Rivian Has Spent Over $5 Million on 3D Printers and Is Adding a Print Bay at Its Normal Plant

Rivian is expanding 3D printing beyond its prototype shop. CNBC toured the company's additive-manufacturing operation in suburban Detroit.

«At this point, we don't have a choice but to scale up and begin using it through all factions of Rivian,» Jonathan Dankenbring, Rivian's senior manager of prototype manufacturing, told CNBC. «We're going to be democratizing 3D printing for the entire company.»

The numbers

• More than $5 million invested in 3D-printing machines (CNBC).
• About $1.7 million a year spent on printing materials (InsideEVs).
• Savings compared with traditional prototyping that Dankenbring put «well in the millions» (InsideEVs).

What Rivian prints

InsideEVs reports that the R2's steering wheel was first 3D-printed before becoming a metal part. The technology has also been used for motors for fluid testing, screw guides for tooling, stamping press inserts and some trim pieces for early builds. Printing small batches on site cuts supplier tooling and logistics costs and can shrink lead times from weeks to days, sometimes hours.

Next step: Normal, Illinois

Rivian is installing printers that can make flexible silicone parts and is adding a bay of machines at its Normal factory, where its whole lineup is built. CNBC says Ford and GM are also moving 3D printing into factory tools and selected production parts.