A million printed components in just ten years: BMW Group makes increasing use of 3D printing

Munich. At the BMW Group, the use of 3D-printed
components is on the rise. Over the last decade alone, the company
produced a million parts by this innovative method, and this year
output from the BMW Group Additive Manufacturing Center is expected to
reach over 200,000 components — a 42 percent increase on last year’s total.

Dr. Jens Ertel, Director of the BMW Group Additive Manufacturing
Center: “The use of components made by additive manufacturing in
series production of vehicles is increasing particularly strongly at
the moment. We are following the development and application of
advanced these manufacturing methods very closely indeed, partly
through longstanding cooperations with leading manufacturers in the
field. At the same time, we are engaging in targeted technology
scouting and evaluating innovative production systems.”

Recently the BMW Group fitted its one-millionth 3D-printed component
in series production: a window guide rail for the BMW i8 Roadster.
Thanks to the work of specialists at the Additive Manufacturing
Center, the rail took just five days to develop and was integrated
into series production in Leipzig shortly after. It is found in the
door of the BMW i8 Roadster and allows the window to operate smoothly.
The component is manufactured by HP Multi Jet Fusion Technology, a
high-speed method enhanced by the BMW Group in conjunction with HP and
now in use in the series production of vehicles for the very first
time. It can produce up to 100 window guide rails in 24 hours.

BMW i8 Roadster now incorporates two additively manufactured
components

The window guide rail is the second 3D-printed component in the BMW
i8 Roadster. The first was the fixture for the soft-top attachment,
which is also produced at the Additive Manufacturing Center in Munich.
Made of aluminium alloy, the metal component weighs less than the
injection-moulded plastic part that is normally used but is still
considerably stiffer. Its importance has already been recognised with
an Altair Enlighten Award in the category for Modules this year. The
accolade honours lightweight innovations in the field of subsystems
and components.

Additive manufacturing fulfils customers’ wishes

Meanwhile, the personalisation of vehicles and components by
customers themselves is also becoming more and more important. With
the MINI Yours Customised product initiative, customers can design
selected components themselves, such as indicator inlays and dashboard
trim strips. They create their designs at the online shop (www.yours-customised.mini),
and the parts are then 3D-printed to specification.

Advanced and customer-focused in equal measure, MINI Yours Customised
was honoured with a special accolade: the gold German Innovation Award
presented by a foundation called the German Design Council (‘Rat für Formgebung’).

The BMW Group is constantly exploring ways of using additive
manufacturing to the customer’s advantage.

Additive manufacturing for series production

For the BMW Group, additive manufacturing will be a key future
production method. The company first began using plastic and
metal-based processes back in 2010, initially for the production of
smaller series of components, such as the water pump pulley for DTM
vehicles. Further series applications followed in 2012, with various
laser-sintered parts for the Rolls-Royce Phantom. Since last year, the
fixtures for fibre optic guides in the Rolls-Royce Dawn have also been
3D-printed, and the luxury brand today incorporates a total of ten
3D-printed components into its products.

The BMW Group has been quick to capitalise on its experience,
identifying potential uses for additive manufacturing technologies
early on.

 

If you have any questions, please contact:
Corporate Communications

Carolin Seidel, Communications Production Network BMW
Group
Telephone: + 49 89 382-90340
Carolin.Seidel@bmwgroup.com

Sandra Schillmöller, Communications Production Network BMW
Group
Telephone: + 49 89 382-12225
Sandra.Schillmoeller@bmwgroup.com