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- We have a certain level of standard manufacturing machinery ourselves in direct access to the institute. It is possible to use them (turning, milling, drilling, ...) after an introduction by the technical team of iMEK (especially Thorsten Düring). If you do the things yourself, of course, it is the fasted way to realize/build something.
- If things are half-urgent, the technical-team of iMEK is happy to help. Issue the tasks in alignment with your supervisor at Thorsten Düring. But the technical resources at the institute are limited, so depending on the level of urgency we may have to reprioritize. In other words: This way works, but it has some risks. It has to be mentioned that the technical-team is a german speaking fraction and you may encounter difficulties if you can not express your concern in german.
- If you plan properly manufacturing is planned with a time-buffer of four weeks after the final models/CAD is done. Then we would use our "Zentralwerkstatt" of the University. They have all manufacturing-methods available and a huge capacity. However, their typical lead-time is between 2 to 4 weeks. If you want to use them, go there with your supervisor, align the task early (e.g. 2 weeks before submission) that they can plan for it and then be in-time to submit your drawings/CAD/CAM. Give them a chance for review. Their input is always of high-quality and will improve your design. The workshops in building K and O are led by different "Meistern" as Dirk Manning https://kontakt.tuhh.de/suchergebnis.php?Lang=en&Suchtext=Dirk%20Manning is responsible for the workshop in O.
- Sometimes, 3D printing is a suitable way to execute mechanical soft designs or early samples. The Institute of iMEK has a very strong collaboration with the "StudierendenwerkstattWorkINGLab". We can print there on short notice. However, make sure to make a conscious decision on when to use 3D-printing. As we strive for optimum designs, there are only a few reasons which work well. To give you an idea
- We needed small weight → good reason but may come as a boomerang if stiffness is not sufficient.
- We were short in time → May be bad reason, as you may had a wrong planning of your time. But depends on the situation.
- We needed it, as the design was not manufacturable → It May be necessary, but frequently is only a statement that tries to hide that CAD-design was not done according to manufacturing standards
- It is only a sample → Can be a good reason, if the function of the sample is limited to things 3D printed parts can do. Absolutely applicable for showcase-samples and volume-studies without major mechanical function.
- We needed electrical insulation → may be a good reason
- We needed organic/curved surfaces → may be a good reason
- We needed functional integration up to a level where our tool shop proposed us to use 3D-printing → very good reason
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