International Standards Organization Archives - Perfect 3D Printing Filament

ASTM and UL to Publish ISO-ASTM Standard for Additive Manufacturing

Nonprofit standards development organization ASTM International, which develops and publishes technical standards for a range of industries, materials, products, services, and systems around the globe, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Underwriters Laboratories (UL), another nonprofit which works to advance its mission of public safety through discovery and application of scientific knowledge. The agreement will set up a framework for a cooperation between the two to create an international, dual-logo ASTM and International Standardization Organization (ISO) standard.

“We are announcing a collaboration agreement with ASTM International that will result in an ISO-ASTM standard for additive manufacturing facility safety management,” Patrick Wilmot, Communications Manager for UL Standards, told 3DPrint.com. “This is an exciting partnership for our organizations and we believe it will be of great use to the AM industry.”

While ASTM signed an MoU with German testing and certification organization TÜV°SÜD at formnext 2019, and created the Additive Manufacturing Standards Development Structure with ISO back in 2016, this new MoU is the first international collaboration agreement of its kind with fellow standards development organization UL.

(Image: Underwriters Laboratories)

“This partnership brings together both organizations’ expertise and shared desire to drive global safety. It leverages ASTM’s technical committee and relationship with ISO with our document and research to drive impact and positively influence the international standards landscape,” said UL Standards Vice President Global Standards Phil Piqueira.

The terms of this new MoU state that ASTM will act as the standards developing organization (SDO) for the agreement, which includes responsibilities such as managing all activities and administrative support. In addition, it will convene the organization’s F42 additive manufacturing technical committee, first formed over a decade ago, in order to review and advance the UL document, the basis of which is its 3400 Outline of Investigation for Additive Manufacturing Facility Safety Management. Once the document, developed with UL research, is complete, ASTM will publish the standard.

ASTM has an existing agreement with ISO to publish its standards documents as ASTM-ISO standards, which means that UL Standards will transfer its copyright of the material in the UL 3400 document over to ASTM so that it can officially be published as an ISO-ASTM standard. The complete, published standard will also be attributed to UL Standards, due to its content and technical expertise.

“The collaborative nature of global standardization creates many opportunities for partnership with other SDOs. We appreciate these opportunities to share knowledge with partners like Underwriters Laboratories to help advance public safety in this fast-evolving field,” stated Brian Meincke, ASTM International’s Vice President of Finance, Business Development and Innovation.

What do you think about this news? Let us know! Discuss this story and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts in the Facebook comments below.

The post ASTM and UL to Publish ISO-ASTM Standard for Additive Manufacturing appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

Recycled Content of Filamentive’s 3D Printing Filaments in Accordance with ISO 14021 Standard

According to UK-based 3D printing material startup Filamentive, 90% of all the plastic used in the world comes from non-renewable sources, which means there’s definitely a major environmental need for recycled 3D printing filament. That’s why Ravi Toor, the startup’s founder and director, decided to launch Filamentive back in 2015, with support from the University of Leeds.

Toor realized that the 3D printing materials market needed to change, and put his environment-based degree, and experience running a 3D printing business, to the test. He founded the startup in order to offer more sustainable filament that can address both environmental impact and the need for high quality materials at the same time.

“As 3D printing becomes more popular, plastic production and consumption will increase, causing many environmental impacts,” the startup notes on its website. “Filamentive was set-up to address the environmental concerns in 3D printing – committed to using recycled materials where possible, without compromising quality.“

Filamentive is an ethical brand, committed to both social and environmental sustainability, which is why it is so proud to announce the news that the recycled content of all of its 3D printing filament products are now in accordance with the ISO 14021 standard.

Toor said, “It is becoming evident that all consumers – from hobbyists to large businesses – are becoming increasingly environmentally-aware and so we will continue to set high targets for recycled content and the recyclability of our packaging.”

The Filamentive 3D printing material products listed below have all been evaluated by the International Organization of Standards (ISO) according to BS EN ISO 14021:2016 – Environmental labels and declarations — Self-declared environmental claims (Type II environmental labelling).

Filamentive has responded to the ever-growing issue of harmful waste plastic, and the rise of plastic usage due to the 3D printing industry, by remaining steadfast in its commitment to use a higher percentage of recycled materials in all of the products it manufactures and sells. In addition, the West Yorkshire startup is committed to creating recyclable spools and packaging, thanks in large part to the empty spool return initiative it launched in 2017.

“Due to FDM/FFF 3D printers using plastic materials as feedstock, unfortunately as 3D printing becomes more popular, plastic production and consumption will increase, causing the industry to exacerbate the global problem of plastic. Filamentive specialise in sustainable 3D printing filament materials. The company was founded to address to the environmental need to use more recycled plastics in 3D printing, and also alleviate market concerns over quality and long term sustainability,” Toor stated.

While 3D printing is actually far less wasteful than more traditional methods of subtractive manufacturing, such as CNC machining, using plastic as a feedstock could actually, according to the startup, “exacerbate the global plastic epidemic.”

Thankfully, there are many initiatives around the world that are set on using 3D printing to lower the amount of plastic that we waste, by making things like prosthetic limbs, furniture, shoes, and filament out of the used material. Filamentive is obviously focusing on the latter, and was also founded in order to challenge the common thought that products made from recycled materials are somehow of lesser quality.

The startup knows that high quality prints can only come from high quality filament, which is why it has committed itself to “strict waste selection and manufacturing procedures” so the 3D printing performance of its users isn’t impacted. The news that its 3D printing filaments are now in accordance with the ISO 14021 standard will only serve to help Filamentive continue its mission.

Discuss this story and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts in the Facebook comments below.

[Source/Images: Filamentive]

Sculpteo Earns ISO 9001 Standard, Partners with Bombardier

3D printing service Sculpteo has announced that is has obtained the ISO 9001:2015 standard. As defined by the International Standards Organization (ISO), this standard specifies requirements for a quality management system when an organization

needs to demonstrate its ability to consistently provide products and services that meet customer and applicable statutory and regulatory requirements
aims to enhance customer satisfaction through the effective application of the system, including processes for improvement of the system and the assurance of conformity to customer and applicable statutory and regulatory requirements

The standard is granted exclusively to companies that can prove that they have implemented efficient and documented protocols to ensure both continuous improvement and quality of service in communicating with clients. It certifies quality management systems that are geared towards improvement, client satisfaction and the active involvement of executive management and employees in a process-based approach.

Earning this standard means that Sculpteo can now partner with some of the largest industrial companies in the world, such as Bombardier, the leading manufacturer of both planes and trains. Bombardier uses additive manufacturing to create complex parts which act as a mount for different instrumentations of fatigue tests, such as comparators, pulleys and targets, as well as aeraulics such as reheater copies and acoustics like acoustical racquets, microphone mounts and guides for the positioning of microphones.

“We are regularly let to manufacture in 3D printing parts that are essential in our measuring process,” said Stéphane Veste, Testing Engineer in the Product Integrity Test Pole of Bombardier Transport France. “We rely on rules that compel us to a certain rigor regarding, amongst others, the positioning of the sensors, a phase where we use the 3D-printed parts (acoustical racquet, microphone mount, positioning tools in relation to the path median etc). The quality of these tools contributed to the obtainment of the RFU-022 standard.”

The ISO 9001 standard covers all activities in 3D printing, consulting, design and engineering at Sculpteo for one year.

“Only yesterday was 3D printing considered an imperfect technology; it has now become a tool opened not only to some pioneers, but an asset of the largest industrial companies,” said Clément Moreau, CEO of Sculpteo. “Obtaining the ISO 9001-2015 standard is the result of a process that mobilized all of Sculpteo’s skills. It certifies the level of quality and precision of its different 3D printing services, which suit the most demanding manufacturing process of the upper industries.”

Sculpteo was founded in 2009 by Moreau and Eric Careel. In the nearly 10 years the company has been in business, it has accrued customers from all around the world. Sculpteo has locations based in both Paris and San Francisco, and its offerings include on-demand 3D printing for clients ranging from startups to SMEs and design studios.

Discuss this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts below.