3D Printing for Applied Acoustics’ Subsea Application

Introduction

Deep beneath the ocean’s surface, where pressure is immense and conditions are unforgiving, cutting-edge technology is essential. This is the world of applied acoustics, a company that specialises in mission-critical subsea navigation and marine seismic survey equipment. The company’s instruments must not only perform with pinpoint accuracy but also endure some of the harshest environments on Earth. To stay at the forefront of this demanding industry, they needed a manufacturing partner who could match their pace of innovation.

The Bottleneck to Overcome

Innovation can move at lightning speed, but traditional manufacturing often struggles to keep up. Applied Acoustics faced significant hurdles that were acting as a brake on their development and production cycles:

• Lead Times: Sourcing components through conventional methods meant waiting weeks, or even months, for moulds and initial production runs – a timeline that felt like an eternity for urgent projects.
• The Cost of Customisation: The high cost of tooling made producing small, highly customised batches of parts prohibitively expensive, stifling the ability to create truly bespoke solutions for their clients.
• Design Constraints: Complex, optimised designs were often compromised to fit within the limitations of traditional manufacturing, forcing a choice between ideal performance and production feasibility.

These challenges came into sharp focus during the development of the company’s BluFin beacon tester (see below). Engineers needed a housing that could precisely accommodate the PCB assembly while meeting demanding dimensional specifications. 

The search for a suitable off-the-shelf enclosure proved fruitless, and while injection moulding was technically an option, the tooling costs and high minimum order quantities would have pushed the product beyond a viable price point. An attempt to bridge the gap with a desktop 3D printer only highlighted the limitations of in-house equipment, with inconsistent quality and lack of repeatability halting progress. It was only when applied acoustics turned to professional third-party 3D printing that they found a path forward, unlocking the freedom to design and manufacture components without compromise and breaking free of the restrictions imposed by traditional manufacturing.

Strategic Manufacturing with 3D People

Applied Acoustics sought a solution for components where traditional manufacturing methods hit their limits on speed, cost, or complexity. By strategically adding 3D printing to their manufacturing toolkit, they could use the best process for each specific job.

They partnered with 3D People to harness the power of Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) for these key applications. This wasn’t about replacing their established processes but enhancing them—unlocking a new level of agility and design freedom where it was needed most, and delivering a decisive competitive advantage for their most innovative components.

Parts Spotlight: Where Innovation Takes Shape

BluFin Beacon Tester
	The protective casing for the BluFin is the user’s first point of contact with the device. It needed to be tough, precise, and professional. Material & Finish: 3D People produced the two-part case and lid in SLS PA12 Nylon, finished with a sleek black dye and vibro polish. The Impact: The result is a premium, durable enclosure that perfectly marries form and function, delivered without the lead time or cost of injection moulding.
HydraSeis Multi-Channel Seismic Streamer
	This sophisticated system relies on hundreds of small components to maintain its structural integrity. Material & Function: 3D People manufacture thousands of array spacers in SLS PA12 Nylon. These are not just plastic rings; they are critical supports for a complex, oil-filled cable packed with sensitive electronics. Colour Identification: The spacers are printed in two distinct colours. Natural White spacers are used on the main cable, while vibrant Pastel Orange spacers denote the optional ‘Stretch Section’. This simple visual cue allows operators to instantly identify the more flexible parts of the streamer, a critical detail for deployment and handling.  Agile Supply: The journey with these parts began in prototyping, where early 3D printed batches validated function and dimensions before launch. Once the HydraSeis entered production, on-demand printing enabled applied acoustics to seamlessly fulfil incoming customer orders. Today, with the product firmly established, they also draw on 3D People’s capabilities to routinely replenish their own inventory, demonstrating the flexibility and responsiveness of additive manufacturing at every stage of the product lifecycle.

Agility, Economy, and Design FreedomThe shift to 3D printing with 3D People has unlocked powerful benefits for applied acoustics.

• From Weeks to Days: The ability to move from a final design to having physical parts in hand within days has revolutionised their workflow, enabling rapid prototyping and fulfilling urgent client needs at incredible speed.
• Smarter Economics: By eliminating the initial investment required for traditional tooling, producing low-volume, custom parts becomes more economical.
• Design Without Compromise: Applied Acoustics’ engineers are no longer constrained by the limitations of traditional manufacturing. They now have the freedom to design complex, highly optimised parts, confident they can be produced exactly as envisioned.

“Since our first order with 3D People the experience has been flawless. From the speed of obtaining pricing via their live quotation system to the receipt of order, where the final quality has always been exceptional. After many years of using conventional manufacturing processes, 3D printing has allowed us to create bespoke parts which in the past would have not been possible due to cost.” – Applied Acoustics

Partnering for the Next FrontierThe collaboration between applied acoustics and 3D People is a testament to how digital manufacturing can accelerate innovation. By embracing 3D printing, applied acoustics has not only optimised its production but has also enhanced its ability to pioneer new solutions for the subsea world. It’s a partnership that proves that for today’s most advanced industries, the future of manufacturing is flexible, on-demand, and ready for any challenge.