This book provides a wealth of practical guidance on how to design parts to gain the maximum benefit from what additive manufacturing (AM) can offer. It begins by describing the main AM technologies and their respective advantages and disadvantages. It then examines strategic considerations in the context of designing for additive manufacturing (DfAM), such as designing to avoid anisotropy, designing to minimize print time, and post-processing, before discussing the economics of AM. The following chapters dive deeper into computational tools for design analysis and the optimization of AM parts, part consolidation, and tooling applications. They are followed by an in-depth chapter on designing for polymer AM and applicable design guidelines, and a chapter on designing for metal AM and its corresponding design guidelines. These chapters also address health and safety, certification and quality aspects. A dedicated chapter covers the multiple post-processing methods for AM, offering the reader practical guidance on how to get their parts from the AM machine into a shape that is ready to use. The book's final chapter outlines future applications of AM. The main benefit of the book is its highly practical approach: it provides directly applicable, "hands-on" information and insights to help readers adopt AM in their industry

This book provides a wealth of practical guidance on how to design parts to gain the maximum benefit from what additive manufacturing (AM) can offer. It begins by describing the main AM technologies and their respective advantages and disadvantages. It then examines strategic considerations in the context of designing for additive manufacturing (DfAM), such as designing to avoid anisotropy, designing to minimize print time, and post-processing, before discussing the economics of AM. The following chapters dive deeper into computational tools for design analysis and the optimization of AM parts, part consolidation, and tooling applications. They are followed by an in-depth chapter on designing for polymer AM and applicable design guidelines, and a chapter on designing for metal AM and its corresponding design guidelines. These chapters also address health and safety, certification and quality aspects. A dedicated chapter covers the multiple post-processing methods for AM, offering the reader practical guidance on how to get their parts from the AM machine into a shape that is ready to use. The book's final chapter outlines future applications of AM. The main benefit of the book is its highly practical approach: it provides directly applicable, "hands-on" information and insights to help readers adopt AM in their industry

This open access book gives both a theoretical and practical overview of several important aspects of additive manufacturing (AM). It is written in an educative style to enable the reader to understand and apply the material. It begins with an introduction to AM technologies and the general workflow, as well as an overview of the current standards within AM. In the following chapter, a more in-depth description is given of design optimization and simulation for AM in polymers and metals, including practical guidelines for topology optimization and the use of lattice structures. Special attention is also given to the economics of AM and when the technology offers a benefit compared to conventional manufacturing processes. This is followed by a chapter with practical insights into how AM materials and processing parameters are developed for both material extrusion and powder bed fusion. The final chapter describes functionally graded AM in various materials and technologies. Throughout the book, a large number of industrial applications are described to exemplify the benefits of AM.