detailed scale models
Polymer additive manufacturing produces intricate exhibition model
Norwegian company Det Norske commissioned us to produce a 1:100 Polymer scale model of the Ivar Aasen oil rig platform to be used as the centre piece of their exhibition stand at the Offshore Northern Seas annual show held in Stavangar, Norway.
The model consists of the leg structure known as the ‘jacket’ and platform deck, or ‘topsides’ as it’s referred to, as well as a helideck and control room. The seven decks cover a total area of 3,300 square metres and the aluminium living quarters will contain 70 single cabins.
3T-am's polymer additive manufacturing service was selected for two main reasons; cost and timescale. Traditional modelmaking would have taken a year to produce the model and cost many times more than 3D printing. Furthermore, the detail achievable with superb accuracy is unrivalled over some other options which were considered, such as FDM and Stereolithography.
The original 3D CAD files provided by the customer came through as one complete model so 3T-am’s in-house CAD specialists had to segment the design into 8 pieces to enable each part to fit into the build chamber of their P390 sintering machines. Once built, the model had to be assembled and 3T-am’s specialist finishers ensured the joins were as seamless as possible.
The model is now on display at Det Norske HQ in Trondheim in their reception area.
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Our in-house CAD team spent 40+ hours modifying the design to get the best results from the AM build process”
