Why Is FDM So Much Cheaper Than Injection Molding?

One of the biggest advantages that 3D printing has over Injection Molding is its ability to save you money on both upfront and long term costs. By eliminating molds and warehousing, as well as, reducing waste, 3D printing drastically reduces the overhead costs of traditional manufacturing. Let's go a little deeper into each of these cost saving benefits.

No Molds

For starters, the biggest way 3D printing will save you money is by eliminating the cost of molds. Even a small, single cavity mold will usually costs anywhere from $1,000-$5,000, whereas a larger, more complex mold can be upwards of $80,000. 3D printing completely eliminates these massive upfront costs. So, rather than having to sell hundreds, or even thousands of parts just to make back the money spent on molds, you can immediately begin making profit with additive manufacturing.  

No Waste

Since 3D printing is an additive process, you have virtually no waste from it. You don't have to carve out any parts and there are no molds, so there ends up being no waste byproducts from creating a plastic part. The only thing that is being used is electricity and material. This will end up saving you a lot of money on recycling costs, or reuse costs from all the waste that would need to be turned back into material to be used later. This drastically reduces the ongoing costs of your manufacturing process, which will save thousands of dollars in the long term.

No Warehousing

With 3D printing being a fully digital process, you never have to worry about storing any of your product. Parts can simply be printed on demand, providing you have the infrastructure in place to be able to address spikes when they happen. 3D printing eliminates the cost of inventory because you don't have to pay for a warehouse to store 10,000 parts for 10 years while they get sold. You also don't have to keep a surplus of parts around in case that part goes obsolete, which is another huge cost saving benefit. Since parts aren't produced until they are needed, you eliminate the loses from obsolescence, which makes up a significant percentage of spare part costs.

All in all, additive manufacturing ends up being the much cheaper option when it comes to mass production manufacturing. The elimination of molds, reducing of waste, and lack of need for warehousing ends up saving you a lot of money, both upfront and long term. If you are looking for a cheaper alternative to traditional manufacturing, begin looking into additive manufacturing, and there's no better place to start than right here, at Slant3D.
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Happy Savings!