ARMOR Print Solutions is a specialist in the manufacture and marketing of remanufactured cartridges and responsible printing solutions. Committed to the circular economy, ARMOR Print Solutions has two production sites, an R&D center and a distribution center across Europe.
At the end of 2020, ARMOR Print Solutions was faced with the loss of a valuable tool in its logistics process: the contact keys for its semi-automatic pallet strapping machines. The machinery that is used to stabilize and protect the goods cannot be started without this key. In an effort to act quickly to protect the health of order pickers who were forced to strap pallets manually, ARMOR Print Solutions approached KIMYA to produce a small series of contact keys quickly and at low cost.
A project completed in one week
KIMYA quickly re-designed the ignition key and created the corresponding 3D file after analysing the machine’s lock. The choice of material is PETG, a thermoplastic known for its resistance in industrial environments, exposed to heat, humidity and chemicals. Finally, the filament selected will be red to increase the visibility of the key and reduce the risk of loss.
In one week, KIMYA can design and print four ignition keys to replace broken or lost ones. With the semi-automatic strapping machines back in operation, this collaboration between KIMYA and ARMOR Print Solutions ensures a comfortable and ergonomic working environment for the logistics teams.
“In search of flexible and competitive solutions, industry players are increasingly integrating 3D printing into their production processes. This project with ARMOR Print Solutions is a good example of what additive manufacturing can bring to the industry beyond the economic benefit: flexibility, speed and quality” comments Lucas Bellec, Key Account Manager EMEA at KIMYA.
Our customers say it better than us
“Since we had to act quickly in order to preserve the comfort of our logistics team, 3D printing was able to meet our requirements. KIMYA quickly came to the site to analyse the situation and offer the appropriate solution to meet our needs. This was the very first time we had used 3D printing and this collaboration with KIMYA opens up new perspectives for future projects” says Gérald Doucet, Logistics Supervisor in charge of flow optimisation at ARMOR Print Solutions.
