5 Ways to Reduce Polymer 3D Printing Costs
You’ve probably heard all the reasons why companies are increasingly relying on additive manufacturing.
For starters, additive manufacturing allows the building of high-performance parts with complex geometries that were previously impossible. From a strategic standpoint, additive manufacturing offers safer, simpler supply chains with faster lead times. However, one of the main reasons why 3D printing continues growing is quite simple: cost.
The different additive manufacturing technologies for polymers, such as Multi Jet Fusion, Fused Deposition Modeling, and Selective Laser Sintering, offer enormous cost benefits for everything from end-use parts. That’s because there are no costs from tooling. Also, you can print complex parts at no additional cost compared to simple designs.
Even with additive manufacturing’s cost benefits, there are still ways to reduce costs without sacrificing quality. This article provides four tips, techniques, and strategies for cutting costs when 3D printing with polymers.
The Importance of Cost Reduction in Polymer 3D Printing
In today’s fast-paced world, cost reduction is more important than ever for anyone working with polymer 3D printing. Whether you’re creating prototypes, functional parts, or finished products, keeping expenses in check allows you to improve your bottom line and stay ahead of the competition.
By carefully selecting materials like polymer clay and other advanced plastics, you can create high-quality products while minimizing waste and unnecessary spending. Verification at every stage of the printing process ensures that your products meet the required standards, reducing the risk of costly errors or reprints. By proceeding with a well-planned strategy and continuously looking for ways to improve, businesses and individuals can make the most of their resources, streamline production, and deliver better products to market faster and more affordably.
1. Reduce Volume By Choosing the Right Infills
The main cost driver in 3D printing is volume.
The more materials your design requires, the more you can expect to pay. While polymers are significantly cheaper than metal, costs can still add up quickly. That’s why designing to reduce volume is so important.
One way to do this is to design using the best-suited infill pattern. These patterns affect the strength and amount of material used for the part. For example, a honeycomb or diagonal pattern might use only about 10% of the material as a solid infill while offering the strength your part needs. However, the structural integrity of your part is always critical, so keep that in mind when considering infills.
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2. Select the Perfect Material
A wide range of materials offer significantly different properties – and costs. Different 3D printing applications require specific properties from materials, making it essential to choose the right one for your project.
Some of these materials are known for their toughness, rigidity, or high resolution. Other fundamental properties include flexibility, biocompatibility, and much more. You can choose the most cost-efficient options once you know precisely what materials are best for your project.
Knowing which material to use can be challenging, as the number of polymer materials for additive manufacturing has exploded in the past years. For instance, Polymaker offers more than 400 types of filaments for 3D printing, providing a wide array of options for various needs.
With so many material options, it’s important to find the specific material with the best compromise between the required properties and costs. Many users have found the ideal material for their projects using our tech material advisor. Here, you can filter between all the materials based on the required properties you need. You can find a detailed data sheet for each material in the results. Feel also free to ask our experts if you are not sure about the best material.
MakerVerse’s tech material advisor tool in action
3. Understand Quantity
Producing smaller batches of units is significantly cheaper with additive manufacturing than conventional manufacturing. That’s because additive manufacturing eliminates the need for tooling.
With the tool design and production cost out of the equation, manufacturing costs per unit remain almost constant, as seen in the graph below. With the lower upfront costs and fast lead times, additive manufacturing has become especially popular for prototyping, tooling, jigs, fixtures, and on-demand end-use parts.
This graph also shows that as expensive as conventional manufacturing can initially be, the cost per unit drops when more units are produced. Your lower production numbers ensure that additive manufacturing is always the ideal technology. However, this chart shows it’s essential to know when that cost curve might shift in the other direction. When that’s about to happen, it’s best to be prepared and rethink the ideal production method for your project.
4. Get Near-Real-Time Prices on Iterations
Costs shouldn’t be a black box in additive manufacturing. Transparency is key. High-performance polymer solutions can positively impact customers and the world, making it crucial to understand and optimize costs effectively.
MakerVerse is an easy and reliable place to buy polymer 3D printing services and materials online.
With MakerVerse, you can upload a design and get an instant quote. Prices are immediately updated when you change the different materials, finishes, and more options. If you change the design, it can easily be re-uploaded for a new instant quote.
All this makes it easy to optimize your project’s costs.
5. Fully Adapt Your Designs for 3D Printing
The best designs are often the most efficient.
If you can minimize printing time, only use supports when needed, and print the maximum number of parts per print job, you can reduce costs significantly. This is particularly useful for powder bed technologies such as Selective Laser Sintering and Multi-Jet Fusion.
When designing, try minimizing the bounding boxes of individual parts and maximizing the packing density in the build volume. This will allow you to print more parts per job and reduce costs. Hands-on adjustments and manual design tweaks can further optimize 3D printing outcomes, allowing for greater control and refinement during the design process.
If you have a hollow part with a lot of dead volume, it’s sometimes possible to nest other parts within the design. Or, you can split up some parts and join them afterward to make the space needed to nest components inside each other during the print.
Optimize Printer Maintenance to Prevent Costly Downtime
Keeping your 3D printer in top condition is essential for maintaining a smooth workflow and avoiding unexpected expenses. Regular maintenance—such as cleaning, checking connections, and replacing worn parts—helps ensure your printer’s durability and security, reducing the risk of breakdowns that can halt production.
By setting a maintenance schedule and making it easy to follow, you can keep your equipment running efficiently and extend its lifespan. Using high-quality materials, like PVC, not only improves the strength and versatility of your printed products but also helps prevent issues that can arise from inferior materials. Proceeding with a proactive maintenance plan allows you to create reliable products, improve overall efficiency, and keep your costs under control.
Streamline Post-Printing Processing for Additional Savings
Post-printing processing is a key step in delivering finished products that meet your standards for quality and durability. By streamlining this process, you can save both time and money.
Automated systems for removing supports and finishing parts can make post-processing easy and consistent, reducing labor costs and minimizing errors. Choosing materials like polymer clay or other user-friendly plastics can further simplify post-processing, making it easier to achieve the desired finish. Continuously reviewing and responding to customer feedback helps you identify areas for improvement, ensuring your products remain competitive and your processes stay efficient.
By keeping an eye on industry trends and continuing to innovate, you can find new ways to improve your workflow and deliver better products to your customers.
Improve Energy Efficiency Throughout the Printing Process
Energy efficiency is a powerful way to reduce costs and make your 3D printing operations more sustainable. By using printers designed for low energy consumption—such as those with LED lighting or advanced cooling systems—you can reduce electricity use without sacrificing performance. Optimizing your printing process to reduce material waste and streamline production further improves efficiency.
Proceeding with a thoughtful strategy to minimize energy use not only lowers your operating costs but also allows you to offer products that are more environmentally friendly. By adding energy-efficient features to your products and processes, you can improve your reputation, attract eco-conscious customers, and set your business apart in a competitive market.
6 Next Steps and Applications
Additive manufacturing is rapidly innovating, with new technologies, materials, and developments to consider. MakerVerse will continue to drive advancements in polymer 3D printing, helping you control your costs completely, stay on top of all the trends, and take advantage of relevant innovations.
In the meantime, we’d like to invite you to use the MakerVerse platform for instant cost insights.
