Gaining Control Over Acoustic Development

Maximizing efficiency,
while reducing development times

Sika Automotive, a preferred partner for leading OEMs and automotive component suppliers, needed to streamline prototyping and pre-series production for their innovative heat-expandable acoustic inserts. 3devo’s Composer 350 Filament Maker, capable of extruding heat-reactive, low-temp materials, has helped Sika switch to in-house 3D printing.

Sika’s complex expandable cavity sealers for vehicle body-in-white are made using SikaBaffle®, a highly expandable, heat-reactive thermoplastic. A typical cavity sealer requires 5-10 design iterations. Injection molding these prototypes was a lengthy and resource-intensive process, prompting Sika to consider in-house 3D printing as an alternative. For this, they required a cost-effective filament extruder that could process medium melt flow index polymers like SikaBaffle® without changing its chemical composition.

In order to 3D print their cavity sealers, Sika needed a filament maker that could successfully process SikaBaffle®, a material that had already been tested and was available in pellet form. A low melting point of 90°C made SikaBaffle® incompatible with most extruders. The 3devo Composer 350, however, was able to successfully extrude the material. It joined Sika’s manufacturing facility in December 2018, along with the German RepRap 3D printer.

• Complete control over component modifications and improvements
  Sika’s new in-house 3D printing setup facilitated by the Composer 350 allows prototypes to be physically tested and modified – offering more accuracy and freedom than on-screen calculations.
• Reduced dependence on tooling or third-party suppliers
  By choosing in-house 3D printing over third-party injection molding, Sika enjoys a high degree of autonomy over prototyping and production. The company’s pre-series production schedules are no longer dependent on tooling or external sources.
• Lead times reduced by 90% for SikaBaffle® components
  Thanks to the freedom, efficiency and control offered by in-house filament extrusion and 3D printing, lead times for SikaBaffle® cavity sealers have dropped from 4-8 weeks to 2-5 days.