Direct Digital Manufacturing with Additive Manufacturing/3D Printing

Dear Colleagues,

Direct Digital Manufacturing (DDM), i.e., the production of end-user parts, components, and products by means of Additive Manufacturing (AM) and 3D Printing (3DP), is a concept that has attracted significant scientific and business interest during recent years. This increasing interest can be attributed to the unique characteristics of AM/3DP technologies, which enable the decentralized production of highly customized/personalized parts for both industrial users and consumers, thereby providing significant cost, speed, and sustainability advantages over the established model of centralized mass production.

Despite the fact that there is growing evidence that DDM is an economically viable and technically feasible alternative, significant challenges from a technical and an organizational point of view still exist. From a technical point of view, the development of tools, systems, and processes that enable the design and production of multi-functional and multi-material parts with sufficient precision and repeatability can help in expanding the application field of DDM. From an organizational standpoint, the successful deployment of DDM requires the rethinking of several supply chain, process design, cost, and sustainability issues. Furthermore, case studies that discuss the application of DDM in specific practical settings are also valuable for understanding and defining the advantages and limitations of the DDM paradigm.

In this context, studies that address some of the aforementioned challenges or discuss some of the possible applications of DDM are particularly welcomed for this Special Issue of JMMP. A non-exclusive list of topics for contributions is below:

• AM/3DP technologies and systems for DDM;
• Evaluation and selection of AM/3DP technologies, processes, and/or systems for DDM;
• Process planning for DDM (build parameters selection, part production planning, post-processing planning, etc.);
• Supply chain design for DDM (DDM facilities location, distributed manufacturing with DDM, etc.);
• Part design for DDM (design for AM/3DP, part consolidation methods for simplifying/eliminating assembly, methods, and tools for heterogeneous part modeling, etc.);
• Sustainability issues of DDM (environmental impact, comparison with other manufacturing technologies/processes, life-cycle analysis of DDM products, etc.);
• Cost analysis and life-cycle costing in DDM;
• Real-time monitoring and control of DDM systems for improved quality;
• Quality control of products manufactured by DDM;
• Innovative applications of DDM and relevant case studies.

Dr. Ioannis (John) Giannatsis
Guest Editor

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