Spare lids Shell Nigeria

3D printing of outdated parts not only saves costs in certain situations; capital-intensive facilities remain in operation longer this way. 3D printing parts locally also avoids delays in the logistics chain. For Shell, these are good reasons to start the transition to digital warehouses. A real-life practical case of the energy concern shows the added value.

90% cost savings

Replacing these obsolete parts with 3D printed parts provided Shell with significant cost savings. Shell estimates that in this particular case, 3D printing was 90% cheaper than the alternative solution of replacing the entire upper structure of the mooring buoy. “And that's without the cost of shutting down the offshore facility. We would have had to do that if we had to replace the entire system offshore.”