193: 3D Printing Overview for New Inventions

With Andre Tiemann, Director of Production at Hot Pop Factory

Hosted by Kevin Mako, President of MAKO Design + Invent

Andre Tiemann holds the position of Director of Production at Hot Pop Factory, a renowned company specializing in 3D printing, laser cutting, etching, and small-scale consumer product manufacturing. In this episode, Andre will impart invaluable insights aimed at inventors, startups, and small manufacturers. He will cover topics such as the fundamentals of 3D printing, its various types, the diverse materials used in 3D printing, and its significance at three critical stages in the product development journey of hardware startups.

Here are the key takeaways from this episode:

• 3D printing is a layering additive method.
• The majority of 3D printing involves plastic printing, with Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) being a common technique.
• Stereolithography (SLA) is a resin-based 3D printing process.
• Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) uses lasers to sinter powder, creating 3D printed parts.
• Multi-material printing allows for versatility in materials.
• Initially, ABS was the primary material, but now there are numerous material options available.
• Three key phases in utilizing 3D printing for new hardware product development: 1) Rough ideation of design, 2) Engineering prototyping and, 3) Short-run low-volume hardware manufacturing for new inventions.
• Short-run manufacturing provides an opportunity to alleviate uncertainty and ensure project success through customer feedback.

Episode Highlights

• 3:31 – What is additive manufacturing in relation to 3D printing for plastics
• 4:20 – The different types of 3D printing machines available
• 4:45 – From a product development standpoint, there is a gambit of what you can produce using 3D printers
• 5:05 – The innovation that has happened over the last decade with this technology is incredible – and now available at much more affordable rates.
• 6:18 – The different materials you can use in 3D printing
• 7:08 – As a hardware startup owner, this means that you have a tremendous amount of physical materials to test, validate, and ideate your product before you go to production.
• 7:26 – The three key areas where 3D printing is very useful to hardware startups: 1) Ideation Phase, 2) Design and Engineering of the Product, and 3) Short-Run Production Stage.
• 8:28 – 3D engineering can be beneficial no matter your experience with additive manufacturing. In those early stages, it can even help bring “napkin drawings” to life.
• 8:38 – Basic prototyping can help bring an idea to reality, create a proof of concept, and validate the fit and function of a product.
• 9:16 – Often, when you translate a CAD model into a physical product, a lot of questions find their answers (in a much more cost-effective way).
• 10:25 – In the next level, 3D printing processes become much more precise and higher surface quality.
• 10:50 – It is so powerful to be able to mimic manufacturing process in one-unit intervals and vet out any problems, as 3D printing allows.
• 11:00 – If you haven’t gone through very precise design engineering and, instead, pushed your product straight to production, any issues found along the way will be exponentially more expensive and time-consuming.
• 12:50 – Short-run and low-volume manufacturing providez an opportunity to alleviate uncertainty and ensure project success through customer feedback.
• 14:07 – Market validation will boost consumer interest and vet out any problems, bridging the gap between prototyping and production.
• 15:06 – These processes help you save a lot of money today, and save a lot of money tomorrow, and learn along the way.
• 15:20 – Learn more about “Hot Pop Factory”

Andre Tiemann Links:

LinkedIn | Hot Pop Factory

The Product Startup Podcast Links:

Instagram | LinkedIn | Facebook Page | Facebook Group | Pinterest | Twitter | YouTube

Mako Design Links:

YouTube | Instagram | LinkedIn | Facebook | Pinterest | Twitter

Kevin Mako Links:

Instagram | LinkedIn | Quora | Facebook | Twitter

Partner: PTC’s best-in-class software solutions Onshape: The only cloud-native product development platform that delivers full-featured computer-aided design (CAD), integrated product data management (PDM) and enterprise analytics in a single system, and Creo: 3D CAD solution that provides designers with the most innovative tools to build better products faster, such as generative design, additive manufacturing, real-time simulation, IIoT, and augmented reality.

Producer: MAKO Design + Invent is the original firm providing world-class consumer product development services tailored to startups, small manufacturers, and inventors. Simply put, we are the leading one-stop shop for developing your physical product from idea to store shelves, all in a high-quality, cost-effective, and timely manner. We operate as one powerhouse 30-person product design team spread across 4 offices to serve you (Austin, Miami, San Francisco, & Toronto). We have full-stack in-house industrial design, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, patent referral, prototyping, and manufacturing services. To assist our startup and inventor clients, in addition to above, we help with business strategy, product strategy, marketing, and sales/distribution for all consumer product categories.