Design for Six Sigma: Material Design for 3D Printing of the New Product

ABSTRACT

The starting point of the research was the demand of customers for 3D printing of face shield frames. In this context, but also due to the possibilities of relatively cheap 3D printing of various products, a large amount of waste has started to be generated, which needs to be disposed of. The goal of the research was to contribute to the development of new 3D printed products while balancing their level of quality, and cost and minimizing their environmental footprint. For this purpose, based on customer requirements, the research team printed samples of PLA (polylactic acid) material and recycled PLA using Fused Filament Fabrication (FFM) technology, thus significantly helping especially during the Covid-19 pandemic. The research used a design method known as Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) and its framework of successive steps of defining, measuring, analyzing, designing, and validating DMADV (Define, Measure, Analyze, Design, and Validate). The research concerns the development of Quality Function Deployment (QFD) functions that respect the requirement of a minimum environmental footprint of 3D printing. The result is an original QFD methodology, taking into account the choice of material in terms of minimizing the impact on the environment. © 2022 IEEE.