Expanding our Plans for the MarsWork Filament Management System

Quite by accident, I discovered that the 'loop' cards in the MarsWork Filament Management Kit are more than just simple card stock.  They are 'peel & stick'!

The first implication of this newly discovered fact is that I can use the self-sticking feature to more securely attach the cut columns to our storage buckets.  But, it also prompted us to develop 3D printed frames to more clearly identify the rows and columns on the cards.

Installed Filament Frames

The first frame we created allows us to see all of the filaments currently loaded into our current printers and dryers 

Installed Filament Frame for MarsWork Card

One of the reasons why this is important to us is that we might look over at the X1C and believe we have Pumpkin Orange loaded when, in fact, we have Orange loaded.  It also helps us identify the maker and type of each loaded filament at any given moment.  The more printers we install, the more this will become important/

 Stored Filament Frames

In our last blog article we discussed how we store filament in air-tight containers.   For now, we are using 5 gallon buckets.  While this sample frame just allows us to see what is in a particular bucket number, it could be expanded to include the location as well, and any other pertinent information.

Stored Filament Documentation

 

By the way, we use PLA ID Cards to identify TPU due to issues handling TPU in multi-color printers.  Yes, we can get it work; but, it's not fun!

Unopened Filament Frames

I would show a sample; but, I'm waiting for some additional cards to arrive.  Documenting what we have on hand is a bit tougher than documenting what is in storage because it involves colors and types of which we have not printed ID Tags.  So, this capability will have to reply on placeholders of a bland color simply holding the information until we actually open a spool and print the correct ID tag,  The organization is similar to that of the buckets,  Conveniently, our current new inventory is in stacks of 5 boxes permitting us to instantly locate the stack and position of the filemtn we need to open.

Repeat Project Frames 

Believe it or not, this is a big one.  We have projects that are reasonably complex that are repeated every few moths or a year. One such project is a 'Cruise Ship Ducky' that utilizes multiple blue hues that are hard to remember.  Being able to not only document what colors were used; but, also in which order will make these projects a lot easier to successfully be duplicated. 

Sometimes, simple systems can have enormous benefits in a multi-color, multi-printer, multi-user environment. We're very happy we found the MarsWork Quick-Swap spools and the Filament Management Kit.