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Characterising the variability of multi-supplier material extrusion (MEX) parts: an empirical study
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DOI：10.1108/rpj-04-2025-0148.png)
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Abstract
En 中文
<jats:sec>
<jats:title>Purpose</jats:title>
<jats:p>The aim of this paper was to contribute to the Rapid Prototyping Journal’s “Benchmarking – certification and qualification in AM” theme by investigating the geometric and functional variability of parts produced by a distributed set of material extrusion (MEX) suppliers.</jats:p>
</jats:sec>
<jats:sec>
<jats:title>Design/methodology/approach</jats:title>
<jats:p>This is an empirical study that commissioned the manufacture of a replica 2 × 2 DUPLO® brick by nine MEX suppliers. These bricks were then tested for their interoperability, which analysed their geometric, functional and mass property variability. A selective laser sintering supplier was used as a point of comparison.</jats:p>
</jats:sec>
<jats:sec>
<jats:title>Findings</jats:title>
<jats:p>Inter-supplier brick functionally worked with one another (i.e. allowed for the assembly of the bricks) 74% of the time. Intra-supplier brick functionally worked with one another 77% of the time. Dimensional accuracy varied across dimensions, preventing the use of a single scaling transform as a corrective measure. Variation in variance and accuracy across suppliers suggests that lessons can be learned and shared to improve overall performance.</jats:p>
</jats:sec>
<jats:sec>
<jats:title>Originality/value</jats:title>
<jats:p>Distributed multi-supplier additive manufacturing supply chains are a potential solution to meet society’s needs for responsive and resilient supply chains. This paper reports a first-of-a-kind empirical study to examine whether the current AM supply chain landscape is capable of producing parts to the same quality.</jats:p>
</jats:sec>
Keywords:
material extrusion
additive manufacturing
supplier variability
geometric accuracy
functional interoperability
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