As environmental concerns become increasingly important to consumers, many market sectors are shifting toward greater energy consciousness and sustainability. While solutions like renewable energy sources, electric vehicles, and sustainable materials tend to receive significant media attention, practices like lightweighting, while less flashy, are playing key roles in driving market-wide shifts toward greater energy efficiency.

The term “lightweighting” may refer to swapping traditionally-used materials for lighter materials, reducing the actual amount of material used, and/or optimizing the design of a part or system for a combination of these practices. Lightweighting may allow product teams to reduce the weight and material required for a part — or a whole system, such as an automobile — while maintaining key functional requirements. Doing so can create major cost-savings for both manufacturers and consumers, while also often improving the energy efficiency and even the functionality of the final product.

The automotive and aerospace industries have used lightweighting for decades to reduce vehicle mass and improve fuel efficiency without sacrificing critical function or safety. The cross-section of an I-beam, often used in the construction industry, is another example of lightweighting in action. The cross-sectional shape provides maximum bending and torsional strength while minimizing the amount of needed material.

By incorporating lightweighting techniques into existing design processes and methodologies, product teams can see tangible benefits in a wide range of part applications. Some of the key benefits of lightweighting include the following:

1. Material Savings and Reduced Environmental Footprint

Lighter parts typically have lower material costs than their non-leightweighted counterparts and can require less energy to manufacture. Reducing material consumption also provides environmental benefits, as the additive manufacturing field isn’t yet at a fully recyclable state (though some materials can be reused). Generative design and topology optimization provide various ways to achieve lightweighting with additive manufacturing and can allow design of near-optimal parts that use the minimum amount of required material.

2. Greater Fuel Efficiency

While lighter parts are often desirable in engineering, they’re especially valuable in automotive manufacturing, where a 10% weight reduction can engender a 6-8% boost in fuel efficiency.

Aerospace manufacturers also stand to benefit; researchers have found that lightweighting rail cars provides more energy savings than with cars, and aircraft can benefit from lightweighting up to 100 times more than railcars do. Further, intelligently using less material can enable  product teams to increase the strength-to-weight ratio of parts, which is incredibly important for aircraft.

3. Expanded Material Options

In many cases, the density and weight of an otherwise desirable material limits the choices available to product teams. However, intelligent lightweighting through a method such as latticing can expand the capabilities of materials that might not otherwise work for a given application. The result can be a lower effective part density and even modified bulk mechanical properties. This enables product teams to take advantage of materials with desirable chemical, thermal, aesthetic, and mechanical properties.

4. Improved Performance

Pairing lighweighting with strategic design choices can help drive improved part performance. For instance, using lattice structures for lightweighting can have both the benefit of decreasing weight and introducing the ability to improve and tweak impact absorption behavior.

Key Considerations for Lightweighting

When lightweighting, the primary thing to keep in mind is that critical components should not be compromised. It is essential for product teams to clearly define what is and what is not critical for the functionality of their parts before beginning.

Lightweighting is typically most effective when applied to heavy, rigid, and overbuilt parts. If material cost or weight aren’t a concern, or if both are already near optimal levels, then lightweighting may not be worthwhile or necessary. From there, material properties such as stiffness, strength-to-weight ratio, tensile strength, and other characteristics will help determine the ideal materials and geometries for lightweighting a given part or component.

The geometry of the part should also be taken into consideration, as this will limit the viable methods of production. Simple components designed with generative design can sometimes be tooled or urethane cast, but more complex designs require different solutions.

Lattices, for instance, are an extremely effective design solution for lightweighting, but their intricate part geometries generally cannot be machined. Luckily, additive manufacturing processes like HP Multi Jet Fusion (MJF) enable product teams to create geometrically complex components from various materials like Polyamide 12 (PA 12) — which provides superior strength and geometrical flexibility. It’s important to note that lattices drastically increase the surface-area-to-volume ratio of parts, which can impact the longevity or durability of the part if product teams are working with materials that oxidize quickly, such as non-stainless steels.

Safety is another key consideration when it comes to lightweighting. Many solid parts provide more of their desired characteristics than is required — a component could be 100 times as stiff as it needs to be, for instance. The elimination of material via lightweighting could, for instance, decrease the same part’s stiffness to 25 times what it is required (or another lesser multiple).

While the part is still viable, product teams have less leeway when it comes to ensuring safety and achieving compliance. As such, lightweighting can affect how the part performs when subjected to extreme conditions — so product teams should always keep this in mind.

The Effective Solution for Lightweighting Parts

By strategically removing material from parts and components to reduce their overall weight, manufacturers can take advantage of a number of ancillary benefits, including greater part efficiency, significant cost-savings, and expanded material choices.

While historically used to improve the fuel efficiency of vehicles, more market sectors than ever are taking advantage of the practice — in fact, the lightweight materials market is expected to be worth $243 billion by 2023. The consumer packaged goods market in particular can benefit from lightweighting — and possibly even help support causes like reducing the use of single-use plastics.

However, the process of lightweighting can require a high degree of technical expertise — which means that product teams hoping to cut costs and maximize efficiency through lightweighting would do well to partner with a team of seasoned designers and engineers like those at SyBridge.

Our team of experts are standing by to help product teams find the most efficient, affordable, and reliable methods of producing the part they have in mind. From design to fulfillment, SyBridge is the trusted solution for any on-demand manufacturing needs. Contact us today to get started.

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An Introduction to ULTEM Plastics

High-performance plastic polymers fall into two categories: thermosets and thermoplastics. Thermosetting polymers are those that solidify to an irreversible hardness after curing due to chemical bonds within the plastic. The polymer hardens in a cross-link pattern that prevents it from re-melting, even under extreme heat.

ULTEM®, the branded name for polyetherimide (PEI), is one of the few commercially available amorphous thermoplastic resins that retains its mechanical integrity at high temperatures. Initially developed by General Electric Plastics Division (now SABIC) in the early 1980s, ULTEM is a high-performance plastic that has been a staple of the manufacturing industry for over 35 years. This material is strong, chemical- and flame-resistant, easy to use, and able to withstand extremely high temperatures while retaining a set of stable electrical properties.

Often used in the production of circuit boards, eyeglasses, food preparation and sterilization equipment, and, perhaps most notably, aircraft parts, ULTEM is known for its strength and durability. Read on to find out everything you need to know about ULTEM.

Printing With ULTEM

ULTEM is easy to thermoform and can be manufactured using fused deposition modeling (FDM). A heated nozzle repeatedly follows a set toolpath and emits one layer of the material at a time until the product is fully formed. 

Injection modeling is another quick and cost-effective option for manufacturing with ULTEM. Thermoplastic pellets are fed into the injection molding screw, melted and injected into the mold, cooled and hardened, then the completed part is pushed out via the ejector pin. This process is ideal for production of uniform parts in high quantities, such as burn-in sockets.

Mechanical Specifications

ULTEM stands out from other high-performance polymers because it is uniquely designed to remain mechanically stable under extreme conditions. It can withstand temperatures upwards of 217°C for extended periods of time and remain dimensionally stable in fluctuating temperatures. It is inherently flame resistant and produces minimal smoke that is no more toxic than smoke produced from burning wood.

Amorphous thermoplastics have the tendency to crack when they come into contact with fats and oils from food, alcohols, acids, fluids used for servicing cars and aircrafts, and other aqueous solutions. Not only can ULTEM resist stress cracking under such conditions, but it is also resistant to ultraviolet rays and gamma radiation.

ULTEM’s key mechanical specifications include:

• Tensile Strength at Break (73°F): 15,200 psi
• Flexural Strength (73°F): 22,000 psi
• Elongation at Break (73°F): 60%
• Shear Strength: 15,000 psi
• Melting Point: 426°F
• Flammability: V-0
• Dielectric Strength in Air: 830 V/mil

These mechanical specifications are applicable only for standard ULTEM — specifications will vary for different varieties of the product, including ULTEM 10%, 20%, and 30% Glass Reinforced. 

ULTEM and the Aerospace Industry

The aerospace industry is understandably strict with the mechanical standards and quality regulations to which parts must comply. To ensure compliance with the qualification and equivalency standards set out by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), new parts must go through long, rigorous, and expensive testing and approval processes.

Unfortunately, these lengthy processes are incompatible with the rising demand for newer, faster, and cheaper aircrafts. To meet this demand, industry leaders like Boeing and Airbus are expected to accelerate production times while keeping costs low. A growing number of players in the commercial aerospace industry are meeting these challenges head-on with the help of additive manufacturing — a process in which they can use ULTEM.

ULTEM is among the few resins approved for use in the commercial aerospace sector. It beats out comparable thermoplastics when it comes to resisting creep, the tendency of materials to deform and degrade under repeated mechanical stress. It also holds up well when brought into contact with various fuels, coolants, and lubricants. Its flame-resistance ensures that it meets FAA regulation 25.853 for flammability. In fact, ULTEM has already shown great promise as a viable material for fire blockers and airplane seat covers.

What’s more, ULTEM can help aircraft companies reach their cost-cutting goals by cutting weight. For example, LSG Sky Chefs and Norduyn collaborated on a fleet of ultra-light in-flight trolleys that leveraged ULTEM. A full Boeing 747 loaded with these trolleys would be 1,650 pounds lighter than a plane loaded with standard trolleys, a weight reduction that could generate around $65,000 in fuel savings per year. With ULTEM, aircraft part manufacturers don’t have to choose between a polymer that’s strong or lightweight — they get the best of both worlds.

Why ULTEM?

For manufacturers, printing a product that’s strong, stable, lightweight, flame- and chemical-resistant, easy to process, and equipped with versatile mechanical properties might seem like a tall order. ULTEM checks every box. This high-fidelity polymer is a great choice for a variety of applications, from simple switches to complex airplane parts.

ULTEM + SyBridge

If you think ULTEM might be the right material for your next project, contact SyBridge today. We’re passionate about connecting innovative companies with the capabilities and technologies needed to bring their designs to life. Providing teams with unparalleled technical expertise, professional support, and a full suite of materials and production processes to produce virtually any part imaginable, SyBridge wants you to discover what’s possible.

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