• Significant reduction in production time of up to 85% possible compared to other manufacturing methods — both for one-off customised orders and larger orders.
• Ultra-realistic 3D printing produces models with layer thickness as fine as 0.014 mm.
• Vivid colours and the stability of PolyJet materials proven for longevity.
Schiner 3D Repro manufactures snow globes for various industries and customers — from new product launches for well-known industry brands, to merchandising and events. With orders that range from between 1 to 3,000, the company’s expert staff need to be flexible enough to undertake custom orders and ensure fast turnaround times, regardless of the job site.
“We work on a lot of different jobs simultaneously— specifically since the snow globes only make up one aspect of our business offering,” says Stein.“The J750 3D printer is an important asset to our business operation as it delivers ultra-quality 3D printing at speeds we could not achieve otherwise.
Due to its large build tray, we can produce around 200 snow globe figurines that can all be different, in one go, and in under 24 hours. With other manufacturing methods, this can take much longer. We estimate that the time savings using the J750 can equate to almost 85%.”Adding to the time savings is the company’s use of the intuitive GrabCAD Print software, enabling a much more streamlined design-to-part workflow. Simplifying the path from CAD or scan data to additive manufacturing, GrabCAD Print allows Schiner 3D Repro to get professional-quality 3D printed figures for snow globes much faster and simpler, independent of order size.
Snow globes are comprised of a water solution enclosed in a glass ball that also houses a figure glued to the base of the structure. For the figure’s manufacture, several elements need to be addressed to ensure a high-end product that looks and feels well-made.“The challenge for snow globe figures is not only that they are very small, but they are also encased in a glass sphere — magnifying the small figures and showing every detail as if under a microscope,” says Stein. “The precise edges, vivid colour definition and smooth surface finish achievable with the J750 are therefore vital to ensuring the high-end standard our customers are looking for.”
A large proportion of the snow globe figures 3D printed by Schiner 3D Repro are of people and products which need to look realistic and mirror the real-sized person or object. Having access to the J750’s full-colour spectrum of up to 500,000 colours and diverse range of materials allows advanced texture mapping — including patterns such as wood, fur and fabric — and colour gradients, so the figures have lifelike features, even in small sizes.
“As the figures are encased in a water solution, we had to run several tests to ensure the colour and material of the 3D printed figures would not wear or fade after a short period,” continues Stein. “We have been using the J750 for over four years now, and the colours and materials look as good as the day they were produced.”
