Smoke does not rise from the stacks of a digital manufacturing factory, at least not much compared to the old smokestacks that come to mind for America’s glory days of making things. Granted, news for manufacturing has been bleak, including today's report from Markit Flash U.S. Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index showing output reductions.
But not all manufacturing sectors are down. Quietly at the forefront of a different approach to manufacturing is Proto Labs (PRLB). This company represents a smart method of combining digital and analog methods to make an object. They call it digital manufacturing, as have many others, but the part that captured my imagination is the ability to place an order for only one unit of whatever it is you want manufactured.
The only way to do a manufacturing run of one, you truly need to have an innovative approach. While some would argue that 3D printing is the only way to go, that would not be true. Proto Labs has created a digital process that allows them to take a look at your model and decide how to produce it, based on your materials and requirements. By streamlining the process, you get an accurate, automated price quote that is based, at least in part, on a design-for-manufacturability (DFM) analysis, so they can understand if your part design can head straight to a machine (or not).
A digital process gives competitive advantages, as CEO Vicki Holt knows well. “Manufacturing is changing. It is enabled by information technology, coupling it with the new and updated hardware. What is interesting –customers hear ‘digital manufacturer’ and they think 3D printing. But it is the total picture of other methods that can bring value, too. There’s more to digital than just 3D printing. Each service plays an integral role in getting parts made. Some of the most innovative companies use us – because they know the value of speed and innovation. Big brands consider us their secret weapon," says Holt.
The “secret weapon” company was launched by Larry Lukis in 1999 (in a garage, where else?) in Long Lake, Minnesota with a single injection molding press. And up until 2014, they had only two manufacturing processes: plastic injection molding and CNC milling. They recently added another eight processes, including three industrial-strength 3D printing methods -- stereolithography, selective laser sintering, and direct metal laser sintering.
At last count, they have more than 600 machines: 400 CNC mills, 150 presses and 50 3D printers, making an average 2.5 million parts each month in the U.S. As further credence to how quickly this company has adapted to new ways of manufacturing, the company was selected by HP Inc. as a product testing site for the printing and PC giant’s new HP Multi Jet Fusion technology for industrial-grade 3D printing.
Despite a manufacturing outlook that is mostly flat for 2016, according to the latest U.S. Manufacturing Technology Orders report (USMTO), Proto Labs is finding a path to growth. To make those millions of parts, they have over 500,000 square feet of manufacturing space worldwide (to put it in perspective, the average Costco is 145,000 square feet). By continuing to adapt, Proto Labs is proving there is growth in digital manufacturing, that's for sure.
