Evaluation of Large Format 3D Printing in the Manufacturing of Tooling for Resin Transfer Molding - Carfair Composites Inc. (RESUBMISSION)

卡费尔复合材料公司是一家总部位于温尼伯的公司，在为原始设备制造商(OEM)制造和供应高质量复合材料结构方面处于全球领先地位。该公司创新地使用轻质树脂转移模塑(LRTM)工艺来生产轻质关键部件，为开发更省油、更低排放的公交车开辟了机会。卡费尔目前正在寻找显著降低生产成本和提高生产率的方法，作为其支持重型汽车制造中越来越多地采用轻质复合材料结构的努力的一部分。因此，该公司正在大力评估复合模具的大幅面3D打印作为一种比传统工具制造技术更快、更具成本效益的工装开发方法。聚合物3D打印在大型模具制造中的应用仍存在很大的知识差距。大多数现有的3D打印机都是针对两英尺或更小尺寸的部件开发和优化的。大幅面3D打印需要深入了解加法制造的设计、工艺参数优化、尺寸分析和制造后处理，用于打印较大的部件，通常是四英尺及以上的规模。卡费尔和红河学院理工学院航空航天与制造技术访问中心(TACAM)正在将他们的技术专业知识结合在一起，以解决目前复合材料模具大幅面3D打印的限制。该团队将专注于工艺开发，从而为LRT创建复合模具原型。TACAM和CarFair已经在聚合物的3D打印方面进行了一些投资，并收购了一些大型打印机。学院团队在聚合物添加剂制造工艺方面开发了丰富的专业知识，这些工艺可以很容易地转移到大幅面部件的印刷上。该团队将利用他们在3D建模、工艺参数选择、3D激光测量和数控加工方面的技能，为LRTM工艺生产大尺寸复合材料模具原型，并将在行业中进行测试和采用。卡费尔能够立即利用这项研究工作的结果，具有显著节省成本和时间并提高工艺效率的潜力。

Carfair Composites, Inc. is a Winnipeg-based company and a global leader in the manufacturing andsupply of high-quality composite structures for Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs). Thecompany's innovative use of the Light Resin Transfer Molding (LRTM) process to produce lightweightcritical components has opened up an opportunity for the development of more fuel-efficient andlower emission buses. Carfair is currently looking for ways to significantly lower production costs andimprove productivity as part of their effort to support the growing adoption of lightweight compositestructures in heavy vehicle manufacturing. Accordingly, the company is making a significant effort inevaluating large format 3D printing of composite molds as a faster and cost-effective method oftooling development compared to the traditional tool manufacturing techniques.There is still a large knowledge gap in the application of 3D printing of polymers in the manufacturingof large-size tooling. Majority of the existing 3D printers were developed and optimized for parts inthe scale of two feet or less. Large format 3D printing requires an in-depth knowledge of design foradditive manufacturing, process parameters optimization, dimensional analysis and manufacturingpost-processing as applied to printing larger components, usually at the scale of four feet and above.Carfair and the Technology Access Centre for Aerospace and Manufacturing (TACAM) at Red RiverCollege Polytechnic are pulling their technical expertise together to address the current limitations inlarge format 3D printing for composite molds. The team will focus on process development leadingto the creation of prototype composite molds for LRTM.Both TACAM and Carfair have already made some investments in 3D printing of polymers, with theacquisition of some large printers. The College team has developed significant expertise in polymeradditive manufacturing processes that can be easily transferred to the printing of large-formatcomponents. The team will use their skills in 3D modeling, process parameters selection, 3D lasermetrology and CNC machining to produce prototype large-format composite molds for the LRTMprocess, which will be tested and adopted by industry. Carfair is in a position to utilize the results ofthis research work immediately, with potentials for significant cost and time savings and improvedprocess efficiency.