ABSTRACT
Additive manufacturing (AM) techniques basically possess many distinct features as compared to conventional formative and subtractive fabrication processes. AM technology is a bottom-up fabrication approach in which a part is built layer by layer into its designed shape. Conventional manufacturing techniques (CMTs) require a large work force or machinery and a high degree of supply chain management. AM techniques generally imply a cluster of machines based on manufacturing processes where component fabrication process is achieved directly from Computer aided design data using the principle of layer-by-layer additive joining. CMTs involve conventional manufacturing steps such as design, tooling and fixturing, fabrication, etc. to develop the product. A variety of subtractive manufacturing machines are available including routing, milling, turning, drilling, lathe and so on. Similarly, over hundreds of AM modellers utilizing varied techniques are commercially available. In the subsequent paragraph, a brief comparison between AM and subtractive manufacturing, especially computer numerical controlled machining is presented.
