【Australia】2022 CAD/CAM Report: The Digital Decade – Jewelry and Gem

Editor’s Note

This article marks a decade since Jeweller began covering the digital revolution in jewellery making. Samuel Ord revisits early predictions and assesses how CAD/CAM technology has truly transformed the Australian industry.

A Decade of Digital Transformation

It has been 10 years since Jeweller first began exploring the world of CAD/CAM technology and its impact on the Australian jewellery industry. SAMUEL ORD winds back the clock to examine some early expectations before surveying the state of play today.
The past 10 years have brought about remarkable advances in science and technology. Advances in science and technology have also reshaped a number of retail industries. It has been a significant period of advancement for the use of technology within the jewellery industry, particularly when it comes to Computer-Aided Design and Computer-Aided Manufacturing (CAD/CAM).
Jeweller published its first report in June 2012 on the state of CAD/CAM within the Australian jewellery industry.

“The Australian jewellery industry is three to 10 years behind the rest of the world with its implementation of retail computer-aided design (CAD) systems, which has partly been due to our smaller market and the exclusion of global competition,” the report stated.

“It’s futile to ignore the foreign invaders any longer because retailers who work with technology can deliver quality productions in less time with more competitive pricing than their competitors.”

At the time, the question on the minds of retailers was whether or not CAD/CAM would become a significant ‘force’ in the jewellery industry. Would it make a lasting impact on the trade, or come and go like so many other ideas once entertained as revolutionary?
It didn’t take long for that question to be answered. With manufacturing costs shrinking with each passing year, the industry has increasingly embraced technology which has showcased increasingly user-friendly functionality and cost-effectiveness.

Boutique Comeback and Technological Evolution

Since the 1950s, Palloys – one of six entities which forms the Pallion Group – has taken pride in the expansion of jewellery casting, custom jewellery production and CAD/CAM services on offer. Palloys was an early adopter of CAD/CAM and in 2012, was one of the first companies to share insight with Jeweller on the rise of the technology in the jewellery industry.
Ten years ago, head of operations, Manuel Kalergis, had this to say about the future of the trade.

“You’ll see CAM wax printing getting smoother and turnaround times for CAD drawing reduced,” Kalergis said.

“In the next few years, you’ll also see the rise of Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS) an additive rapid prototyping process that builds up metal using a laser. The laser fuses powdered metal layer by layer by scanning cross sections generated from a CAD file. DMLS technology bypasses the casting process all together and will produce stronger products, comparable to CNC manufacturing.”

One decade later, Palloys operations manager Chris Botha says those predictions were close to the mark but not quite in line with what was to come, showcasing that advances in technology aren’t always linear.

“Interestingly, the improvement we foresaw in CAM wax printing seems to be more observable in resins. Resin machines have become exponentially cheaper over the past 10 years,” he says.

“Moreover, casting processes have greatly improved, facilitated by keeping our hardware up to date and of the highest quality. Additionally, vacuum-vibration technology and overpressure technology have also improved. Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS) has not dropped in cost enough yet to become accessible in the mainstream market, but we anticipate this will happen over the next 5 years.”

Palloys is currently investigating an investment in DMSL technology.

Driving Efficiency and Inclusivity

CAD/CAM has been lauded as a way of bringing ‘in-house’ manufacturing back for jewellers. Botha says that remains one of the most promising aspects of the trade.

“CAD/CAM has brought a whole new level of people into the industry, for people who did not previously have the skillset, CAD/CAM gives them the chance to express themselves.”

“Improving user experience has always been important for us, as is increasing the efficiency of use, both to cut down on waste in an environmental sense and also to save money for the creator financially.”

The Expanding Role of 3D Scanning

Best-known for its use in motion-capture for films and TV, as well as medical prosthetics manufacturing and robotics, 3D scanning is increasingly being applied to jewellery in order to generate digital models of real-world pieces.
Riacetech introduced lean production systems with the aim of eliminating waste; Wax moulds created by Riacetech.

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⏰ Published on: June 08, 2022

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