Additive manufacturing for an urban vehicle prototype: re-design and sustainability implications

Additive Manufacturing (AM), allowing the layer-by-layer fabrication of products characterized by a shape complexity unobtainable with conventional manufacturing routes, has been widely recognized as a disruptive technology enabling the transition to the Industry 4.0. In this context, the design of a Portable Assisted Mobile Device (PAMD) prototype was considered as a case study. The best practices of the re-design for AM were applied to three of the main structural components, and the most sustainable manufacturing approach between AM processes and the conventional ones was identified with respect to cumulative energy demand, carbon dioxide emissions and costs. The paper aims to promote the debate concerning the correlation between design choices, process selection and sustainable product development.