Cost modeling and analysis for Mask Image Projection Stereolithography additive manufacturing: Simultaneous production with mixed geometries

Additive manufacturing has obtained widespread and continuously increasing interest, owing to its distinguished advantages (e.g., reduced material waste and enhanced manufacturing complexity) compared to traditional manufacturing processes. Currently, the implementation of additive manufacturing in the industrial sector is limited to small-scale production with high customization level. In current literature, the cost analysis for complex production layouts especially with mixed geometries are not fully studied, and some popular additive manufacturing processes are not well investigated for cost performance. Therefore, in this paper, a comprehensive cost model is established to theoretically evaluate the cost performance of the Mask Image Projection Stereolithography process for simultaneously fabricating multiple mixed geometries. In addition, an optimization problem is formulated to reduce the additive manufacturing costs considering the set of decision variables (layer thickness and surface stratification angle) under the constraints of production throughput and part quality. The case study results indicate that 26% of cost savings can be achieved by solving the proposed optimization problem. Furthermore, a sensitivity analysis is conducted which shows that the raw material unit price and the initial investment on additive manufacturing hardware and software are the main cost drivers.