A proposed ASTM guide will make it easier for businesses to create parts using additive manufacturing, also known as 3D printing. Specifically, the guide will provide overarching principles of design rules in this fast-growing field.

“It is very hard to come up with a single ‘right way’ to create a part using additive manufacturing,” says ASTM member Paul Witherell, a mechanical engineer at the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology. “This standard will serve as a foundation that supports the development of design rules for the growing number of additive manufacturing processes and machines.”

Well-formed design rules provide manufacturers – including entrepreneurs and small businesses – with a way to make meaningful changes to parts and production processes without compromising overall manufacturability. The new standard will promote a consistent way to develop and apply these rules, providing key insights into the intricacies of additive processes.

All interested parties, particularly those developing best practices in this field, are welcome to join in the work of ASTM’s additive manufacturing committee (F42) and this proposed standard (WK51841, Guide for Principles of Design Rules in Additive Manufacturing). Become a member at www.astm.org/JOIN.

This effort is an example of how ASTM members are leading in smart manufacturing, as highlighted at ASTM’s new Smart Manufacturing microsite.

ASTM Committee F42 on Additive Manufacturing Technologies Next Meeting: Jan. 25-28, 2016, ASTM headquarters, West Conshohocken, Pa. 
Media Inquiries: Nathan Osburn, tel +1.610.832.9603; nosburn@astm.org
Technical Contact: Paul Witherell, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Md., tel +1.301.975.5330; paul.witherell@nist.gov  
ASTM Staff Contact: Pat Picariello, tel +1.610.832.9720; ppicariello@astm.org

Release #9946