Feasibility Study of Additive Technologies Application in Restoring Agricultural Machinery

Introduction. The complex design of modern agricultural machinery consists of numerous units having a large number of metal and polymer parts. Failure of these parts often leads to inoperability of the units and, as a rule, machine downtime. Existing technologies for repairing failed parts are based on the use of metal parts, while polymer structural parts cannot be restored and must be replaced. This problem can be solved through piece production of parts on-site using additive technologies. Aim of the Study. The study is aimed at evaluating the efficiency of additive manufacturing in repairing agricultural machinery in the agro-industrial complex to reduce the time and cost of services. Materials and Methods. The study was carried out on the basis of the Design and Rapid Prototyping laboratory of the Institute of Mechanics and Power Energy of the National Research Mordovia State University. The electric linear concave drive of the John Deer combine harvester was repaired using 3D-printing. According to the proposed methodology, there has been analyzed the economic efficiency of using additive technologies to produce failed parts during the repair of machinery. Results. Based on the work carried out, the cost efficiency of restoring polymer elements was assessed. The cost of repairing a linear drive is lower than the cost of a new one. The traditional manufacturing technology used for repairing the drive is 7.6 times cheaper than buying the new part, and the additive technology is 23 times cheaper. Discussion and Conclusion. A comparative assessment of the economic feasibility of repairing with the use of traditional and additive technologies has shown that the price of manufacturing a part on a 3D-printer is three times cheaper than when milling. Machining is more expensive because it requires additional equipment of a certain range. The use of additive technologies for manufacturing significantly reduces the repair cost and losses from equipment downtime. The study has shown that modern additive technologies have significant potential and can be widely used for repairing agricultural machinery.