3D print bureau Fluxaxis took on a giant project when it produced a 1.2m high replica of a sculpture of David and Goliath.
The artwork was produced using Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) on a Stratasys F900 machine.
Fluxaxis regularly works with artists on the type of big sculptures that form the centrepieces of stadia and public spaces, and few come bigger than the ‘David and Goliath’ piece it commissioned for sculptor Jam Sutton.
Part of an exhibition that was shown at Dublin Castle, the 3D-printed replica of Sutton’s original marble sculpture was produced in three parts, taking 258 hours to print using 15kg of material.
It was made possible by the Stratasys Fortus 900mc, a world-leading additive manufacturing system supplied by SYS Systems and designed to deliver large, complex parts without any compromise on quality.
Fluxaxis Production Manager Jake Augur said: “The sculpture had David standing on Goliath’s head, printed all in black and then painted pink. It was a 1200mm high sculpture done on the Fortus 900 in ASA material.
“The Fortus 900mc is the main workhorse for us and the Fortus 250 is there for those smaller and quick turnaround jobs. The capacity of the 900 really warrants us to push how big we can go with FDM.”
FDM works by building parts layer by layer from the bottom up, through heating and depositing thermoplastic filament.
It uses the thermoplastics found in traditional manufacturing processes, meaning it delivers for applications that demand tight tolerances, toughness and environmental stability, or ones with specialised properties like electrostatic dissipation, translucence and biocompatibility.
Mr Augur said: “The F900 can produce parts which are both large and highly detailed in a multitude of layouts and a multitude of materials, so when it comes to engineering especially it’s the machine we focus on because we can offer a more bespoke and accurate material for a client’s needs.
Using 13 high-performance thermoplastics, the Stratasys F900 is said to offer the largest build size of any FDM system and is tailored specifically for heavy industries.
It can create robust production parts, jigs, fixtures, factory tooling and functional prototypes, utilising an internal camera and the incredibly advanced GrabCAD print software package for streamlined workflows and easier job monitoring.
Designs can be changed on the fly, while operators can revise production materials without delaying the overall production schedule.
Mr Augur added: “We can provide a very quick and effective service to our customers due to the fact that we can run our machines all the time, constantly, with no issues.”
Rob Thompson, Sales Manager for Derbyshire-based SYS Systems, said: “Large-scale production systems like the F900 open a whole new world of possibilities for manufacturers and designers, who are now able scale up the parts they make in top-quality engineering materials and with impressive turnaround times.”