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The oil and gas industry has various applications in logistically tricky locations such as gas lines and oil rigs. These applications require just as much maintenance and spare parts as other industrial applications would. However, due to the challenging areas, the excess part stock becomes a challenge. As a result, the warehouse needs to be large, which is not an option on many occasions, or you must have the equipment to manufacture the spare parts on-site. Here, 3D printing becomes a viable option for the oil and gas industries.
With high-performance polymers the printed parts can be utilized in the harshest conditions in many ways
3D printing in the oil and gas industry offers the opportunity to manufacture low-volume spare parts that are relatively expensive to manufacture and store. However, operating environments are often logistically challenging, and downtime is costly, so flexible on-demand spare parts manufacturing is essential.
With the miniFactory Ultra 3D printer, you can print desired materials suitable for the harsh conditions of the oil and gas industry. In addition, high-performance polymers printing allows prototyping and piloting by using the same manufacturing process you will be using later in the product's life cycle.
3D printing of ultra-polymers enables the manufacturing of production aids and special tools required for maintenance from materials that can withstand the industry's high demands. By utilizing 3D printing and polymers resistant to harsh chemicals needed in the oil & gas industry, you can significantly save time and money.
The miniFactory Ultra 3D printer opens an unprecedented opportunity to produce genuine spare parts for the oil and gas industry with the possibility of printing fully crystalline parts from PAEK family polymers. In addition, the 3D printer's additive technology saves both time and money by making the parts with low material waste on-demand. With this, there's no need for large warehouses or challenging logistical decisions.
PAEK family polymers offer extreme chemical resistance and mechanical durability, making them excellent and widely used in the oil & gas industry. In addition, 3D printing in the oil and gas industry is becoming more common through the possibility of printing these PAEK family polymers with the geometrical freedom of additive manufacturing. With the miniFactory Ultra 3D printer, the users can produce fully crystalline parts to meet the high standards of the oil and gas industry.
Read more about the 3D printing of semi-crystalline seals from the white paper we have created in co-operation with ARKEMA.
Product development in harsh conditions sets high requirements for the materials. The parts cannot be tested in challenging environments if the material is not suitable for the environment.
With the miniFactory Ultra 3D printer, rapid prototyping can be done using the desired materials ideal for the harsh conditions of the oil and gas industry. It creates the possibility to do the piloting phase by using the same manufacturing process you will be using later in the product's life cycle. The developers can design the parts to be ideal for later on-site production of spare parts. The development iterations can be done overnight, which opens possibilities to quickly speed up the development cycles and meet the deadlines.
The equipment in the oil and gas industry needs to be up and running. The downtime of the equipment can cause significant expenses to the business, and therefore, it needs to be minimized. When the equipment is in remote locations such as oil rigs, downtime costs are highlighted even more. 3D printing in the oil & gas industry can make a difference in this equation. When the maintenance operation needs to be done effectively, 3D printing with the miniFactory Ultra enables the creation of custom tools and jigs that ensure smooth and flexible maintenance operations.
Some phases of maintenance operations are repeated time after time. For such operations, 3D printing in the oil and gas industry opens a possibility to create jigs and tools that will make the process safer and more effective. With it, the job becomes more ergonomic for the maintenance operator, and therefore, the level of work safety can be improved.
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