Learn how Saskatoon-based metal fabrication company Lean Machine has used 3D printing for production.

Lean Machine specializes in custom machining primarily for the commercial transportation and mining sector. The company had previously used heavy duty steel tooling, which they would usually make in-house. This was not a scalable option for the company, as they found they were spending a large amount of time on internal tooling instead of on customer parts.

To keep costs down and reduce the wear and tear on parts, the team turned to Markforged 3D printing technology for lean production. “We found Markforged by researching for the best printers out there for commercial and industrial quality printing,” says Josh Grasby, R&D Engineer at Lean Machine.

Lean Machine has since created 3D printed sheet metal bending dies using Markforged carbon fiber material, and found the 3D printed parts haven’t experienced any marring when coming in contact with metal parts. The team also has 3D printed metal grippers for their robotic arms, saying “the metal printed parts look nicer than most machined parts.”

The company has also seen a lot of success in 3D printed fixtures, tools, and several other parts to keep things efficient while keeping costs down.

Learn more about how Lean Machine has used 3D printing to improve its production cycle: http://bit.ly/3GLqcKg