Kurtis Wilde, parts manager at Murray Honda in Chilliwack, British Columbia, envisions the day dealerships use 3D printers to fabricate their own parts — small, plastic, non-safety-related ones within the next few years and larger, metal pieces sometime down the road.
He believes 3D-printing parts in the dealership and on demand could solve the problem of delayed vehicle maintenance and repairs created by back-ordered parts while also making it easier to find replacement parts for older vehicles.
"What these printers can do is unbelievable," says Wilde, who owns two small 3D printers to make replicas of comic book superheroes, parts for his gasoline-powered, remote-controlled car and plastic knobs and clips for a friend's camper.
"We've got cars that have been down since November," Wilde said in March, because the dealership can't get the parts to finish the repair orders. "Just think how helpful it would be if [3D-printed parts at dealerships] were a possibility."
Technology improvements have made that closer to becoming reality. Parts shortages caused by pandemic-induced supply chain disruptions combined with a surge in repair work will spur dealerships to add the capability in about five to seven years, predict people who know auto parts and 3D printing.
But there are hurdles related to 3D printing in general that could impact how quickly dealerships embrace the technology in earnest.
Making sure all 3D-printed auto parts meet strict quality standards is among the issues to be addressed, as is protecting the intellectual property rights of parts designers, experts say.
3D printing is a method of additive manufacturing that creates 3D objects from computer-aided design drawings.
Plastic and metal objects, including auto parts, can be created by powder, liquid, rods, wire or sheets being deposited, joined or solidified layer by layer.
Some auto manufacturers, on a limited basis, print 3D parts for use in new vehicles and are experimenting with delivering printed parts to their franchised dealerships for service and maintenance work, according to Don Jones, executive-in-residence at Carlisle Ducker, a consultancy specializing in aftermarket parts, logistics and supply chain for automotive and other industries.
Jones says that as automakers increase their 3D parts volume and become more familiar with the process, they're paving the way for dealerships to start printing their own parts in as soon as five years.
Manufacturers "have the engineering knowledge; they know how to test the parts after they print the parts to make sure they're good, and they can make the investment in the printers and the technicians, whereas the dealers are a little bit further out," Jones says.
Printing 3D parts presents some challenges to dealerships.
For starters, all auto parts must undergo a rigorous quality process called advanced product quality planning, which requires parts suppliers to demonstrate they understand a part's design and have a process to produce the part repetitively and at the highest quality standard, says Jones, who spent 29 years at Caterpillar Inc. He worked in international logistics and information systems at Caterpillar, focusing on aftermarket parts and specializing in 3D printing before retiring in 2019. He joined Carlisle that same year.
In some cases, technology for plastic 3D parts allows them to be used without post-processing, Jones says.
Conversely, metal parts typically need post-processing such as drilling, cutting threads in holes and polishing — work best left to professional machinists, he says.
And, if there is porosity in the metal, the part might break. Also, metal can sometimes shrink during the heating and hardening process.
Not many metal parts are being shipped right now, Jones says.
"But that's where a lot of the breakthroughs have happened over the last couple of years," he says. "We're getting closer to having more metal 3D parts be available."
Prices of 3D printers can vary widely depending on factors such as the materials used for printing, the size of the object printed and printing speed.
For example, Murray Honda Parts Manager Wilde says he paid about $350 for each of his two printers.
At Formlabs, a 3D-printing manufacturing company headquartered near Boston, prices start around $3,500 for smaller printers and increase to about $20,000 for printers designed for industrial use, says Michael Baker, the company's head of communications. Formlabs does not manufacture printers for metal parts, he says.
Industrial printers can range from tens of thousands of dollars for those that produce plastic parts to several hundreds of thousands of dollars to $1 million for metal parts printers, according to Jones.
Over time, industrial printers "will become less expensive as they become higher volume," something Jones says is happening because printing speed is increasing.
Some other factors for dealerships to consider: Depending on the technology, the operation of some industrial printers requires technicians with specialized training; some printers need to be in isolated environments because of the hazardous fumes emitted during the process; and others need to be in an air-conditioned room, Jones adds.
Intellectual property rights and licensing need to be taken into consideration, too.
In some cases, neither the automaker nor its franchised dealers have the legal right to produce a part owned by the original supplier, Jones says.
"This is a significant risk for counterfeiting and leads to a discussion of cybersecurity and [intellectual property] protection," he adds.
But for instances in which an automaker does hold the license for genuine parts files, sharing those files with its franchised dealers — especially for a manufacturer recall involving low-cost, low-liability items — might be cost-effective and make good sense, says Brian Crossin, an instructor at the National Automobile Dealers Association Academy, who specializes in parts management.
"It would make a very practical application for the dealership," he says. "You're just printing the part based on genuine OEM factory specs. You don't have supply chain logistics; you don't have material shortages unless there is a shortage of 3D-printing material.
"In terms of engine components and parts that keep the vehicle driving down the road, we're probably a little bit of a ways off from that — I'd say five to 10 years," he says. "Trim items, we might see that even sooner where the manufacturer outsources the design and drawing and dealerships print them in-house as needed."
Vehicle personalization and customization is another opportunity for dealers to enhance their businesses and embrace 3D printing.
David Lakatos, chief product officer at Formlabs, says though the company's customer base is primarily engineers, product designers and people in manufacturing and health care, its printers are increasingly purchased by vehicle customization companies.
Those companies make parts and accessories for customers who want to personalize their vehicles — for example, a 3D-printed dashboard panel featuring a phone holder and the owner's name. A vehicle's front grille and rear fascia are customizable, too, he says.
He doubts many dealerships would be able to design and print customized parts within 24 hours, but if a dealership created a list of pre-designed parts it could print quickly and customers could choose from, he believes there is a market.
"Our printers are fast enough that a dealership could [print parts for customization] in a few days while you're waiting for the license plates, registration, etc. to arrive," Lakatos says. "The beautiful thing about 3D printing — it gives you unlimited control. Anything you can design, you can print out."
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