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The cost of your 3D printed parts depends on factors such as part volume, part complexity, choice of material, which 3D printing technology is used, and if any post processing is required. For more details on these cost factors, see our article on the cost of 3d printing. To check the cost of your 3D printed part, simply upload a CAD (.STL) file and select your material and 3D printing technology to receive a quote within seconds.

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a Promising Combination for the Mexican Economy « Fabbaloo

Charles R. Goulding and Andressa Bonafe examine the latest developments in additive manufacturing in Mexico. (Spanish version to follow.)

While much of the ongoing supply chain crisis can be traced back to the Covid-19 outbreak, recent events, particularly the rising prices of several goods, lead to the conclusion that issues are likely to persist. The latest World Economic Outlook by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) lists continued supply chain disruption as one of the main reasons for a predicted economic slowdown in 2022. 

Coming to terms with a new normal in which cost-effective and reliable shipping is no longer a given, a growing number of manufacturers are striving to bring production closer to their customers. Known as “nearshoring”, this strategic response to supply chain instability can reduce risks, increase profits, and enhance competitiveness.

For companies targeting the U.S. market, northern Mexico is a prime destination, as proximity to the border reduces reliance on overcrowded, often unpredictable ports. Juarez, Tijuana, Reynosa, Matamoros, and Piedras Negras are examples of “magnet cities” for foreign plants. During the 1990s, the region became home to numerous maquiladoras, especially after the Nafta agreement took effect. However, competition from China resulted in economic stagnation. 

The new wave of investments began in response to Trump’s tariffs on Chinese products and was accelerated by the pandemic. Despite the negative impact of Covid-19 on the Mexican economy, projections of recovery are optimistic as the country benefits from the relocation of international manufacturing plants. The IMF estimates that total GDP will amount to $1.37trn in 2022, above pre-pandemic levels. 

The 2021 Kearney Reshoring Index underlines that Mexico is a viable option for companies willing to diversify supply chains and enhance resilience. The report calls particular attention to the automotive, aerospace, and electrical components industries, in which the country has established infrastructure and a trained labor force.

Interest in nearshoring seems to be growing across all industries, as exemplified by toymaker Mattel, Inc.’s recent $50 million expansion of its plant in Monterrey, Mexico. Covering 2.25 million square feet, the location employs nearly 3,500 workers and is now the company’s largest plant (even larger than the ones in China, Vietnam, and Malaysia). The move is part of a broader diversification effort, in which Mattel has invested in media assets that now include movie making and Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs). 

3D Printing in Mexico

Adding to Mexico’s strategic position to meet supply chain needs, the country’s growing additive manufacturing capabilities contribute to enhanced competitiveness. Examples of 3D printing in Mexico attest to the potential for innovative applications, as discussed in the following sections.

Infrastructure and construction: Mexico is implementing an ambitious infrastructure program aimed at revitalizing the country’s economy and increasing its generation capacity. In 2020 alone, 68 projects were announced, including the construction of six natural gas-powered combined cycle power plants, one natural gas pipeline, one compression station, and a liquefied natural gas export terminal. The four-year program is expected to require a US$43 billion investment, potentially generating an annual growth of more than 4 percent, and creating hundreds of thousands of jobs. The potential for 3D printing applications is enormous, ranging from concrete, fasteners, and tools to telecom antennas and water/sewer projects. In fact, Mexico has been home to exciting 3D printing developments in construction, particularly the world’s first 3D printed community located in Tabasco.

Oil and gas: 3D printing technologies can be greatly beneficial to the oil and gas industry. Among the most relevant opportunities are the potential to decrease time to market in tightly scheduled projects and to provide replacement parts for legacy equipment often situated in remote areas. In this context, avoiding costly downtime that usually accompanies the replacement of critical parts would represent major savings and greater competitiveness. Among the largest companies in Latin America, Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) is a producer, refiner, and distributor of crude oil, natural gas, and petroleum products. Similar to other state-owned oil and gas companies, such as Brazil’s Petrobras, Pemex shows great potential to take advantage of additive manufacturing, particularly metal applications. 

Automotive parts: The automotive industry in Mexico has traditionally benefited from nearshoring practices, attracting carmakers from around the globe along with numerous suppliers. Considering pre-pandemic data, Mexico Business News points out that vehicle production increased by 66 percent between 2010 and 2019, reaching 3.75 million units in 2019, while exports increased 188.4 percent in value to reach US$11.8 billion as of December 2019. 

Despite the challenges that ensued from the Covid-19 pandemic, Mexico’s automotive sector is poised to remain strong and develop an enhanced focus on technological innovation. The pandemic has underlined the value of 3D printing as a means to produce automotive parts with far less overhead and trickle-down cost savings through the supply chain.A telling example comes from American multinational automotive supplier BorgWarner, which expanded its manufacturing facility in Ramos-Arizpe, Mexico in 2015 to meet increasing demand for emissions technologies in North America. BorgWarner has been at the forefront of 3D printing innovation with ever growing applications to increase cost-efficiency and automation.

Fashion: 3D printing has made its way into the fashion industry, helping push the boundaries of design and functionality. From record-breaking footwear to smart fabrics, additive manufacturing plays an increasingly central role in a variety of innovative efforts. Supply chain and geopolitical disruptions have fueled a renewed interest in nearshoring for fashion brands. Mexico is home to an important footwear cluster that includes international companies such as Nike, Crocs, and Louis Vuitton. More widespread 3D printing adoption could further enhance competitiveness and consolidate the country’s position as a global hub for apparel manufacturing. 

While facing the challenges of supply chain disruptions, U.S.-based companies should consider the potential benefits of bringing production closer to home. These companies can also take advantage of R&D tax credits to support their innovative efforts, as described below.

The Research and Development Tax Credit

The now permanent Research and Development (R&D) Tax Credit is available for companies developing new or improved products, processes and/or software. 

3D printing can help boost a company’s R&D Tax Credits. Wages for technical employees creating, testing, and revising 3D printed prototypes can be included as a percentage of eligible time spent for the R&D Tax Credit. Similarly, when used as a method of improving a process, time spent integrating 3D printing hardware and software counts as an eligible activity. Lastly, when used for modeling and preproduction, the costs of filaments consumed during the development process may also be recovered.

Whether it is used for creating and testing prototypes or for final production, 3D printing is a great indicator that R&D Credit eligible activities are taking place. Companies implementing this technology at any point should consider taking advantage of R&D Tax Credits.

Conclusion

Mexico is particularly well-equipped to respond to the many challenges of the new global supply chain. As a growing number of companies make the strategic decision to bring production closer to their end customers, Mexico’s great potential for 3D printing application promise additional gains in efficiency.

Mexico has the world's first 3D printed residential area

Not far from a city in southern Mexico, a ten meter printer has recently printed walls for the world's first 3D printed residential area.

At the beginning of December, the printed houses received a roof, windows and interior decoration. New Story, a charity behind the project, believes 3D printing can bring affordable housing to people in the poorest parts of the world. “We believe we were able to prove the reality of this idea by taking this device to rural Mexico where there is seismic activity and being able to print the first houses with it,” says Brett Hagler, CEO and co-founder of New Story.

Founded five years ago, his company provides housing for people living in extreme poverty. The organization has already built more than 2,700 houses in the traditional way in Bolivia, Mexico, El Salvador and Haiti.

Photo: New Story

After the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, it was difficult to rebuild houses after the destruction, but New Story improved the construction process so that housing could be built faster. The organization realized that with the help of new technology, it was possible to work faster and at less cost. Two years ago, she partnered with Icon to develop a 3D printer capable of printing even under the most difficult conditions.

The printer is called Vulcan II. This is not the first device that can print an entire house. However, a new residential area in Mexico of 50 printed houses will be the first place where this technology has been used on such a scale. Other companies have experimented with building printed houses, but all trials have been conducted in controlled environments or locations with a low risk of natural disasters.

Initially, the New Story team planned to print houses in another part of Mexico, but ran into difficulties - for a long time the organization could not obtain a building permit from the government. Therefore, it was decided to print houses further south, in Tabasco, a state bordering Guatemala. The new location had a higher risk of earthquakes, so the design of the houses had to be finalized.

Photo: New Story

After successful testing, the printer was trucked to the state, but it got stuck in customs for three months. “The device is brand new, obviously it doesn’t exist [in the database],” Hagler explains. When the 3D printer arrived at its destination, the rainy season began. At some point, the entrance to the construction site was flooded, and no one could get there for a week.

However, the most important test—whether the printer can print on site at home—succeeded. The printer lays out the concrete mixture in layers, and the floors and walls are obtained. The program monitors the weather conditions and adjusts the mixture accordingly. “The weather can be dry in the morning and wet in the evening, so you have to change the viscosity of the mixture to keep the print quality the same all day,” explains New Story co-founder Alexandria Lafzi.

The printing process is autonomous, the team can only make minor adjustments to the scheme. In this case, you can print several houses at the same time. The first two houses printed at the same time, the total printing time was 24 hours, but it lasted several days because the team only wanted to work during the day. In the future, the authors of the project hope to be able to run the printer for longer periods to speed up the construction process.

The resulting houses have two bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen, and a bathroom, much better than the simple huts the locals live in. Families who will live in printed houses earn an average of $76.50 a month. “For many families, this will be the first home with a toilet outside the yard and a full sewer,” says Lafzi. And, unlike huts, such houses are able to withstand an earthquake. The charity is partnering with the local government to provide land and infrastructure to build roads and provide electricity to 50 families who need housing the most. When New Story finishes printing all the houses, new tenants will immediately move into them.

Photo: New Story

Some families have already inspected the resulting houses and noted that they do not leak during heavy rain. “When it rains, the roof of our house starts to leak, and the worst thing is when it happens at night,” says Candelaria Hernandez, who lives in a one-room hut with seven members of her family. “We have to wake up and arrange the pans so that things don’t get wet.”

“The construction industry needs a paradigm shift,” says Alex Le Roux, co-founder and CTO of Icon. “We don’t have to choose between affordability and reliability.” The company plans to print more new houses and develop its technology. Many representatives of local governments in Latin America have already shown interest in the project and even visited the current construction site. “Once people see our project with their own eyes, it no longer seems like a crazy idea to them,” says Hagler.

Source.

What the first 3D printed village looks like

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Photo: New Story

Do you dream of cheap and beautiful housing? It can be created in just a day using a 3D printer. So, in Mexico, by the end of 2020, they plan to print an entire village. Two houses are ready and residents have moved in

3D printing of real estate is gaining popularity: it is cheap, fast and requires relatively little energy. Technology allows you to create housing in just 24 hours - who among us will refuse a village house, which can be entered in just a day after the start of construction?

Photo: New Story

But for now, technological know-how is serving the needs of the poorest, most vulnerable. For example, it may be the construction of temporary shelters for victims of military conflicts.

New Story, a non-profit organization with the support of local governments, 3D printed two houses in the Mexican village of Tobasco. This housing is intended for the poor and those who have lost their homes due to an earthquake or flood - in the area where the village is located, they occur quite often. By the end of 2020, New Story plans to build 50 one-story 3D houses with an area of ​​​​about 47 square meters. m each.

The houses were printed with a Vulcan II printer. It works as follows: cement is squeezed out of the nozzle of the apparatus and applied layer by layer around the perimeter of the designed house.

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