Rivian, Ford Expand 3D Printing as $5 Million Investment Cuts Parts Lead Times

3 articles · Updated · CNBC · Oct 31

Rivian is scaling 3D printing across the company after spending more than $5 million on machines and about $1.7 million a year on materials, saying the systems typically pay for themselves within a year.
Parts that once took weeks can now be produced in days or hours, helping Rivian cut supplier tooling and logistics costs while adding on-demand printing at its Normal, Illinois, plant and new machines for flexible silicone parts.
Ford is broadening a similar push with more than 200 machines and expects 3D labs at over 23 plants by year-end, including a Dearborn vending machine that dispenses printed parts for F-150 production.
The wider auto industry is moving beyond prototyping: GM already uses 135 3D-printed components in the Cadillac Celestiq, while suppliers say better materials are making additive manufacturing faster and economical enough to scale.