Certified: High and reproducible quality of the Neumunster 3D printing workshop confirmed

In-house production with the help of 3D printing, so-called additive manufacturing, enables DB Fahrzeuginstandhaltung in Neumunster to react quickly and flexibly in the supply of spare parts for the entire vehicle fleet when needed. Parts with delivery bottlenecks can be printed in a short time and then installed directly on site. This applies in particular to plastic components made of high-performance polymers. Arvid Eirich, project manager for Deutsche Bahn's corporate 3D printing project, emphasises: "This enables us to manufacture final components on-demand. This ensures vehicle availability as well as comfort for passengers and also makes economic and ecological sense."

Certification proves efficient manufacturing

To ensure that the manufactured components are available in the right quality and quantity on time, it is important that the entire manufacturing preparation, the 3D printing itself and the post-processing are reliable and repeatable. TÜV NORD has now successfully certified DB Fahrzeuginstandhaltung's additive manufacturing facility in Neumunster at the end of June as one of the first companies in the world to do so in accordance with a new internationally recognised standard. It bears the designation DIN EN ISO/ASTM 52920:2023 and specifies requirements that manufacturing facilities must meet in order to carry out industrial 3D printing in a quality-assured manner. This clearly distinguishes the manufacturing facility from the widely available desktop 3D printers. The new certification recognises DB Fahrzeuginstandhaltung as a pioneer in quality assurance for 3D printing processes. "What we demand from our certified framework contract partners as suppliers of 3D-printed parts should apply equally to our in-house 3D printing workshop in Neumunster," explains Arvid Eirich. "No compromises in the quality of our 3D-printed spare parts, not even in in-house production. We guarantee the same standards of an industrial 3D printing production facility at the Neumunster maintenance depot and are thus the first user of the newly issued standard."

Industry and component-independent quality standard at industrial level

Certification for 3D printing suppliers is also of interest in other sectors, such as the automotive industry, medical technology, pharmaceutical industry and aerospace industry. The standard is cross-industry and covers all 3D printing processes for metals and plastics. The certification is therefore a major competitive advantage for DB Fahrzeuginstandhaltung, as it shows that the manufacturing facility in Neumunster is able to carry out 3D printing according to international, industrial standards. It ensures that qualified personnel follow clear and unambiguous processes to meet the relevant requirements. The handling of materials and quality controls along the entire process chain are also part of the standard. Transparent communication with customers in the event of deviations in production is also guaranteed.