Performance evaluation of 3D print farms in additive manufacturing-based supply chains

Abstract

Additive manufacturing adoption can form new strategic supply chain structures, such as shrinking the number of supply chain tiers and reducing the supplier base. Some companies are motivated to do this because it supports supply chain disintermediation. Understanding this may provide important insights into the long-term competitiveness of products and companies. There are various complexities to be investigated, including how to integrate and evaluate providers of 3D printing – additive manufacturing – services in this environment. Within this context, financial and non-financial decision criteria are identified, and an advanced Multi-Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) method for evaluating and selecting Additive Manufacturing Service Providers (AMSP) is developed. In this study, iMACBETH is introduced by integrating a soft computing approach into the Measuring Attractiveness by a Categorical Based Evaluation Technique to address the limitations of the original method. The decision model and approach are evaluated and validated using a field study. Results show that using a service provider specialised in producing certain parts or components, avoiding long-haul transportation, and supporting local Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) are perceived as the major considerations.