Why SLS is Ideal for Rapid Prototyping and Additive Manufacturing

Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) is an additive manufacturing and rapid prototyping process used for the production of 3D parts with complex shapes and geometries.

The key benefits of Selective Laser Sintering for product design engineers are its speed, high level of accuracy and strength, ability to print highly complex parts and the minimal requirement for additional finishing:

• Speed: Prototype Projects can turn round most SLS jobs very quickly (depending on exact size and detail requirements) for clients using the Express Dispatch Service
• High accuracy: Selective Laser Sintered parts can closely mimic the properties of finished parts
• Strength: Selective Laser Sintered prototypes are typically dense in nature making them stronger
• Complexity: Highly complex shapes can be achieved, making SLS ideal for producing concept models with mechanically functional parts
• Finishing: typically, very little finishing is required – though if a smoother surface texture is required, we can apply a smoothing process to minimise the roughness of the surface finish. Additionally we can also apply a textured, painted or metalised finish.

Prototype Projects offers Selective Laser Sintered parts using PA 2200 nylon material, which, like all Selective Laser Sintering materials is a powder.

How Laser Sintering Works

In common with its fellow 3D printing or Additive Manufacturing technology Stereolithography (SLA), a Selective Laser Sintering part is built in very thin layers on a part bed which drops fractionally after each new layer of material is added.

Unlike SLA, which uses a curing process, each successive layer of powder material put down in the SLS process is fused together by the heat of a highly accurate laser, a process called sintering from which the process gets its name. As each layer of material is added, or ‘printed’, it is ‘laser sintered’ to harden it.

Layer after layer of material is added and sintered until the part is complete.

Differences between SLS and SLA

Clients often ask about the differences between SLS and SLA. The answer is that every Additive Manufacturing 3D printing technology has its own distinct benefits and for this reason it is not always easy to provide a like for like comparison.

As an expert prototyping bureau, the approach of Prototype Projects is to help every client select the most appropriate prototyping or additive manufacturing process for their specific projects requirements. Your requirements will be determined by:

• The stage you’re at in your product development process
• The properties, functions and purpose of the final part which will, in turn, determine the material to be used
• The speed with which your prototype part is required

The Real Question

Perhaps the real question is “What is the difference between Rapid Prototyping and Additive Manufacturing?”

In Rapid Prototyping, Selective Laser Sintering is used in the early stages of the product development process to produce parts for testing and to prove design integrity before proceeding into normal tried and tested manufacturing.

On the other hand, Selective Laser Sintering is used in Additive Manufacturing to manufacture parts which will be used directly in production, bypassing the need for traditional manufacturing methods such as complex tooling and CNC Machining and giving product designers a much broader range of options.

To underline this point, it is interesting to note that some of the components used in Selective Laser Sintering machines are themselves manufactured using Selective Laser Sintering!

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Contact Prototype Projects on 01763 249760