Christopher Gustavsson's Licenciate Defense

2024/09/05

Christopher Gustavsson, ARRAY++ Phd student will defend his Licenciate on 4th October at 9:15 in Eskilstuna Campus

Title of the Licentiate Thesis: Facilitating the Integration of Additive Manufacturing in the Manufacturing Industry

Time: 9:15 am

Location: Room C3-003

Appointed Opponent: PhD Paraskeva Wlazlak, Jönköping University, Sweden

The examining committee consists of:

• PhD Paraskeva Wlazlak, Jönköping University, Sweden
• Professor Robert Pederson, University West, Sweden
• Professor Ola Isaksson, Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden

Reserve Member: Professor Björn Fagerström, MDU, Sweden

Abstract: Additive manufacturing (AM), commonly known as 3D printing, is revolutionising the manufacturing industry by boosting business profits and enhancing their competitive edge. However, simply adopting and implementing AM technology is not enough. Manufacturing companies must inte-grate AM into their existing capabilities with which is a complex challenge. Therefore, the purpose of this thesis is to explore the integration of AM into the manufacturing industry by looking into what manufacturing companies find challenging and propose solutions to overcome the challenges. The research was conducted in collaboration with a global heavy vehicle manufacturer located in Sweden. The overall research methodology adopt-ed a longitudinal multiple case study. So far, three studies emerged, name-ly the Strategy and Tactics study, the Gearbox study, and the Learn from Others study. Several participants were engaged in the whole or parts of the longitudinal multiple case study including managers and engineers from different departments. The findings were analysed thematically, and several tactics were used for enhancing validity and reliability. The findings from this research suggested four AM integration challenges, namely ambiguous ownership, cognitive fixation, situational awareness, and manufacturing fixation. To overcome these challenges, four operational capabilities were suggested, namely AM use cases, AM creativity, AM collaboration, and AM operational practices. These findings were formulated into short-term and long-term essential actions, sorted throughout the AM integration process, and presented in a facilitation framework. Manufacturing companies need to be aware that AM integration is more complex in industrial settings and should seek support from other manufacturing companies and AM actors when necessary. The next steps is to evaluate and test the facilitation framework and map AM integration challenges and operational capabilities of critical heavy vehicle AM use cases.