Rigur 3D printing
Stratasys subsidiary, Stratasys EMEA, has announced that German automotive and aviation model manufacturer, Konrad Schäfer, has standardised its entire prototyping operation with its Rigur 3D printing material to respond to customer demands for tougher, more heat-resistant prototypes.
Konrad Schäfer, which can count Audi, BMW Group, Mercedes-Benz, Rolls Royce and Volkswagen as global clients, installed a Stratasys PolyJet-based 3D Printer in 2007 to fulfil its rapid prototyping requirements.
“Life without our 3D printer is unimaginable,” Markus Schrӧder, Model Building Mechanic at Konrad Schäfer, commented. “Our PolyJet-based 3D Printer is used for many different rapid prototyping applications, but primarily for our customers’ extensive lighting systems, which include the front, rear and other interior/exterior requirements for all vehicle types. Needless to say that the material needed to produce these models has to be extremely tough, durable and heat-resistant, and Rigur has excelled in every department. We are now using this material across 100% of our prototyping work.”
Rigur is an advanced simulated polypropylene which offers prototyping benefits to a wide range of manufacturers including strength and excellent surface finish. With its high impact resistance and elongation at break, Rigur produces extremely tough parts and is engineered to deflect temperatures of up to 129°F / 54°.
Zehavit Reisin, Vice President, Materials Business Unit at Stratasys, added: “Rigur is a result of Stratasys continued focus on offering our customers the most versatile solution for all 3D modelling needs. By expanding our range of materials, we enable more applications, particularly in the area of functional prototypes of polypropylene parts.”
The Schäfer business group was founded in 1901 and operates as a model maker for the automotive and aviation industries, producing complete design and functional models for vehicle body shells and interiors. The company designs and manufactures prototype components and small series production parts for niche and special-purpose vehicles.
