only something that's sort of being required, but that is one of the great, leverage potentials of AM, is this is part of what it can bring. Not only economic viability, but more sustainable and better practices.

Sherri: 10:23

And some of the front runners in the industry are really leading the way in a positive way. EOS is one of those companies. Stratasys, other companies that are really leading the way and and understand this not as a a situation for competition, but we really call it coopetition, where how can we work together because this isn't a static pie of industry potential. There is so much growth potential here that the front runner, you know, the leading companies really see this and see that there's more to be gained by working together than trying to do this on their own, and that's where they come to an organization like ours. We have the potential to bring these companies together in a productive way and really grow this industry.

Sherri: 11:05

Mhmm.

Björn: 11:06

It's good to see, and it's maybe also one of the motivations for companies to join AM GTA. Or can you share a bit more why companies are are joining AMGTA? And I saw, just yesterday at our members meeting that the growth is immense. Yeah. Sure.

Björn: 11:22

A lot of new companies, joined this year alone.

Sherri: 11:25

I think it just gives companies, an opportunity to get together, whether it's virtually together, whether it's finding projects to work on together. It's an opportunity to really, you know, sort of be greater than the sum of the parts. You know, we we together and as an independent organization can do things that no other company, regardless of size, can do on their own. And when it comes to the research projects we discussed, having that independent body put this out versus an internal company doing their research that says they're awesome, It's it has a different feel when it's coming from an independent research group being commissioned by an independent organization. And really putting the information out there, we feel like that transparency's important, and that's one of the things that our members get by working with us.

Sherri: 12:12

We also have working groups. We have opportunities to, participate in panels and other kinds of use cases. So really finding those opportunities to work together.

Björn: 12:22

Mhmm. I mean, independent verification is in general, very, important, I think

Sherri: 12:27

Right.

Björn: 12:28

To, to be credible. Sure. And AM GTA has one of its its targets is to to goals is to promote sustainability in AM. One thing, that comes to my mind is how to avoid greenwashing.

Sherri: 12:42

Sure.

Björn: 12:43

Yeah. Because, definitely, everyone in AM GTA wants to position themselves as well. Right. But where is the where is the line between, greenwashing and real, real benefit, what they're providing.

Sherri: 12:59

Sure. I'm always a little hesitant to use the term greenwashing only because it has a little bit to do with intent. You know, what what is one company's greenwashing is another company's just getting started. You know, a company may go for those easy wins. How do they get their employees and their stakeholders on board?

Sherri: 13:16

So they may have some rather easy initiatives upfront. And so it's really about looking at where they're going. Are they making progress? Are they being bold about this? Are they implementing it, not only in how they work internally, but in the products they deliver to their customers?

Sherri: 13:31

And so it really does take a little bit of time of seeing what kind of progress they make, what are their intentions. And so it it I I'm always a little hesitant on that, but it is important. It really is important. You know, we're in a position globally, all of us as global citizens, that we've really gotta take action, And by doing it together, we can really have a big impact.

Björn: 13:52

Mhmm. Okay. Last question. If you think 3 to 5 years, into the future, what do you think? Where will we be, in this industry, in the additive industry, in regards to sustainability?

Sherri: 14:05

I think sustainability will become a bigger and bigger, topic within manufacturing in every way, just because of the demands that that we need to to, impact the the world. And I think additive as as it becomes better understood and the potential of what this can do to see beyond, just how it compares to to traditional manufacturing. As that becomes more understood, I think there will be more acceptance. I think it will really, start to really ramp up, and I think it's going going to have a really big impact. But projecting out with with such a, quickly growing technology, 3 to 5 years is so far out, but I think we're going to see some really big impacts.

Björn: 14:50

That's very good to hear. Thank you very much, Sherry, for your, visit here, for participating, for answering the questions, and providing all the information on on AMGTA, your mission, what you're doing. Thank you very much, for being with us today.

Sherri: 15:04

Thank you for having me.

Björn: 15:06

Thank you. And if you have, questions or comments, please write them under the post. Here, you can do as always and stay responsible.