For today’s design students, 3D printing is more than a way to create prototypes, it is a critical part of the process in understanding how ideas become real-world products.
At the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD), additive manufacturing is integrated into more than 40academic programs, giving hundreds of students each quarter the opportunity to turn concepts into functional prototypes, presentation models, and finished designs. With an accelerated 10-week academic calendar and approximately 2,000 – 2,500 3D printed parts produced each quarter, every step of the workflow matters.
The Post-Processing Bottleneck in an Academic AM Environment
SCAD’s additive manufacturing lab operates 12 Stratasys FDM printers and three Stratasys PolyJet printers, supporting projects across a wide range of disciplines. Students use FDM technology primarily for proof-of-concept models and functional prototypes, while PolyJet enables highly detailed, full-color presentation models.
But as the number of student projects grew, manual support removal became a significant bottleneck.
Removing supports by hand required valuable time from both students and the lab’s small t
eam of staff and student employees. That meant less time available for designing, iterating, mentoring, and supporting new projects.
In an educational environment, the traditional post-printing process created a significant bottleneck in the lab’s AM workflow, limiting the number of projects it could support.
Bringing Post-Processing Automation Into the Lab
To address the challenge, SCAD integrated two PostProcess automated solutions into its additive manufacturing workflow: the PostProcess BASE™ for FDM Support Removal and the PostProcess DEMI 830™ for PolyJet Support Removal.
For FDM parts, they use the BASE system to automate support removal through a spray-based process. Once the automated cycle is complete, students can move on to finishing activities such as priming and painting.
The detailed PolyJet models use the DEMI 830 to remove the PolyJet support material and achieve consistent, high-quality results every time.
As SCAD’s Digital Fabrication Operations Manager Anand Patel explains, “The biggest advantage is the huge time savings for both students and lab employees. Students should spend time learning design skills, not manually removing supports.”
More Than Automation: Real-World Manufacturing Experience
For SCAD, the value of automated post-processing extends beyond operational efficiency. Students are preparing for careers in industries where additive manufacturing is increasingly part of the professional design and production workflow. By incorporating automated post-processing into the lab, SCAD gives students hands-on exposure to technologies they are likely to encounter after graduation.
Building Skills for the Future of Additive Manufacturing
As additive manufacturing continues to move from prototyping into production, tomorrow’s designers and engineers will need more than experience operating a 3D printer. They will need to understand the complete workflow required to consistently produce finished parts.
SCAD’s approach demonstrates how educational institutions can use automation not simply to increase lab efficiency, but to create a more comprehensive learning environment.
Students gain experience with professional-grade additive manufacturing technologies. Staff can spend more time mentoring and supporting projects, and the lab can meet the demands of a high-volume, fast-paced academic environment.
Ultimately, automated post-processing helps SCAD accomplish what matters most – giving students more time to learn, create, and prepare for careers in the real world.
Read the full SCAD Customer Story here.