50 - How Model No. Manufactures Sustainable Furniture with 3D Printed Polymers

05/22/24 • 20 min

When we first covered Model No. in 2020, the company was manufacturing furniture on its own large-format 3D printers, built to designs directly manipulated by customers through parametric options available on its website. Four years later, production looks a bit different. Gone is the user-facing design tool, as the company has discovered that conversation with customers is the more effective way to arrive at the right designs for its clients. More colors and materials are offered today, in part because of a circular economy-focused project that Model No. completed with several partners. And there's one important change to how furniture is made--listen to the episode to learn how (and why) the company's 3D printing capacity has evolved in the last few years.

Find photos, related links and the transcript for this episode on AdditiveManufacturing.Media.

This episode is brought to you by Additive Manufacturing Media. Never miss a story.

Mentioned in this episode:

The 2024 update article about Model No.
Stephanie's original 2020 story about the company
Model No. as an example of a manufacturer producing on its own 3D printer in this AM Radio podcast episode from 2021
More on the “AM Factory” concept
More on the EXT 1070 Titan Pellet 3D printer available from 3D Systems, the platform used by Model No.
The episode of The Cool Parts Show featuring Eaton, another company applying the Titan platform for large-format 3D printing of innovative materials — in this case for aerospace parts
Stephanie's Model No. table on LinkedIn and X

Find photos, related links and the transcript for this episode on AdditiveManufacturing.Media.

This episode is brought to you by Additive Manufacturing Media. Never miss a story.

Mentioned in this episode:

The 2024 update article about Model No.
Stephanie's original 2020 story about the company
Model No. as an example of a manufacturer producing on its own 3D printer in this AM Radio podcast episode from 2021
More on the “AM Factory” concept
More on the EXT 1070 Titan Pellet 3D printer available from 3D Systems, the platform used by Model No.
The episode of The Cool Parts Show featuring Eaton, another company applying the Titan platform for large-format 3D printing of innovative materials — in this case for aerospace parts
Stephanie's Model No. table on LinkedIn and X

Previous Episode

49 - Trip Report from Innovative 3D Manufacturing

We are trying something new on the podcast! Whenever one of us on Additive Manufacturing Media pays a visit to a manufacturer for the first time, we want to talk about the trip as soon as we return. Why keep this recap to ourselves? In this episode of AM Radio, here is Stephanie Hendrixson getting the full download just after I paid a visit to Innovative 3D Manufacturing in Franklin, Indiana. Innovative does contract production using 12 laser powder bed fusion machines, all from Renishaw. Just part of what struck me is this company’s connection to foundry work — not just in terms of process, such as workholding technique, but also in terms of business opportunity, because Innovative is getting work due to foundry leadtime challenges. Listen to our conversation above, or on your favorite podcast app. And for even more on Innovative, read the article I wrote, which is linked below. - Peter Zelinski, editor-in-chief, Additive Manufacturing

Mentioned in this episode:

Pete’s companion article on Innovative 3D Manufacturing, including photos from inside this facility
Neighborhood 91, an AM industrial park in Pittsburgh
More examples of production AM contract manufacturers

Next Episode

51 - Additive Manufacturing at NASA (PART 1)

Additive Manufacturing Media editors have had the chance to visit three different NASA facilities: the Goddard Space Flight Center, Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Marshall Space Flight Center. Pete Zelinski and Stephanie Hendrixson learned and reported on how 3D printing is being used to fulfill NASA missions through parts like a generatively designed bracket, lightweight titanium lattices and a multimaterial thrust chamber made with two different processes. But where do these parts fit within NASA's broader mission, and what is the role of additive manufacturing at NASA? In this episode, part 1 of a 2-part series, Pete and Stephanie discuss what it's like to visit NASA and the observations they gleaned from being on site. (Make sure to subscribe and join us for Part 2, featuring AM Radio cohost and NASA system design innovator Dr. Tim Simpson.)

Find photos, related links and the transcript for this episode on AdditiveManufacturing.Media.

This episode is brought to you by THE BUILDUP.

Mentioned in this episode:

The Cool Parts Show episodes featuring: