[3D Printing News] Snow Business: The final part of a 3D-printed snow machine

[3D Printing News] Snow Business: The final part of a 3D-printed snow machine

Snow Business is a world leader in snowmaking and winter effects. The company develops snow machines for the film and television industry, as well as for use at Christmas trade shows and other live events.
They used the Ultimaker 3D printer for prototyping, functional testing, and manufacturing the final parts for the snow fallers. In-house 3D printing significantly accelerated their design process across generations and saved substantial costs throughout.

Because they collaborate with large production companies, it's possible to see their snow production featured in movies. They've produced snow for 007 films, including James Bond and The Secret Service.
The snow in all the movies, including Bridget Jones's Diary, was created by them. Paul Denney was the head of research at Snow Business, responsible for designing the snowmaking machines. Much of their R&D focus was on the machine's nozzles, the part that mixes air and fluid to create the snow effect.

R&D process throughout the generations

Paul explained that nozzles have complex air and fluid flow geometries, making them unsuitable for injection molding. He said the only way to create new nozzles is through 3D printing. New nozzles are developed through a process of printing, repeated trial and error, and model adjustments, often involving extensive modifications before reaching the company's high-quality design standards.


Snow Business uses Ultimaker to 3D print the final nozzle. The development of new nozzles is a process that involves multiple generations of modifications.

Outsourcing

Before the company began working with Ultimaker , they outsourced nozzle production to SLS service. Paul explained, "The parts supplied by the vendor were of very good quality."
But it's slow and expensive.
When he needs to change the design, he has to place a new order of at least £125 and then wait 7 days for it to arrive.
This significantly hampered the R&D cycle, so the company began researching an internal solution that could accelerate the design process across generations.
What I really needed was a technology that I could use myself; being able to use it personally was what I needed. So we bought our first Ultimaker .

Desktop 3D printer

Paul acquired an Ultimaker 2+ for prototyping and manufacturing new nozzles for the snow faller. In stark contrast to outsourcing solutions, he could print new parts almost instantly at a low cost (only the cost of some filament). While he could still use SLS services, the in-house solution was more cost-effective in the long run.
In fact, Paul estimated that the first printer they bought for the company had already recouped its cost in just two weeks.

Design freely using Ultimaker3

On the Ultimaker 2+, ABS was used to print the nozzles. Paul used to divide the model into two parts and then glue them together after printing. The reason for doing this was that...
When printed together, the support structure on the ABS leaves a mark on the final part. Recently, the company's Ultimaker 3D printer expanded its range to include printers using...
Ultimaker 3 printer.
Now, Paul is able to use nylon and water-soluble PVA supports to print individual nozzles without leaving marks on the finished product and saving time on later printing and assembly.


Thanks to the cost savings of Ultimaker, the price of the first printer is estimated to be recouped within two weeks.

3D printing is used in engineering.

Paul hopes that in the future, 3D printing will be able to produce "very large" objects, as it will be used in IA's automotive and aerospace sectors. As he puts it, "This is the best printer in the world."
He was happy to be able to start using the technology.

In-house desktop 3D printers can revolutionize how businesses develop and manufacture parts. Snow Business uses Ultimaker at different stages of product development.
This includes prototyping, functional testing, and final-use parts.

For more industrial 3D printing case studies, please visit our website.

Original source: https://ultimaker.com/en/stories/50488-snow-business-3d-printing-final-parts-for-high-value-snow-machines