Using 3D Printing for CNC Machining Problems on the Production Floor
At Fairchild Precision Parts, precision isn’t just what we deliver to our customers — it’s how we operate internally. That commitment to excellence extends well beyond the parts we manufacture. It shows up in how we run our production floor, how we think about efficiency, and how we approach the everyday challenges that come with high-volume CNC machining. That’s why we recently added 3D printing for CNC machining problems to our toolkit — and it’s already making a measurable difference
Small Tools, Big Impact
When most people hear “3D printing,” they think of prototyping, product development, or consumer gadgets. But for a precision machining shop like ours, the real value of additive manufacturing lies in something far more practical: the ability to design, iterate, and produce custom shop-floor tools on demand, in-house, without waiting on outside vendors or making do with off-the-shelf solutions that don’t quite fit the job.
Our team is using the 3D printer to fabricate targeted solutions to specific challenges — tools and fixtures that didn’t exist before because our problems were too niche for a catalog to anticipate. Here are a few examples of what we’ve built so far.
A Custom Deburring Aid That Just Works
Deburring is one of those operations that sounds simple but, at high volumes, demands consistency. We identified an opportunity to improve one of our deburring processes by printing a small, circular mating component designed specifically for the geometry of the part being deburred. The printed piece holds the workpiece in the correct orientation, reduces handling time, and improves consistency across every cycle.
It’s a modest tool. But it’s our tool — designed around our parts, our process, and our operators. That specificity is what makes it valuable.
Keeping Parts Where They Belong on the Conveyor
Conveyor systems are efficient, but they’re not always forgiving. We were encountering an issue where smaller parts would occasionally become lodged or stuck in gaps along the conveyor belt — interrupting flow and requiring manual intervention to resolve.
Our solution: custom-printed thin wall inserts, fabricated to fit the specific geometry of the problem areas on our conveyor system. Once installed, parts move through smoothly and consistently. It’s a low-cost fix for what could otherwise be a persistent, ongoing source of downtime and frustration.
Organized Tooling, Organized Thinking
If you’ve ever worked in a machining environment, you know how quickly tooling inserts, drills, and small accessories can multiply — and how easy it is to lose time searching for what you need. We designed and printed a set of compact, custom storage boxes sized precisely for the insert types and drill profiles we use most.
The result is a cleaner, more organized workspace where everything has a place and the right tool is always within reach. It might not sound like a precision machining innovation, but in a production environment, organization is efficiency.
Continuous Improvement Is a Practice, Not a Slogan
These three examples represent something bigger than any single tool. They reflect the way we think about our operation: every process can be improved, every challenge is worth solving, and the right technology — even something as accessible as a 3D printer — can unlock significant value when applied thoughtfully.
As a precision manufacturer, we’re held to exacting standards by our customers. That culture of precision and accountability doesn’t stop at the part; it runs through everything we do. Investing in technologies that help our team work smarter, reduce inefficiencies, and solve problems at the source is a natural extension of that mindset.
We’re continuing to explore new applications for 3D printing across our production floor, and we expect the list of custom tools and productivity gains to grow as our team gets more hands-on experience with what’s possible.
The Partner Commitment Behind the Parts
When you choose Fairchild Precision Parts as your manufacturing partner, you’re not just getting access to our CNC turning capabilities, our quality certifications, and our decades of experience. You’re getting a team that takes continuous improvement seriously — one that invests in its processes, its people, and its technology so we can deliver consistent quality, on time, every time.
That’s the Fairchild standard. And it shows up in everything we do, right down to the tools we build ourselves.