Business Posibilities of 3D Printing

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2 EXECUTIVE’S GUIDE TO THE BUSINESS POSSIBILITIES OF 3D PRINTING

Copyright ©2014 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved.

Executive’s guide to thebusiness possibilities

of 3D printingCopyright ©2014 by CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved.

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Published by TechRepublic

August 2014

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Credits

Editor In Chief

Jason Hiner

Managing Editor

Bill Detwiler

Senior Editors

Jody Gilbert

Mary Weilage

Sonja Thompson

Teena Hammond

Graphic Designer

Kimberly Smith







Contents

04 Introduction

05 How 3D printing is building a new future

10 What 3D printing needs to go mainstream

12 10 ways 3D printing will disrupt business and industry

16 The missing link in 3D printing: User-friendly software

19 3D bioprinting: How it works and where it’s headed

22 10 things you should know about the dark side of 3D printing

25 Scientists are 3D printing a human heart that will work betterthan yours

27 GE: 3D printing is revolutionizing traditional manufacturing

29 How recycled plastic for 3D printing will drive sustainability andimprove social consciousness

32 3D Systems CEO oers a vision of “3D Printing 2.0”

34 The mad scientists of 3D printing: How MadeSolid is remixing

the formula





Introduction

3D printing is one of today’s most hyped technologies. But it’s also a technology to watch.

Once almost the sole province of engineers, 3D printing is now nding its way into more and more industries

and businesses. And thanks to dropping prices and wider opportunities for use, the consumer market is grow-

ing as well. In fact, Gartner predicts that 3D technology will reach mainstream adoption in both enterprise and

consumer markets within 10 years.

There seems to be little doubt that 3D printing will have a tremendous impact on the way products are

designed, produced, and distributed. Little wonder that it’s being touted as the next Industrial Revolution. But

some hefty obstacles stand in the way of widespread implementation of 3D printing technologies, including

massive energy consumption, pollution, ethical considerations, the ability to create banned or illegal items, andconcerns over threats to intellectual property.

We’ve put together this guide to help you understand how 3D printing is evolving, the impact it may have

on various industries, what possibilities it might open up for your business, and what disruptions are likely to

follow as the technology matures and gains traction.

Sincerely,

Jason Hiner

Editor in Chief

https://www.gartner.com/doc/2603524/hightech-tuesday-webinar-d-printing






How 3D printing is building a new future

By Lyndsey Gilpin

3D printing has recently emerged as tech’s topic with the greatest expectations. It gets touted as the innova-

tion destined to transform nearly everything, from manufacturing to medicine to entrepreneurship.

Technically, 3D printing, or additive manufacturing, refers to the process of creating almost any three-dimen-

sional object with various materials, such as plastic, metal, or carbon ber. For the past three decades, 3D

printers have been primarily used by engineers for rapid prototyping.

But with the rise of low-cost 3D printers in recent years, the technology has turned into a movement and a

catalyst to disrupt industries, businesses, and conventional ways of doing lots of things—from buying replace-ment parts to designing your own custom jewelry and accessories.

3D printing is quickly becoming popular with the average consumer and small business owner, and it’s

unleashing a movement of entrepreneurial makers. It’s also changing the way big-name manufacturers like

Boeing and General Electric build their products. The two companies now use 3D printers to make dozens of

parts for airplanes and jet engines, for example.

Desktop 3D printers are one of the fastest-growing categories on crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter—and

some of the most highly funded campaigns. They are now available for purchase through commercial retailers

like Home Depot and on Amazon, and they have become a xture in hackerspaces and startup ofces across

the planet.

In 2013, Gartner reported 49% growth of 3D printers under $100,000. It was the rst time the research rm

analyzed data regarding that area of the market. For 2014, analysts predicted 75% growth. Another report,

published by Allied Market Research, predicts that the global 3D printing market will reach $8.6 billion by

2020.

Even more recently, Gartner predicted the technology will reach mainstream adoption in both enterprise and

consumer markets within 10 years. The reality is that it could happen even sooner in specic markets, such

as manufacturing and medicine. Still, the 3D printing industry must overcome numerous hurdles rst, including

things as simple as energy usage and the materials used (most commonly unreliable plastic) and as complex

as intellectual property issues.

As with any exciting new technology, the hype often clouds our judgment about where the state of the industry

actually lies. Before we get a desktop 3D printer we imagine to be a Star Trek replicator, let’s step back and

put it into perspective.

http://www.techrepublic.com/pictures/crowdsourced-3d-printers-photos-of-kickstarters-10-most-successful-projects/

https://www.kickstarter.com/

http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2600115

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/allied-market-research-3d-printing-121600995.html



http://finance.yahoo.com/news/allied-market-research-3d-printing-121600995.html

http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2600115

https://www.kickstarter.com/

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States of disruptionIn January 2009, Bre Pettis badly wanted a 3D printer to begin mak-

ing things, but he couldn’t afford one. So Pettis and his team decided

to make one on their own. The result was the MakerBot Replicator.

“When we started, 3D printers were in academic institutions and

high-end design studios. And we just thought everybody should have

one—that this should be on every single desktop, and everybody

should have access to a MakerBot and be able to make things they

need,” Pettis said.

Since 1983, when Charles Hull, the co-founder and CTO of 3D

Systems, invented stereolithography (SLA) printing, 3D printers have

largely been out of reach for the majority of the population.

Because engineers were, for the most part, the only people who

utilized the computer-aided design (CAD) software needed to create

3D printed objects, 3D printing remained little more than a specialized

tool in a highly specialized profession for its rst two and a half

decades. There were only a few exceptions, like Ford Motor Company, which has used 3D printing technology

since the 1980s, and academic institutions with high-end additive manufacturing labs, like the University of

Louisville in Louisville, KY.

Now, both large and small scale companies realize they can make a relatively modest investment into 3D

printing technology so they can prototype products, make small parts, and use alternative design technologies

that were not possible previously, according to Pete Basiliere, the lead 3D printing analyst at Gartner.

“3D printing frees up the engineer and creative person in the market or an organization from the shackles of

the traditional technologies,” he said.

Manufacturing isn’t the only industry beneting from the technology. The medical industry is also rapidly

growing its use—in particular, dentistry, which uses 3D printing to simplify the orthodontic process by

designing and printing molds. And bioprinting is quickly becoming more popular, with companies like

Organovo testing printed organ tissues. Startups in the food industry are now experimenting with the

technology, like testing 3D printed meatless meat to help reduce carbon footprints and using 3D printing to

better understand the nutritional makeup of food.

No one has gured out the precise recipe for bringing the desktop 3D printer to the masses. Part of that is

because no traditional printer companies have entered the market—despite HP’s grand promises. Today’s

major players are Stratasys, which now owns MakerBot, and 3D Systems, which sells its desktop 3D printers

under the Cube brand. Both companies have built partnerships with manufacturers like BMW, Hasbro, and

Hershey’s to mark territory before HP enters.

Because engineers

were, for the most

part, the only people

who utilized the

computer-aided

design (CAD)

software needed

to create 3D

printed objects, 3D

printing remained

little more than a

specialized tool in

a highly specialized

profession for its

first two and a half

decades.

http://www.3dsystems.com/


http://www.organovo.com/

http://www.techrepublic.com/article/robot-restaurants-and-sci-fi-kitchens-how-tech-is-changing-the-way-we-eat/

http://www.zdnet.com/hp-gearing-up-to-enter-3d-printing-market-by-2014-report-7000022397/

http://www.stratasys.com/


http://cubify.com/en/Cube

http://cubify.com/en/Cube


http://www.stratasys.com/

http://www.zdnet.com/hp-gearing-up-to-enter-3d-printing-market-by-2014-report-7000022397/

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It has left the market ripe for growth—which is where crowdfunding has stepped in. The machines are some of

the most highly funded projects of all time:

• Form1, a desktop 3D printer, raised $2.9 million in 2012.

• The Micro, a 7x7 desktop printer, raised $3.4 million earlier this year.

• 3Doodler, a 3D printing pen, raised $2.3 million in 2013.

• Buccaneer, a desktop 3D printer, raised $1.4 million in 2013.

“On the consumer side of the market, it’s very clear now we’re talking into the hundreds of outts trying to

provide low cost, consumer oriented 3D printers. That in theory is good for consumers because it starts to

bring 3D printers to a price that is more appealing to consumers as opposed to early adopters and hobbyists

and makers,” Basiliere said.

Also popular with consumers is 3D printing’s open source roots. Websites like Shapeways and Thingiverse

offer a place for anyone to upload and share designs, and the platforms have laid the foundation for a creative

community.

Shapeways’ team has increased twofold since last year, and it now makes 130,000 parts on a monthly basis.

About 120,000 designs are uploaded every month by users. More than 15 materials, including various colors

of plastics, metals, and precious metals like silver and gold are available to print. Shapeways currently has two

ofces: New York and the Netherlands, and CEO Peter Weijmarshausen said he plans to grow the company in

the coming years.

“What I’m surprised by is the creativity of our community,” he said. “When you give people the freedom to

create what they want, it’s completely mind blowing... give people freedom, and they will do it.”

The major obstacles A major hurdle for 3D printing is the overall ecosystem—it hasn’t matured yet. Though communities have

sprouted up online, they’re not popular or convincing enough to take the technology mainstream. And even

if there are getting close to a hundred options for 3D printer models, they’re not still compelling or intuitive

enough for a broad audience to use on a regular basis.

Many of the crowdfunded models will not all have viable business models, and most of them will probably

disappear over the next few years.

“Consumers are going to get the idea that they can buy this kind of device and nd that the provider is going

to be with them for a long time,” Basiliere said. “Many of those companies are going to be... scrapped for

funding for additional development.”

These desktop printers, whether they’re crowdfunded or sold by major retailers, are not yet fully functional or

affordable, which will hold the industry back from gaining ground in the consumer market. For instance, the

smallest version of a MakerBot is the Replicator Mini, which runs about $1,400.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/formlabs/form-1-an-affordable-professional-3d-printer

http://www.techrepublic.com/article/3d-printer-raises-1m-in-24-hours-proves-there-is-massive-demand/

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1351910088/3doodler-the-worlds-first-3d-printing-pen


https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/pirate3d/the-buccaneer-the-3d-printer-that-everyone-can-use

http://www.shapeways.com/

http://www.thingiverse.com/



https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/pirate3d/the-buccaneer-the-3d-printer-that-everyone-can-use


http://www.techrepublic.com/article/3d-printer-raises-1m-in-24-hours-proves-there-is-massive-demand/

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/formlabs/form-1-an-affordable-professional-3d-printer





TechRepublic recently bought one of these for the ofce, set it up on a desk, hooked up the software, and

pressed Print. No dice. It turned out that the software was clunky and the extruder head didn’t work correctly,

so we returned it to Amazon and ordered a new one. That machine’s drive belt was severed upon arrival and

so it was unusable as well and is now on the way back for a second replacement unit.

It’s only one particular instance, but it shows that 3D printing hasn’t totally arrived yet. The software is still

confusing and is often not compatible between makes and models; the machine itself doesn’t work if you

simply hit Print. The 3D printers also hog energy, waste plastic, and make more noise than a copy machine.

“The major inhibitor in the consumer market is that [there is] no

compelling application to encourage a person to buy one or bring

it into the home. If you’re a hobbyist or person who has means to

invest in expensive new gadgetry, certainly you’ll buy. The reality is,

after you’ve done modeling and made some gifts, you can buy theequivalent online or at a physical store,” Basiliere said.

But the growth of this market as a whole is far outpacing any

regulations for it. On Shapeways and Thingiverse, users can

design and download basically anything they want, from Star Wars

characters to Google Glass accessories. Tweak, share, and sell the

products—the designs are free, and right now, it’s all legal—or at

least the legal ramications are still a gray area.

Weijmarshausen said Shapeways does not allow copyrighted materia

to be distributed on the site, but that’s only one slice of the pie. No

one can control what people design and print at home, and only time will tell how companies handle this issue

Some are trying to build partnerships with 3D printing services to allow for experimentation with patents and

designs to stay ahead of the game.

The promise of 3D printingImagine loading a 3D design for a replacement part on your USB and taking it to a service bureau—something

like Kinko’s—to print it out. This is the ultimate promise of 3D printing: that one day soon, it will make things

that simple.

But rst, 3D printing needs to appeal to a wider audience. Even with the hype, the community is still mostly

made up of makers and hobbyists, though Basiliere said Gartner predicts there will be a compelling application

for having one in the home by 2016.

“It needs to be easy to use, affordable, and relevant. The marketplace on Shapeways where the designers

build their own businesses and bring really cool products to market, this is how we inspire people. I think that

Imagine loading

a 3D design for a

replacement part

on your USB and taking it to a service

bureau—something

like Kinko’s—to print

it out. This is the

ultimate promise of

3D printing: that one

day soon, it will make

things that simple.









inspiration is what will bring 3D printing to the forefront, making it much more relevant for a much broader

audience,” Weijmarshausen said.

Service bureaus could bring this technology full circle, he added. When Shapeways started, there were 3D

printing bureaus because the machines were too big to t inside a home, but the facilities never really caught

on. Since most people are still on the fence about buying their own, service bureaus could offer an attractive

alternative.

This week, Amazon announced the addition of a 3D printing store on its website, where people can customize

and order products. Right now, the list of goods is short, but it proves the retailer is betting that 3D printing is

here to stay. It may be the start of this service bureau trend, and it may be the start of mass adoption. Time wil

tell.

So far, it has proven difcult to predict how the world will react to 3D printing. It’s opening up new avenues

of creativity for the average consumer and creating a new paradigm for manufacturing, new opportunities for

entrepreneurs, and new issues for lawmakers, all of which are confusing to navigate. One thing, however, is

fairly certain: 3D printing is poised to be the epitome of a disruptive technology.

http://www.techrepublic.com/article/how-amazon-is-giving-3d-printing-a-boost-with-new-marketplace-of-customizable-prints/

http://www.techrepublic.com/article/how-amazon-is-giving-3d-printing-a-boost-with-new-marketplace-of-customizable-prints/





What 3D printing needs to gomainstreamBy Larry Dignan

3D printing is one of the notable tech developments to watch this year, but it’s unclear whether the parts and

conditions are in place to truly go mainstream for consumers and enterprises.

Based on what we know today, it’s clear that 3D printing has a much better chance to go mainstream with

enterprises rst. After all, companies like 3D Systems are large enough to have strong relationships with

manufacturers. Stratasys is another large player with innovative technology and enough of track record for IT

buyers.

Wall Street analysts project that the largest 3D printing players will have $1 billion in revenue by the end of

2016, about double from sales estimates for 2013. High-end systems, about $1 million a pop, are used in

manufacturing operations and driving sales.

The big questions: Are we there yet? When will 3D printing go mainstream? And what needs to happen for

an ecosystem to develop? Today, 3D printing is for relatively large companies and hobbyists. Here are a few

thoughts on what needs to happen for 3D printing to be so mainstream your mother will ask about it.

Business• A narrative. 3D printing is being used in manufacturing or Stratasys and 3D Systems wouldn’t have

a collective $1 billion in revenue in 2013. There are real returns, design and prototyping advances, andefciency behind 3D printing on a mass scale. The industry has had some trouble telling its customer

stories. That fact isn’t that surprising given that enterprise giants often can’t piece together a good story

either. Stratasys, with its latest Objet500 Connex3 Color Multi-material 3D Printer, outlined what Trex

Bicycle was doing with the system. More case studies like Trex are needed.

• Integration and implementation partners. Enterprise software needs consultants and integrators like

IBM and Accenture, and it’s not a stretch to see that 3D printing companies are going to need similar

help. Today, 3D printing is a nice-to-have venture in manufacturing. Big integrators could start pitching

supply chain reinvention stories.

• New personalized products. Custom products tailor-made for individuals but available to the masses

could be a compelling story. If a product was designed and optimized for 3D printing distribution in an

industry, rivals would follow the leader in a hurry.

• Disruption. 3D printing could enable small companies to manufacture on the y like large ones to some

degree. Should a startup come up with a hit product, avoid Chinese sourcing and all the headaches that

go with a global supply chain, and punch a few giants in the mouth, 3D printing will become must-buys

for enterprises.





• A real total cost of ownership and return on investment story. Tie 3D printing and the prototype agility to

revenue, and it’s a win. Outline the cost savings on manufacturing older, hard-to-source parts in terms of

inventory savings, and it’s a win. There aren’t enough deployments yet to nail down hard numbers, but

there will have to be enough gures to entice CFOs to sign the checks.

• Big enterprise players. It’s quite possible that enterprises see 3D Systems and Stratasys as the next-

generation Hewlett-Packard. However, enterprise buyers like to stick with known names. Should HP enter

the market and bring a few rivals along, 3D printing and its returns will at least garner more enterprise

interest.

Consumer • A software ecosystem. Adobe’s move to include 3D modeling in its Creative Cloud was a positive

rst step for small business adoptions and prototypes via creative professionals. But there needs to

be more of that, where 3D printing is available just as your inkjet would be. This ecosystem would

also be needed on the business side of the equation.

• Lower prices. 3D printers are going to have to hit the $400 ballpark to be an option for consumers.

To hit those price points, players with scale—like HP and Canon—must enter the market. And then

there are the supplies. If ink is a pain in your budget, just imagine what 3D printing supplies will run

you.

• Household names. Making headway in the consumer market is going to be expensive for 3D

printer makers.The likes of HP and Canon are probably among the few that will have the marketing

budgets to educate the masses.





10 ways 3D printing will disruptbusiness and industry By Lyndsey Gilpin

For better or worse, the 3D printing industry is poised to transform nearly every sector of our lives and

jumpstart the next Industrial Revolution. Sound like hyperbole? Here are 10 major impacts the 3D printing

ecosystem will have on businesses, consumers, and the global economy.

1: Massive environmental impacts Traditional manufacturing is often wasteful and dirty. In many ways, 3D printing lessens that waste and the

carbon footprint manufacturing has on the Earth:

Fewer wasted materials. Only the raw materials needed to create the object—be it plastic lament, metal

powder, or carbon ber—are used. Using biodegradable PLA plastic lament in fused deposition modeling

printers like MakerBot’s is a good start.

Possibility of longer life spans. Product parts can be replaced with 3D printing (or at least, that’s the idea

for the future), so the entire product doesn’t have to be thrown away and replaced each time it malfunctions.

Less transport. Products often travel across many continents to get to their nal destination. With 3D print-

ing, the production and assembly can be local. Raw materials are the only things that will ship, and they take

up far less space.

Fewer unsold products. When a company makes a product, the ones that are discontinued or not sold

often end up piling up in landlls. 3D printing can improve this because companies can make them as needed.

This is all great in theory, but research shows 3D printers themselves have inefciencies that make them less

environmentally friendly. An inkjet 3D printer wastes 40% to 45% of its ink. And if a printer isn’t turned off or

unplugged, it uses an excessive amount of electricity. As the printers become more accessible, manufacturers

will need to gure out how to improve these issues.

2: Creating a new art medium The “Maker Movement” is getting more niche—now we can call it the Artisanal Movement. 3D printers are

being used to create new types of modern art, like this 3D headdress created by artist Joshua Harker, which

debuted at 3D Printshow in New York City. The printers can also re-create pieces that aren’t accessible to

everyone around the world, which helps museums. For instance, the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam has

teamed with Fujilm to recreate 3D replicas of several Van Gogh paintings.

3: Innovation in education A few months ago, MakerBot announced MakerBot Academy, a crowdfunded plan to get a 3D printer into

every school in America. “It can change the whole paradigm of how our children will see innovation and

manufacturing in America,” MakerBot CEO Bre Pettis said in the announcement. The company also recently

http://www.greenbiz.com/blog/2013/07/19/3d-printing-environmental-win

http://www.joshharker.com/blog/?page_id=2850

https://www.makerbot.com/academy/

https://www.makerbot.com/academy/

http://www.joshharker.com/blog/?page_id=2850

http://www.greenbiz.com/blog/2013/07/19/3d-printing-environmental-win





announced a plan to turn colleges and universities into MakerBot Innovation Centers. Starting with State

University of New York at New Palz, the centers are equipped with 30 3D printers along with several 3D

scanners to help train engineers, architects, and artists and increase motivation for growth in the industry.

4: 3D printing in zero-gravityOne of the most logical uses for 3D printing is printing parts, tools, and other gadgets for astronauts while

they’re in space. It can also help accelerate the building of parts for the International Space Station. To ad-

dress these problems, Made In Space was formed by a group of space veterans and 3D printing enthusiasts.

They have partnered with NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center to launch the rst 3D printer in space. It will

manufacture parts in zero gravity, and the hope is to make space missions more self-sufcient.

On a related note, an engineer won a grant from NASA last year to prototype a machine that will print food

that’s better than the freeze-dried stuff astronauts normally eat.

5: Revolutionizing mass manufacturingMass production is the biggest challenge in 3D printing, but with the adoption of large-scale printers and

rapidly evolving technology to produce parts faster, the printers will completely disrupt traditional manufactur-

ing in many industries:

Food. Anything that exists in liquid or powder form can be 3D printed, so naturally, printed food is one of the

next big conversations.

Military. The machinery for the military is often customized, and replacements must be made quickly. A 3D

gun has already been printed, so it’s only a matter of time before the technology catches on in this industry.

Electronics. The size, shape, and materials used to build electronics make this industry a natural candidate

for 3D printing.

Toys. Home 3D printers and open source design will change the way children create and play.

Automotive. This industry is already utilizing the technology—Ford reportedly uses 3D printing to test parts.

High-end and smaller auto companies will benet rst, though 3D printing could improve the efciency of mak -

ing replacement parts for any company.

6: Changing medicine and healthcareBioprinting is one of the fastest-growing areas of 3D printing. The technology uses inkjet-style printers to make

living tissue. Organovo, the most well-known company that does this, plans to commercialize 3D-printed liver

tissue sometime this year. It has also partnered with the National Eye Institute and the National Center for

Advancing Translational Sciences to print eye tissue.

Researchers at Human Methodist Research Institute said it has come up with a more efcient way to create

cells. Called Block Cell Printing, this process allows 100% of the cells to live instead of the 50% to 80%

http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20140206005787/en/MakerBot-Announces-Innovation-Centers-Universities-Businesses#.U9kprki1bB9

http://www.newpaltz.edu/


http://www.madeinspace.us/

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/marshall/home/

http://www.forbes.com/sites/ehrlichfu/2013/10/29/our-future-with-3-d-printers-7-disrupted-industries/


http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-02/hm-nlp020614.php

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-02/hm-nlp020614.php


http://www.forbes.com/sites/ehrlichfu/2013/10/29/our-future-with-3-d-printers-7-disrupted-industries/

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/marshall/home/

http://www.madeinspace.us/



http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20140206005787/en/MakerBot-Announces-Innovation-Centers-Universities-Businesses#.U9kprki1bB9





that normally survive during the current process. All of this naturally raises questions about the development

of complex organs, so bioprinting is destined to turn into a big debate due to moral, ethical, and political

concerns.

7: Transforming the homeHumans love their home conveniences, and home 3D printers are becoming smaller and more affordable.

MakerBot’s smallest printer costs just over $1,300. People can print custom jewelry, household goods, toys,

and tools to whatever size, shape, or color they want. They will also be able to print make replacement parts

right at home, rather than ordering them and waiting for them to be shipped. According to research rm

Strategy Analytics, home 3D printing could evolve into a $70 billion industry per year by 2030.

8: Reaching disconnected markets worldwideDeveloping countries are often completely disconnected from global supply chains for even the most basic

products, but 3D printing can bring them into the loop. The best example of this is Austin-based startup re:3D

which had a hugely successful 2013 Kickstarter campaign with Gigabot, an industrial-size, affordable printer

designed to work in developing countries. The company has a localized presence in Latin America, partnering

with StartUp Chile, a Chilean government program that empowers local tech entrepreneurs. The Gigabot will

be used for many of the projects in Chile, like 3D design internships, manufacturing clothing, and experiment-

ing with printing using recyclable materials.

Another way 3D printing can help developing countries is through partnerships with 3D printing researchers.

For instance, many countries in the developing world are in dire need of prosthetic limbs but don’t have ac-

cess to the technology or the education required to make their own. A Canadian professor is creating a way to

make a prosthetic limb that is about 80% as good as one that could be made by hand. The lab is sending the

prosthetics to disabled Ugandans.

9: Impacts on the global economy The 3D printing industry will have far-reaching effects on the global economy. McKinsey Global Institute

released a report earlier this year that said 3D printing will cause major disruptions in the global economy by

2025. The analysis rm predicts it will bring about new product development cycles as the systems become

cheaper. More companies will adopt the technology, and product creation will focus on client feedback

and customer-centered design. The industry is also reducing the cost of entry into markets, allowing niche

businesses to pop up everywhere.

China is already investing in the technology to rival this rapid growth rate in the U.S. and Europe. In June

2013, the country announced a gigantic 3D printer it claimed was the world’s largest at the time, at 1.8

meters in diameter, and there are rumors that it has plans to build even larger ones. It’s not clear what

impact the technology will have on the economy yet, but it could give China a competitive edge in domestic

production. Because 3D printing promotes localized production, this will also affect China’s current large-scale

manufacturing industry.

http://store.makerbot.com/replicator-mini

http://www.providencejournal.com/business/press-releases/20140210-strategy-analytics-home-3d-printers-could-drive-70bn-in-annual-global-market-revenues.ece

http://www.re3d.org/

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/re3d/gigabot-3d-printing-this-is-huge/posts

http://startupchile.org/

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/innovations/wp/2014/01/17/using-3-d-printing-to-address-the-need-for-prosthetics-in-uganda/

http://www.engineering.com/3DPrinting/3DPrintingArticles/ArticleID/7105/Five-Disruptions-To-Be-Caused-By-3D-Printing.aspx


http://www.industrial-lasers.com/articles/2013/06/worlds-largest-laser-3d-printer-developed.html

http://3dprint.com/733/chinas-huge-3d-printers-soon-able-to-print-automobile-sized-metal-objects/

http://3dprint.com/733/chinas-huge-3d-printers-soon-able-to-print-automobile-sized-metal-objects/

http://www.industrial-lasers.com/articles/2013/06/worlds-largest-laser-3d-printer-developed.html


http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/innovations/wp/2014/01/17/using-3-d-printing-to-address-the-need-for-prosthetics-in-uganda/

http://startupchile.org/

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/re3d/gigabot-3d-printing-this-is-huge/posts

http://www.re3d.org/

http://www.providencejournal.com/business/press-releases/20140210-strategy-analytics-home-3d-printers-could-drive-70bn-in-annual-global-market-revenues.ece

http://store.makerbot.com/replicator-mini





10: Intellectual property threatsSharing 3D printing schematics on websites like Thingiverse and Shapeways seems easy enough, but free

designs are bound to cause issues with intellectual property as 3D printing becomes more mainstream. Most

of the designs are unpatented, so they can be copied repeatedly and sold by anyone. Expensive or designer

objects can also be reverse-engineered or replicated and sold at a cheaper price.

Established companies are already starting to go after users of such sites, arguing that they are infringing on

copyright or violating intellectual property laws. However, most of these designers are building upon original

designs and improving them or localizing products to better suit the needs of people in their area. It will be an

ongoing conversation. The industry will have to gure out how to make sure large corporations don’t squash

entrepreneurs and designers in their ght to protect copyright laws.









The missing link in 3D printing:User-friendly softwareBy Lyndsey Gilpin

The truth of the matter is, 3D printing is cumbersome.

It’s difcult, annoying, and unrealistic for non-

engineers. The humming MakerBots spitting out mini

Yoda heads and brightly colored Cube printers making

textured maps at the Inside 3D Printing Conference in

New York City earlier this year made it look simple, but

that’s because engineers and experienced employees

were manning them.

If we step back from the bubble of hype surrounding

3D printing, it’s obvious there is a gaping hole in

this technology: software. What if 3D printing an

object was as easy as clicking a drop-down menu,

downloading or creating a design, customizing it, and

sending it directly to a printer? That’s the dream, of course. In its current state, the industry isn’t there yet.

In her keynote address at the conference, Christine Furstoss, global technology director for GE, discussed this

missing link as the industry’s biggest obstacle, but also its biggest opportunity.

“It truly is a time for hardware meets software, a time to embrace and bring forward a whole new class of

innovators,” Furstoss said.

If the gap between hardware and software is big enough to hold back the manufacturing industry, it will

surely keep entrepreneurs and small businesses (as well as consumers) from being able to use 3D printing in

innovative ways.

Computer-aided design (CAD) software was made for engineers. It allows them to create 2D and 3D represen-

tations of objects and is often used for special effects, animation, and graphic design in many industries. The

major problem with CAD is that to make working parts, the user must know mechanical engineering. It’s not

hard to learn the design tool, but if they don’t know the correct proportions, ratios, and purpose of that piece

and the ones it works with, the resulting object won’t turn out very well. What’s more, the software doesn’t

always translate to desktop 3D printers, especially the affordable, lower-quality ones. This can result in mis-

shapen products.

The industry needs user-friendly software. Now that 3D printing is here to stay, companies are attempting to

make desktop 3D printers as simple and compatible as anyone’s home inkjet printer.

Image: Zack Whittaker

https://www.makerbot.com/

http://cubify.com/cube/

http://www.mediabistro.com/inside3dprinting/

http://www.techrepublic.com/article/autodesk-ceo-debunks-the-hype-on-3d-printing-says-industrial-3d-p-autodesk-the-largest-producer-of-3d-modeling-software-says-improvements-in-software-machinery-and-material-science-are-driving-an-exci/

http://www.techrepublic.com/article/autodesk-ceo-debunks-the-hype-on-3d-printing-says-industrial-3d-p-autodesk-the-largest-producer-of-3d-modeling-software-says-improvements-in-software-machinery-and-material-science-are-driving-an-exci/

http://www.mediabistro.com/inside3dprinting/

http://cubify.com/cube/

https://www.makerbot.com/





“The problem with desktop [printers] are the prices and the fact they are not user friendly,” said Gary Shu,

senior manager of market development for XYZ Printing.” There are lots of hiccups and barriers that you have

to overcome. The least we can do for now is make them more user friendly, easier, and bring them down to

consumer-level pricing.”

For similar reasons, Autodesk CEO Carl Bass doesn’t believe home 3D printing will catch on anytime soon.

Autodesk makes AutoCAD, the most popular 3D printing software.

In his keynote at the conference, Bass said the software trend is moving toward accessibility, but not

ownership, just like every other industry. Think Netix, Zipcar, and Techshop, he said. People are gravitating

more toward using services and less toward owning the technologies to run them.

“It just strikes me as odd to say the thing that’s going to go the other direction is consumer 3D printing,” Bass

said. “What are you going to 3D print? [Designs are] all over the internet, there are models everywhere you can

download.”

This “maker community” that is emerging quickly and strongly is democratizing software with platforms like

Thingiverse and Shapeways, which offer free, open source, downloadable designs. With the rapid evolution of

design software, nontechnical 3D enthusiasts can download a design straight from the web or from the cloud

using some personal 3D printers.

Users can tweak Thingiverse designs with a MakerBot application, though the process is difcult if the user

doesn’t understand or own design software. What’s posted on the website is all that most people have to

work with, and since anyone can upload, the designs aren’t always reliable.

Enter Adobe, which is trying to solve this problem with the recent addition of 3D printing functionality to

Photoshop. The feature is available with Photoshop version 14.1, a free update for Adobe Creative Cloud

members. In a press conference in January, product manager Andy Lauta said he expects the tool to be used

for nishing, decreasing the number

of applications needed to get a 3D

model designed and printed.

Users can create a 3D design using

Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop,

using layers to add color, texture, or

words as they would in the original

version. From a menu, users can

choose their material, color, and

price range. Once the design is

nalized, they can export it as a le

or print directly to a printer at home.Image: Lyndsey Gilpin

http://www.autodesk.com/

http://www.autodesk.com/products/autodesk-autocad/overview



http://www.photoshop.com/products/photoshop/3d/printers

http://www.photoshop.com/products/photoshop/3d/printers



http://www.autodesk.com/products/autodesk-autocad/overview

http://www.autodesk.com/





Direct printing is currently compatible with MakerBot and 3D Systems Cube desktop printers. The designs can

also be sent to Shapeways for printing.

“It is a nishing tool, but also a starting tool for people who want to get into 3D printing,” said Paul Trani, a

senior cloud evangelist for Adobe at the conference. “What we are missing is the content. The content is going

to drive the technology.”

However, Adobe’s new 3D printing tool is targeted to ne artists, graphic designers, and developers who use

Adobe Creative Cloud. Trani said he envisions small businesses using the tool to create signs, swag, and othe

products eventually, but the tool isn’t meant for the general public for whom Photoshop is too expensive or

unintuitive to use.

This is a small step in the right direction, but the gap is still apparent.





3D bioprinting: How it works andwhere it’s headedBy Lyndsey Gilpin

The healthcare industry is trying to capitalize on 3D printing, and fast. From prosthetic limbs and various

surgical devices made with plastics and metals to using cells to print human organs, experiments in this

industry are progressing quickly.

The world of bioprinting is still new and ambiguous. Many of the innovations have been driven either by

companies like Organovo that focus on bioprinting or by specic researchers at universities, like Dr. Anthony

Atala at Wake Forest.

Confusion has swirled around 3D bioprinting. It can be a difcult concept to get your head around, and it has

been misconstrued at times. Atala, for instance, was misrepresented in articles about a TED Talk he gave. The

articles said he had printed a functioning human kidney. In reality, it was only a prototype.

To help clear things up, we’ve compiled a list of 10 things to get you up to speed—or to at least help you

gure out—how bioprinting works and where it is headed in the near future.

1: CT scans can function like a CAD designInstead of trying to create an organ or tissue model from the ground up, researchers and engineers can use

a CT scan or MRI to create a 3D model to print. For example, the University of Louisville created a 3D printed

model of a young boy’s heart so doctors could use it for his surgery. The researchers used the CT scan fromhis doctor to make the 3D design model. Websites like Instructables even have tutorials to describe how to

turn a CT scan into a 3D printable model.

2: There are multiple types of printersBioprinters: Organovo has developed the world’s rst production 3D bioprinter, the NovoGen MMX . The

printer has two robotic print heads. One places human cells and the other places a hydrogel, scaffold, or other

type of support.

“Inkjet” inspired printers: Experiments with bioprinting at Wake Forest University were inspired by traditiona

inkjet printers. This type of printer allows multiple cell types and components to be used for printing. In

early forms of the technology, cells were placed in the actual walls of ink cartridges, and the printers were

programmed to place the cells in a particular order. Today, the university has adapted the technology so that

skin cells can be placed in an ink cartridge and printed directly on a wound.

Six-axis printer: At the University of Louisville’s Cardiovascular Innovation Institute, Dr. Stuart Williams is using

a robot/printer that, instead of building the tissue from the ground up, as traditional 3D printers do, can build

multiple parts of the heart tissue he is making at the same time and move them around accordingly.

http://www.techrepublic.com/pictures/how-3d-bioprinting-is-changing-the-world-photos-of-10-great-projects/


http://www.wakehealth.edu/Research/WFIRM/Anthony-Atala,-MD,-Director-and-Chair.htm


http://www.ted.com/talks/anthony_atala_printing_a_human_kidney

http://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/37270/title/Organs-on-Demand/

http://www.instructables.com/

http://www.invetech.com.au/portfolio/life-sciences/3d-bioprinter-world-first-print-human-tissue/

http://www.wakehealth.edu/Research/WFIRM/Our-Story/Inside-the-Lab/Bioprinting.htm

http://cv2i.org/

http://cv2i.org/

http://www.wakehealth.edu/Research/WFIRM/Our-Story/Inside-the-Lab/Bioprinting.htm

http://www.invetech.com.au/portfolio/life-sciences/3d-bioprinter-world-first-print-human-tissue/

http://www.instructables.com/

http://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/37270/title/Organs-on-Demand/

http://www.ted.com/talks/anthony_atala_printing_a_human_kidney




http://www.techrepublic.com/pictures/how-3d-bioprinting-is-changing-the-world-photos-of-10-great-projects/





“We’ve built a six-axis printer that can print layers but come back and start printing a new layer on the outside

[of the heart],” Williams said. “The valves are in one spot, and we use a robot to bring the valves in and put

them in parts of the heart.”

3: Cells are used like “ink”Organovo thoroughly explains the 3D bioprinting process in this video. Basically, once a tissue design is

selected, the company makes “bio-ink” from the cells. Using a NovoGen MMX bioprinter, the cells are layered

between water-based layers until the tissue is built. That hydrogel in between layers is sometimes used to ll

spaces in the tissue or as supports to the 3D printed tissue. Collagen is another material used to fuse the cells

together. This layer-by-layer approach is similar to the normal 3D printing process, where products are built

from the ground up.

4: Stem cells are also used in bioprintingStem cells can adapt easily to tissues, so they are an attractive option for bioprinting different organs and

bones. Researchers at the University of Nottingham in the UK have experimented with building bone replace-

ments coated with stem cells that develop into tissues over time. The researchers are also looking at stem cell

repair for complex tissues, like those that make up the heart or the liver. It’s difcult to use stem cells to build

these organs, but it may be possible with 3D bioprinting.

5: Bioprinting is more complicated than other 3DprintingLet’s explain this process in a bit more detail. In the case of Organovo, a bioprinter is used to create liver

tissue, which is one of the original experiments in bioprinting by the company. Spheroids of parenchymal (or

fundamental) liver cells are loaded into a syringe. Nonparenchymal liver cells and the hydrogel, which fuses

together to create a bio-ink, are loaded in another syringe. The bio-ink makes a mold in the cell dish, and the

liver cells ll up the rest of the dish. When the cells are put in an incubator, they fuse together even more to

form the full liver tissue.

6: Many other materials can be used in bioprintingCells don’t have to be the end-all, be-all of bioprinting. Many people consider biodegradable or biocompatible

materials that can be used to build body parts or repair damaged ones as an aspect of bioprinting. Printing

materials that can improve bones, cartilage, and skin is just as important for the future of this technology.

Some of the materials include certain types of exible plastic, like the absorbable one used to make 3D printed

windpipe splints for a baby who had a condition that caused his trachea to collapse, and titanium powder,

which was used to create a jaw implant for a woman who had an infection.

7: 3D printed tissues for pharmaceutical testingSince the technology is not advanced enough yet to create a full organ, the tissue samples are perfect to test

drugs and other medical advancements. Instead of having to use human beings or animals as guinea pigs for

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3CiJ26YS_U

http://www.fastcolabs.com/3013877/how-3-d-printing-bones-is-just-the-start-of-repairing-your-own-body

http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2013-07/how-it-works-3-d-printer-liver-tissue

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2014/03/17/289042381/doctors-use-3-d-printing-to-help-a-baby-breathe

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/woman-gets-worlds-first-3d-printed-jaw-transplant/

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/woman-gets-worlds-first-3d-printed-jaw-transplant/

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2014/03/17/289042381/doctors-use-3-d-printing-to-help-a-baby-breathe

http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2013-07/how-it-works-3-d-printer-liver-tissue

http://www.fastcolabs.com/3013877/how-3-d-printing-bones-is-just-the-start-of-repairing-your-own-body

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3CiJ26YS_U





pharmaceutical testing, bioprinting may provide a much more cost-effective and ethical option, while still being

accurate because the tissue samples are made from human cells.

8: Reproducing cells is nothing newFor years, scientists have been growing cells in laboratories, including skin tissue, blood vessels, and other

cell cultures from various organs. Replicating and growing cells in petri dishes is nothing new, and the science

surrounding it is constantly advancing. However, 3D printing offers an opportunity to print an entire organ, not

just pieces of one. It also may drastically reduce the cost of these processes because of the cells and other

materials used.

9: Printing the networks of veins is a large obstacle Vascularization is a big obstacle in the way of 3D printing organs, because they need to have a system of

arteries, capillaries, and veins that support the system. They must be present to deliver nutrients and remove

waste created by the cells. One option is to leave the space in the 3D printed tissue for veins to be added later

in the process, but researchers are now trying to gure out a way to print blood vessels as well.

One experiment at the University of Pennsylvania used a RepRap printer to make templates of blood vessel

networks out of sugar. When they dissolved, the sugar was washed out without harming the cells and the

space for the blood vessels remained. Researchers at Harvard have also started working on this issue, but

they are trying to 3D print the blood vessels themselves by integrating them with skin cells.

10: The body can reject the 3D printed cells

In any transplant or surgery, there is always the risk of the body rejecting the organ or cells. This can even

occur when tissue from one area of the body is put into another area of the body. The organ (or piece

of tissue) also has to have time to integrate into the body after the implant. Since the technology for 3D

bioprinting is so new, doctors and engineers have not even gotten to this point yet—but it’s important to

recognize these risks well in advance.

http://www.upenn.edu/spotlights/rep-rap-3d-printing-blood-vessel-networks

http://reprap.org/

http://reprap.org/

http://www.upenn.edu/spotlights/rep-rap-3d-printing-blood-vessel-networks





10 things you should know about thedark side of 3D printingBy Lyndsey Gilpin

As with any new technology, it’s easy to get swept up in the benets of 3D printing. It opens up a world of new

possibilities for all industries and stands to lessen transportation costs, environmental impacts, waste, and

reliance on corporations by enabling the Maker Movement.

But 3D printers are still potentially hazardous, wasteful machines, and their societal, political, economic, and

environmental effects have not yet been studied extensively. To make sure you aren’t thrown off guard by the

conversations that will inevitably come, we’ve compiled a list of things you need to know about the dangers

and potentially negative impacts of 3D printers.

1: Energy hogsWhen melting plastic with heat or lasers, 3D printers consume about 50 to 100 times more electrical

energy than injection molding to make an item of the same weight, according to research by Loughborough

University. In 2009, research at MIT’s Environmentally Benign Manufacturing program showed that laser

direct metal deposition (where metal powder is fused together) used hundreds of times more electricity than

traditional casting or machining. Because of this, 3D printers are better for small batch runs. Industrial-size 3D

printers may not be the answer to lessening our use of coal power any time soon.

2: Unhealthy air emissions3D printers may pose a health risk when used in the home, according to researchers at the Illinois Institute

of Technology. The emissions from desktop 3D printers are similar to burning a cigarette or cooking on a gas

or electric stove. The 2013 study was the rst to measure these airborne particle emissions from desktop 3D

printers. While heating the plastic and printing small gures, the machines using PLA lament emitted 20 billion

ultrane particles per minute, and the ABS emitted up to 200 billion particles per minute. These particles can

settle in the lungs or the bloodstream and pose health risk, especially for those with asthma.

3: Reliance on plasticsOne of the biggest environmental movements in recent history has been to reduce reliance on plastics, from

grocery bags to water bottles to household objects that can be made from recycled materials instead. The

most popular—and cheapest—3D printers use plastic lament. Though using raw materials reduces the

amount of waste in general, the machines still leave unused or excess plastic in the print beds. PLA is biode-

gradable, but ABS lament is still the most commonly used type of plastic. The plastic byproduct ends up in

landlls. If 3D printing is going to be industrialized, that byproduct or other recycled plastic needs to be reused

4: IP and licensing dealsIn January, 3D Systems acquired Gentle Giant Ltd., which owned the licensing rights to toy franchises such

as The Hobbit , The Walking Dead , Harry Potter , Alien, and Star Wars. Gartner has said that companies may

http://web.mit.edu/ebm/www/index.html

http://phys.org/news/2013-07-3d-printers-shown-emit-potentially.html#jCp

http://www.gentlegiantltd.com/

http://www.dailyfinance.com/2014/02/05/the-moral-dilemma-of-3d-printing/

http://www.dailyfinance.com/2014/02/05/the-moral-dilemma-of-3d-printing/

http://www.gentlegiantltd.com/

http://phys.org/news/2013-07-3d-printers-shown-emit-potentially.html#jCp

http://web.mit.edu/ebm/www/index.html





lose at least $100 billion in four years to licensing or IP owners. 3D printing will change the business market—

and the black market for these items—and the legislation will have to rush to catch up. This potential digital

piracy situation is comparable to the way the internet challenged the movie and music industries for copy-

rights, trademarks, and illegal downloads.

5: Gun control loopholes The rst successful 3D-printed gun is old news, but its ramications are important. Companies are popping

up around the world attempting to sell these guns and/or the CAD designs for them. Engineering rm Solid

Concepts has even red rounds out of the rst 3D-printed metal gun. Congress’ Undetectable Firearms Act

[PDF], which bans guns that can’t be detected by metal detectors or x-ray scanners, was renewed for 10

years. It left a loophole in the law, however: 3D-printed guns with a tiny piece of metal aren’t banned by the

Act. Congress ignored the issue for quite some time, but legislators are attempting to close that loophole now

with special requirements for printed guns.

6: Responsibility of manufacturersWeapons can be 3D-printed. So can safety equipment, such as helmets, wheels for bikes, and toys for small

children. Of course, there is the issue of intellectual property and trademarks, but the larger issue involves

responsibility. If a person shoots a gun and harms or kills someone, stabs someone with a 3D-printed knife, or

breaks his or her neck while riding on a bike with a 3D-printed helmet, who is held accountable? The owner

of the printer, the manufacturer of the printer, or the irresponsible person who thought it was a good idea to

produce and use an untested product?

7: Bioprinting ethics and regulation The conversations about the ethics of bioprinting have already begun. Organovo is printing liver cells as well as

eye tissue cells in a partnership with the National Eye Institute and National Center for Advancing Translational

Sciences. Scientists have also proposed mixing human stem cells with canine muscle cells to create enhanced

organ tissue. Printing cartilage is still the most realistic type of bioprinting, and printing whole organs is still

many years away, but 3D printing is growing in medicine quite rapidly. Conversations about the moral, ethical,

and legal issues surrounding bioprinting have started, but they will inevitably cause a lot more controversy as it

becomes more commonplace.

8: Possibility of 3D-printed drugs Assembling chemical compounds on a molecular level using a 3D printer is possible. A researcher at the

University of Glasgow created a prototype of a 3D “Chemputer” that makes drugs and medicine. He wants

to revolutionize the pharmaceutical industry by allowing patients to print their own medicine with a chemical

blueprint they get from the pharmacy. Of course, this is a long way off, but it stands to enable DIY chemists to

create anything from cocaine to ricin.

http://www.solidconcepts.com/


http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/STATUTE-102/pdf/STATUTE-102-Pg3816.pdf

http://www.forbes.com/sites/andygreenberg/2013/12/03/as-plastic-firearm-ban-passes-house-3d-printed-guns-fair-game-for-now/

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/

http://www.forbes.com/sites/andygreenberg/2013/12/03/as-plastic-firearm-ban-passes-house-3d-printed-guns-fair-game-for-now/

http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/STATUTE-102/pdf/STATUTE-102-Pg3816.pdf







9: National security risks A white paper released from the National Defense University highlighted national security risks from 3D-printing

technology. Since there will be signicant legal and economic implications for the business sector, and 3D

printers offer the ability to produce a wide range of objects that can’t be controlled yet, the paper noted that

there are denitely national security risks that need to be analyzed in the near future.

10: Safety of items that come into contact with food You can print a fork or spoon with your MakerBot, but if you use ABS plastic, it is not BPA-free. New laments

that are safer to put in your mouth are being created for this specic reason, but they aren’t widely available

yet. In addition, many 3D printers have spaces where bacteria can easily grow if they aren’t cleaned properly.

To more safely produce 3D-printed food and kitchenware, an FDA-approved machine may be needed. People

probably don’t want to eat genetically engineered pizza off toxic plates.

http://www.hsdl.org/?abstract&did=723516

http://3dprintingindustry.com/2014/01/15/3d-printing-germanrepraps-food-safe-filament-food-safe/

http://3dprintingindustry.com/2014/01/15/3d-printing-germanrepraps-food-safe-filament-food-safe/

http://www.hsdl.org/?abstract&did=723516





Scientists are 3D printing a humanheart that will work better than yours

By Lyndsey Gilpin

Imagine your beating, pumping heart, working hard right this moment to keep you alive. Now think of a future

where, if your heart failed or has a defect, you could get one that works better and lasts longer.

It sounds like something out of a sci- movie, but researchers at the University of Louisville have moved a

step closer in this direction by using a 3D printer to make working parts of a human heart, using fat cells and

collagen.

“We are utilizing printing and other biological manufacturing techniques to build these different parts of

the heart,” Dr. Stuart Williams told TechRepublic. Williams is the chief of the Biocial Heart program at theUniversity of Louisville’s Cardiovascular Innovation Institute in Louisville, KY.

He added that the team has not reached the point of putting together the valves and the blood vessels, or any

other products. They are solely focused on creating working pieces of the muscle.

Williams described the process as similar to building an airplane. Airplanes aren’t built in the traditional 3D

printing sense, where you would start with the wheels at the bottom and build up. The parts for an airplane are

made piece by piece, then assembled.

Same with a human heart, which is a complex muscle. It can’t be built at once, so each part—the valves, large

blood vessels, small blood vessels, electrical conducting system—is built and assembled with a giant, intricate

3D printer.

To print the heart, Williams and his team use collagen and fat cells. One liter of fat from someone can give

them a huge number of cells that can be directly translated to patients, he said.

“[We are] taking a piece of fat, isolating regenerative cells in the fat, utilizing those, then mixing factorized cells

with collagen, and it prints.”

What’s even more innovative is the “six-axis” printer Williams helped build that makes the heart one section

at a time. This “robot” can build the specic parts, then move them around and place them in their correct

positions within the muscle.

The University of Louisville lab is the only one in the world that has a 3D printer this intricate, made specically

for bioprinting. Williams calls it a “bioassembly tool.”

Williams came to the University of Louisville in 2007 after spending many years at the University of Arizona,

where he founded the biomedical engineering program. Three years ago, he teamed up with Advanced

Solutions, also based in Louisville, and “noodled up the idea” of 3D printing a working human heart.

http://cv2i.org/

http://www.advancedsolutionsonline.com/




http://cv2i.org/





Bioprinting has developed into a hot topic recently, with companies

like Organovo making liver and eye tissues using 3D printers, so

competition to be the most innovative in the eld is building quickly.

“I always say we’re all sort of in this together,” Williams said. “The real

competition is [heart] disease and this process.”

There is an urgent clinical pull in this eld—that is, what the doctors

and other healthcare providers need. Luckily, it is working with this

huge leap forward in technology right now, and everything in this

industry is happening rapidly.

“That’s what is unique about the group in Louisville. We are identify-

ing what the real short term needs are and designing the answers for

bioprinting,” he said.

Earlier this year, researchers at the University of Louisville built a 3D printed model of a toddler’s heart so doc-

tors could better analyze and treat his condition. The project and surgery were successful. In other areas of the

university, like the Cardiovascular Institute, researchers are pushing the limits even further. Right now, Williams

and his team are working on many bioprinting projects for the cardiovascular system. Williams has looked at

the pancreas, which could be made to better work for diabetics, as well as kidney tissue and bone tissue that

could be replaced if a patient is sick or injured.

Interestingly enough, the heart is much easier to print than any other part of the body, Williams said.

“The heart is a bag of muscles and blood vessels and an electrical system,” he said, comparing it to a hand—

a more difcult undertaking, since it would require making specic nerves and joints.

The lab has also created a patch for a human heart, which he thinks will be in some of the earliest bioprinting

clinical trials for humans. Instead of replacing the entire heart, this patch can mend the part that doesn’t work.

It would be especially important for pediatric patients, because it would grow with them, unlike plastic or metal

pieces currently in use.

The ultimate goal for Williams is much bigger. He believes a fully functional human heart that beats, pumps

blood, and keeps us alive for even longer is very possible. Extra blood vessels that would act as backup

systems if one clogs or fails is one example of creating that type of muscle, he said.

“We are rethinking what the best design is for the heart and putting that into a computer,” Williams said. “What

happens if we build a heart basically resistant to problems that can take place?”

“That’s what is

unique about the

group in Louisville.

We are identifying

what the real short

term needs are

and designing

the answers for

bioprinting.”

— Dr. Stuart Williams


http://louisville.edu/uofltoday/campus-news/3d-model-of-child2019s-heart-helps-surgeons-save-life

http://louisville.edu/uofltoday/campus-news/3d-model-of-child2019s-heart-helps-surgeons-save-life






GE: 3D printing is revolutionizing traditional manufacturing

By Zach Whittaker

It’s not every day you get a 20-year-old student outsmarting some of General Electric’s greatest minds and

designers.

According to GE’s general manager for technology Christine Furstoss, the unnamed Indonesian student

helped General Electric save considerable sums of money in development and manufacturing costs by

designing a critical aircraft part that was 83% lighter and yet still met the safety and design criteria.

And that’s all thanks to 3D printing. While it may be today’s buzzword, in

reality it’s just a fraction of the overall manufacturing process—and Gen-

eral Electric wants to lead the way. But it can do that only by embracing

change and the desire to learn.

Furstoss told attendees at the Inside 3D Printing conference in New

York in April that the “maker movement” is revolutionizing how traditional

manufacturers look at their own design and building processes—showing

everyone how anything can be developed and built in a fraction of the time.

The Faireld, CT-headquartered conglomerate has been pushing hard in

the 3D printing and next-generation manufacturing space. In 2012, GE

Aviation was formed from the acquisition of Morris Technologies, as the

company wanted to learn more about additive manufacturing. And it built its own Rapid Prototyping Center in

Louisville, KY, in July 2013, which has helped the company generate quick and easy feedback in the develop-

ment process and reduce costs by 80% on average overall.

But Furstoss admitted that the company—and others—can and should be doing more.

“Additive manufacturing is not just another way to produce parts. It’s a way to change how I work. It’s a way to

say, I can introduce products faster than ever before. Why? Because additive manufacturing gives me the op-

portunity to conduct faster prototyping. And it’s also about learning and gathering data. And I can also make

tooling that can use more conventional manufacturing.”

In simple terms, the design and drawing processes are accelerated because the prototype design can be

printed sooner rather than later. That allows designers to go back to their designs and modify at will. Ulti-

mately, that makes the manufacturing process quicker, so innovative new designs can be kicked out the door

signicantly faster than other traditional businesses. And that makes the market more competitive.

GE continues to learn about the capabilities and advantages 3D printing has to offer. It has invested in

more than 300 3D printers across the company, which has helped it learn how to develop the more difcult

GE continues

to learn about

the capabilities

and advantages

3D printing has

to offer. It has

invested in more

than 300 3D

printers across

the company.

http://www.techrepublic.com/article/ges-christine-fustross-materials-engineer-3d-innovator-relentless-learner/

http://www.techrepublic.com/article/ges-christine-fustross-materials-engineer-3d-innovator-relentless-learner/





or traditionally expensive parts for aviation, oil and gas, healthcare, and other businesses the rm has

investments in.

Furstoss said that by 2020, GE aims to print more than 100,000 parts for aviation. In the meantime, the

company continues to focus on transforming its repair processes for industrial components.

“3D printing is not just used to prototype. But it’s really important for us to use this technology to innovate and

create products that could not be made in any other way,” she said. “This is the opportunity we can’t waste.

It’s about ecosystems and learning, and we need to gure out what our role is, and if we are investing as much

as we should be.”





How recycled plastic for 3D printingwill drive sustainability and improve

social consciousnessBy Lyndsey Gilpin

Durable, shiny, new plastic—it’s what makes most 3D printers run. And as 3D printing grows in popularity

and we begin to scale projects in every industry, the world is going to use a lot more of it. If the industry goal

is to have 3D printers in most homes and businesses, with lots of other 3D printers running constantly in

manufacturing centers, we’ll add even more to the 33.6 million tons of plastic Americans toss each year, only

6.5% of which is recycled. It’s estimated that 100 million tons of plastic is oating in the world’s oceans. Each

piece can take anywhere from 500 to 1,000 years to decompose.

Within those piles of plastic waste lies an opportunity for the expanding 3D printing industry. Instead of melting

new plastic to create 3D printed products, some companies are seizing the chance to build more sustainable,

cost-effective, socially responsible ways of dealing with the looming demand for raw plastic.

Using recycled plastic in 3D printers can help create jobs, open new markets, and even change the cycle of

poverty in some cases.

The evolution of plastic lament Traditional 3D printers (the type consumers buy) use acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) or polylactic acid

(PLA) plastic. ABS is oil-based, with a much higher melting point and toxic fumes that are released when the

printer is running. PLA lament is corn-based. It’s often used for packaging, as it is biodegradable and less

harmful to the environment if it is recycled. What most people don’t realize, however, is that high density poly-

ethylene (HDPE) plastic—which makes up most of what is oating in our oceans and piling in landlls—can

also work in the printers if it is simply turned into lament and wrapped around spools.

Joshua Pearce and his team of researchers at Michigan Technological University have been working on open

source, environmentally friendly 3D printers for years. Last year, they created the Recyclebot, which turns

waste plastic into 3D printer feedstock using the RepRap model, a self-replicating 3D printer. The newest

version of the printer Pearce created takes a third of the time to assemble and cuts 20% of the cost, making it

less than $500 in parts. The open source design allows people to build upon the technology themselves, and

Pearce believes the idea of a Recyclebot will catch on because it allows people to utilize all their household

resources to make things.

“There are large environmental savings when you use recycled plastic. However, the main reason people will

want to use recycled lament is the cost,” Pearce said. “Commercial plastic lament costs about $35/kg or

more—if you make it yourself with a Recyclebot the cost drops to only 10 cents per kilogram for the electricity

to run it.”

http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/01/31/what-happens-to-all-that-plastic/

http://www.mtu.edu/news/stories/2013/february/turning-trash-into-cash-saving-energy.html

http://www.appropedia.org/Recyclebot

http://www.appropedia.org/Recyclebot

http://www.mtu.edu/news/stories/2013/february/turning-trash-into-cash-saving-energy.html

http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/01/31/what-happens-to-all-that-plastic/





The Recyclebot uses a windshield wiper motor to push shredded

plastic containers, like milk jugs, into a heated pipe, where the plastic

is melted and formed into a long strand of plastic spaghetti. It’s

wound up with a spooler, like the open source Filawinder, then fedfrom the spool into the 3-D printer. The plans are open source so you

can make one yourself or buy one from companies making different

kinds of Recyclebot lament extruders, like Filabot and FilaFab. The

spoolers can be purchased online, as can RepRap fully assembled

printers that work with recycled plastic lament. The designs to create

and build your own printer are free.

The team is now working on printing solar-powered equipment, a

Recyclebot for recycled metal materials, and cheaper, more efcient

RepRap designs. But Pearce’s real mission has to do with something

much larger.

“I think open source 3D printing can do a lot to bring us all incredible

wealth,” he said. “It can help everyone in both the developing and developed world alike to print themselves

out of poverty.”

Creating opportunities with plastic waste About 15 million waste pickers worldwide collect, sort, and process recycled materials. More often than not,

they live in extreme poverty, making up some of the most disadvantaged communities on the planet. TheEthical Filament Foundation was created to address this problem and to create a fair trade standard and

certication process [PDF] for the 3D printer lament industry.

Putting this to work is Protoprint, the rst fair trade lament company, based in Pune, India. The Protoprint

team recycles HDPE plastic, which is used to make water bottles and other common items, since it is abun-

dantly available and non-biodegradable.

Waste pickers in India are part of a low socio-economic class that sorts through unsegregated garbage

dumps, separating plastic waste from organic waste. About two million waste pickers in the country sell the

waste to scrap dealers for as little as $0.15 per kilogram and often make less than a dollar a day doing it.

“Even though they form the backbone of the Indian recycling industry, these individuals are often marginalized

by society. That’s the problem,” said CEO Sidhant Pai, a recent environmental engineering graduate from MIT.

Pai is working with a waste picker cooperative called SWaCH, setting up a pilot lament lab facility at a gar-

bage dump, and he wants to launch commercially later this summer.

By converting the plastic waste they collect to 3D printer lament, they add value to it, he said, earning at least

15 times more for the same amount of plastic.

About 15 million

waste pickers

worldwide collect,sort, and process

recycled materials.

More often than not,

they live in extreme

poverty, making up

some of the most

disadvantaged

communities on the

planet.

http://www.filastruder.com/products/filawinder

http://www.filabot.com/

http://www.filafab.co.uk/


http://www.ethicalfilament.org/why/

http://www.ethicalfilament.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Fair-Trade-Standards-for-Filament-Paper.pdf


http://www.protoprint.in/protoprint-ethical-fairtrade-3d-printing.htm


http://www.swachcoop.com/

http://www.swachcoop.com/




http://www.ethicalfilament.org/why/


http://www.filabot.com/

http://www.filastruder.com/products/filawinder





“In addition to the economic benet, the technology empowers them socially—making these hard working

individuals micro-entrepreneurs, in charge of their destiny,” Pai said. At the local level, Protoprint is providing

academic institutions in India with low-cost lament to increase the adoption of 3D printing into the curriculum.

Protoprint plastic can be purchased in bulk or for individual fused deposition modeling (FDM) printers, and the

company also sells functioning 3D printers.

Society does not fully value plastic. That’s the idea behind the Plastic Bank , which calls for harvesting and

repurposing plastic, turning it into a valuable currency. The plastic can be exchanged as 3D printing materi-

als, tools, and household parts. The company ran a successful Indiegogo campaign last year, and plans to

open the rst Plastic Bank in Lima, Peru. The company is encouraging a “social plastic” movement by asking

corporations to sign a petition to mobilize more responsible use of plastic waste. 3D printing offers the ideal

outlet for that waste.

“I believe that organizations like ours could push the 3D printing industry towards a sustainable and environ-

mentally friendly future, effectively recycling waste plastic as opposed to simply generating more,” Pai said.

“There have been a number of studies that show recycling plastic is signicantly better for the environment

and, while we’re only a drop in the ocean, I believe it is a step in the right direction.”

http://plasticbank.org/

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-plastic-bank-harvesting-waste-plastic-to-reduce-poverty

http://plasticbank.org/our-movement/

http://plasticbank.org/our-movement/

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-plastic-bank-harvesting-waste-plastic-to-reduce-poverty

http://plasticbank.org/





3D Systems CEO offers a vision of“3D Printing 2.0”By Lyndsey Gilpin

The 3D printing industry is entering version 2.0, which will transform and localize manufacturing, according to

Avi Reichental, president and CEO of 3D Systems. Reichental gave the keynote address at the second annual

Inside 3D Printing Conference and Expo in New York City earlier this year.

“What we mean by 3D printing 2.0 is the complete imagination of the desktop and democratization of desktop

prototyping, and the beginning of real mass manufacturing,” he said. “And here I am talking about making

tens of thousands of units a day using sophisticated and mutliple materials. The third leg is cloud sourcing—

platform capabilities.”

3D Systems introduced its 3D Printing 2.0 capabilities, which are specically designed for engineers’ desktops

and the production oor in manufacturing. It increases reliability, performance, material utilization, and

sustainability, Reichental said.

At the conference, 3D Systems showcased:

• First professional full-color plastic 3D printer

• Multi-materials 3D printer

• Laser direct metal printers

• Its latest consumer grade 3D printer, the third generation Cube, which is under $1,000

3D Systems manufactures stereolithography (SLA), selective laser sintering (SLS), and fused deposition model-

ing (FDM) systems for professional and consumer use. It has 1,700 patents and 120 material sets and seven

machine engines, according to Reichental, who has been CEO since 2003.

“We are focused on democratizing access to this technology, moving to the factory oor, and to the desktop,

and to the home in ways that will make it meaningful, productive, impactful and advance our ability to create

and make,” he said. “There is at least a 30 plus billion dollar opportunity here when we look at this entire digita

thread.”

The company recently announced several partnerships, including one with Hasbro to co-develop immersive

play experiences for children and another with Hershey, to develop 3D printed chocolate candy. 3D Systems

has already been experimenting with its ChefJet, which makes sugary confections. The company recently

bought Medical Modeling, a provider of personalized surgical treatments and patient-specic medical tools

that use 3D modeling. And it has partnered with Google to develop a 3D printer designed to produce smart-

phones.


http://www.3dsystems.com/press-releases/3d-systems-sweetens-its-offering-new-chefjettm-3d-printer-series

http://www.3dsystems.com/press-releases/3d-systems-sweetens-its-offering-new-chefjettm-3d-printer-series






Reichental sees increased drive for efciency and sustainability, as well as shorter product cycles, which all

contribute to the excitement surrounding 3D printing. He said 3D printing is transforming many industries,

including aerospace, automotive, healthcare, and even startups.

But even though these partnerships and acquisitions have made 3D Systems the leader in the printing space,

HP is on its tail.

In March, HP CEO Meg Whitman announced that the company is planning to enter the 3D printing space by

the end of this scal year. Whitman said in the announcement that HP has solved the speed and quality issues

with current 3D printing technologies.

HP’s entrance into the 3D printing arena is clearly pushing 3D Systems to innovate and assert its current place

in the market. Whoever ends up the leader, 3D printing is one of the hottest segments of the tech sector.

“It is ushering in a new kind of industrial renaissance, one that is about localized, digital craftsmanship,”

Reichental said.





The mad scientists of 3D printing: HowMadeSolid is remixing the formulaBy Conner Forrest

Two lawyers and a HR manager walk into an elevator.

In a corporate ofce building in Emeryville, CA, they are joined by young startup founders wheeling a500-pound chemical drum behind them.

The chemical peddlers’ destination is the fth oor, where an ofce and a laboratory host the remainder of their

team. They’re delivering chemicals that they hope will change the world.

In the lab, a young chemist leans over a petri dish, shining a pen-size laser into a puddle of blue resin. After he

completes his movements with the laser, he pulls a newly solid object out of the goo. He seems pleased.

Another scientist walks by in her tie-dye lab coat, taking notes as a mechanical box melts plastic in a spe-

cic pattern. At the end of the room, microcrystalline cellulose is mixed with other chemical compounds in a

beaker. While the work seems academic and somber, employees are smiling and joking, genuinely enthusiastic

about what they’re doing.

This is MadeSolid, a chemical manufacturing company that is planning to x what it considers the number one

thing that’s wrong with 3D printing: shoddy materials.

The startup, located across the bay from San Francisco and just outside Oakland, is an alumnus of the Y

Combinator accelerator and is staffed by employees from a wide variety of backgrounds. Instead of the tradi-

tional startup uniform of t-shirts and designer jeans, they wear lab coats and safety goggles.

Image: James Martin

http://madesolid.com/

http://www.techrepublic.com/article/how-y-combinator-became-the-founder-of-startup-accelerators/




http://madesolid.com/





3D printing is exploding in popularity. According to Canalys, the market

for 3D printing services and materials will grow from $2.5 billion in 2014

to $10.8 billion in 2018. If MadeSolid can satisfy this growing demand

with a superior product, it will have the opportunity to play a key rolein the transition of 3D printing from a commodity product to a serious

consumer and business tool.

Starting the journeyMadeSolid CEO Lance Pickens got his start with 3D printing by making

prints that were right in line with his chemistry PhD at the University of

Southern California.

“At the time I was interested in taking these molecular structures that scientists had created from

crystallographic data from the protein databank, and I wrote some software that would transform it into this le

structure that was capable of being 3D printed,” he said.

Pickens spent about a year writing that software and developing the business that would end up printing these

structures. He launched the company in May 2012 at Maker Faire and received a ton of new orders.

“I noticed that, as the complexity of the molecules went up, the failure rate was going up, to the point where

the service bureaus weren’t able to actually meet my needs,” he said. “I just completely stopped. I shut the

company down.”

This led him to ask one question.

“What the hell is the problem?”

The problem, it turns out, was the materials being used at the time. According to Pickens, the state of the

art at the time was “spraying super glue onto drywall, calcium sulfate.” So he began rebooting his chemistry

background at a hackerspace to see if he could x the problem, and the seed for MadeSolid was planted.

He began frantically trying to source chemicals, looking everywhere from local ceramics supply stores to eBay.

He discovered that the words hacker and chemist were not a combination that inspired trust and understand-

ing from chemical suppliers. Some of the chemicals, especially the ones ordered on eBay, were shipped to

him in plastic-zippered bags with handwritten labels.

“It was absolutely breathtakingly difcult in the beginning to get chemicals,” he said.

It was around this time that Pickens met co-founder David Rorex and the pair decided to build their own 3D

printer. The company incorporated in January 2013 and initially operated as a service bureau (the companies

that print things for other people). After a few months they started to realize that they couldn’t change the

world by printing other people’s stuff, but they could with better materials. So they decided to discontinue

operations as a service bureau and go directly to the public with materials.

“It was absolutely

breathtakingly

difficult in the

beginning to get

chemicals.”

— Lance Pickens

http://www.canalys.com/newsroom/3d-printing-market-grow-us162-billion-2018

http://makerfaire.com/

http://makerfaire.com/

http://www.canalys.com/newsroom/3d-printing-market-grow-us162-billion-2018





Brian Martinez later joined as a co-founder, quickly seeing the value in building better materials for 3D printing.

“All the 3D printer manufacturers are making small changes to the way the printer works,” Martinez said.

“They’re making it slightly faster or making it so it can handle a slight bit more heat. But changing the mate-

rial you put into it or developing new, more advanced materials is really what’s going to drastically alter what

you’re able to produce.”

The group moved into a dingy warehouse in Oakland that they shared with food startup Soylent. After some

early success, they decided to shoot for the moon and apply to Y Combinator. According to Pickens, they

believed they had a snowball’s chance in hell to make it in—but they did.

Approaching the product The MadeSolid team usually begins the day with a quick gathering to discuss the problems they are working

on or the roadblocks they are running into.

The lab team starts with a set of properties it wants to achieve in the chemical mixtures, and they work on

achieving those levels. Pickens said that they will typically spend six to seven hours working on chemicals in

the lab, followed by one to two hours of testing. All this happens in parallel, in the aggregate. So some chem-

ists are working on chemicals as others are testing. They spend a lot of time testing, which Pickens said is the

most important part.

“Ultimately, you have to print it. All theory goes out the window when it’s time to do the real world stuff. You

have to test it,” Pickens said.

All the co-founders have a software background, which plays into the way they approach product develop-

ment at MadeSolid. They see chemical research and development (R&D) through a lens that’s similar to how

software developers see iterations of their product.

Image: James Martin

http://www.soylent.me/

http://www.soylent.me/





“During YC we launched a product that was good, but not good enough,” Pickens said. “We realized, ‘Oh

shit, we have to do something about this.’ So, we started mulling over the idea of well, if this was software we

could patch it. You release an update, you download it, and it works. And then we thought, ‘Well, maybe we

could do that too.’

“So, we gured out what the problem was. We gured out that as long as they had this particular volume that

they hadn’t used, we could come up with a patch kit where they would mix in this little vial of chemical with a

little holder to put it in. Shake it up and then, after an hour so, it would be ready to go, and they would have

the upgraded version of the resin. We launched it and all the users who had the patch kit were pretty happy

that we were able to do that. We think we might have released the rst chemical patch in history, [but] we’re

not sure.”

The majority of popular 3D printers typically use one of three methods: fused deposition modeling (FDM),

stereolithography apparatus (SLA), or selective laser sintering (SLS). FDM is what most people think of whenthey hear of 3D printing—the MakerBot-style machine that melts a line of plastic lament that looks like weed

whacker line rells. SLA uses a UV laser to cause a reaction with a resin, turning it into a solid. SLS shoots a

laser into a powdered material, typically metal, and turns it into a solid.

MadeSolid currently offers three materials for 3D printing:

• PET+ Filament (FDM)

• MS Resin (SLA)

• FireCast Resin (SLA)

When it comes to FDM, most materials offerings are either polylactic acid (PLA), a compostable plastic used

in some plastic utensils, or acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), the type of plastic used to make Lego bricks.

MadeSolid’s PET+ material is more exible than PLA and ABS, doesn’t shrink as much, is more heat resistant,

and is 100% recyclable. MadeSolid put together this test video to show it off.

“They have developed a fantastic product that provides the advantages of PLA (biodegradable, not petroleum

based, ease of print) with the advantages that kept me using ABS (strength) and some of the properties of

Nylon (exibility) without the difculty of use,” said Odie, a MadeSolid customer.

While it does produce and sell a lot of its PET+ product, MadeSolid focuses most of its time on developing

its resins. Its MS Resin is a UV curable photopolymer suitable for SLA style printing of a nished product. Its

FireCast Resin is also for SLA printing but is specically brewed for investment casting, meaning it can be used

to print molds to be lled with metal to create jewelry or machine parts.

“We use their products for all types of uses,” said Bobby Lambright, one of the co-founders of Elite

Imageworks Corp. and the designer of the Deep Imager 5 3D Printer. “We use them for prototyping

mechanical parts because of the very low shrinkage. We also use it to produce 3D prints for the jewelry

industries because of the ability to produce very high resolution prints; and the repeatability is excellent.”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpFZEl-cXv4

http://www.eliteimageworks.com/




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpFZEl-cXv4





As far as Pickens can tell, MadeSolid has about 300 to 400 customers that it sells to directly. The total

number of customers is difcult to pin down, as MadeSolid works with Amazon and another reseller market

to distribute its products. One of the most interesting statistics is that more than 30% of its sales are

international.

“Surprisingly, China is one our largest customers for our resin product,” Pickens said. “They don’t order by thebottle, they want to order by the drum. For us, I never dreamed that we would be in a situation where it’s 2014

and we are an exporter to China for 3D printing.”

Pickens said that it seems like 3D printing is almost growing faster in China than the US, and he wouldn’t be

surprised if China overtakes the US as one of the top countries for innovation in 3D printing. He also noted

that there is a huge market for 3D printing in Europe, especially Germany and Scandinavia.

MadeSolid is in a unique situation in a growing market, but 3D printing still has miles to go before it becomes a

household consumer tool.

Managing expectations3D printing has the potential to change many aspects of the global economy. For example, starting a business

requires a lot of capital, but 3D printing can help lower the capital requirement by making it easier to prototype

or print a rst run of a product.

Martinez said he believes 3D printing is capable of changing the economics of lower-income regions, espe-

cially if they don’t have access to big manufacturing systems. It will also allow for customization of items that

currently can’t be customized, such as shoe midsoles for feet that aren’t exactly the same size, custom t

Image: James Martin





orthotics, casts for broken bones, glasses frames, and bodily implants.

While the potential for 3D printing is huge, quite a few issues are still holding it back from mass adoption. Ac-

cording to Martinez, outside of the materials problem, three main issues are facing 3D printing today:

• People don’t trust printers.

• It requires complicated CAD software.

• There’s a lack of imagination.

Consider the 1999 comedy lm Ofce Space. In the movie, the character Michael Bolton has a long-running

frustration with the company printer as it constantly presents him with the error “PC Load Letter.” After battling

with the machine for most of the lm, Bolton and his colleagues take a baseball bat to the printer in an open

eld as the Geto Boys song “Damn It Feels Good To Be A Gangsta” plays in the background.

Think of the jokes about how often standard paper printers fail. Those printers fail all the time, and they have

been around for decades. Now imagine that you are printing a three-dimensional model that has to work when

it is nished to keep your operation aoat. Right now, there isn’t enough trust in the technology to consistently

produce a working product.

“What I see happening currently in the consumer space is that when we go to a CES show or a maker fair

and people come up and they grab the prints, the rst thing that they try to do naturally is break the prints,”

Martinez said. “This doesn’t happen in any other industry, I don’t think. No one goes to the new iPhone booth

and starts slamming the iPhone on the desk, or throwing it against the wall to see when it will break.”

There is a general perception that 3D printing doesn’t produce functional items, such as working cogs for a

machine. So when people are shown 3D printed products that are functional, it begins to change their percep-

tion about what 3D printing can accomplish.

There are also problems on the manufacturing side. Pickens said that 3D printing is full of companies making

grand claims in their marketing materials that their products can’t live up to. Some people are just importing

plastic laments from China and reselling it with a new label. MadeSolid often buys and tests its competitors’

products to see how its own products match up, and that has led to some interesting results.

When MadeSolid rst started, the team wanted to work on some photopolymers to make lenses, and they

needed something that would end up clear. They purchased a competing product and tried it out.

“We got some of our competitor’s material, because they said it was transparent, or clear,” Pickens said. “It

says it right on the bottle. We printed with it on our machine and tried it on a couple machines we bought and

none of the prints were clear. They were yellow, like safety glass yellow. So we were like, ‘What the hell?’

“We printed out two identical lenses. One in that material and one in our material, and put them on top of this

photograph and took a picture of it. You could see that ours was completely transparent and theirs was yellow

Then we posted it online, and our competitor, they got a bit pissed off. We think they’re still angry because of




that, but they changed their label to say ‘uncolored’ instead of ‘clear’ as a result of that particular incident. We

just want people to be honest in what their product does.”

Pickens wants MadeSolid to under-promise and over-deliver, and not the other way around.

In addition to competing with cheap, re-labeled plastics, companies like MadeSolid are having to battle

misconceptions perpetuated by the way 3D printing is marketed and written about. To a certain degree,

people expect 3D printing to be a clean process. Some consumers don’t understand that it is a manufacturing

process and that burning plastic will still stink up their house.

“Manufacturing is dirty, and people are basically doing manufacturing in their house; but there is a discon-

nect,” Martinez said. “They think that this form of manufacturing should be way cleaner than the other forms of

manufacturing, which is partially true, but you’re still doing manufacturing.”

3D printing often requires cleaning up afterward, but most people aren’t aware of it. When you do SLA

printing, you have to clean liquid off of a nished print. With SLS printing, powder must be blown off of

powder-based prints.

Another misconception that Pickens has noticed is that many people see 3D printing as further along in devel-

opment than it currently is.

“One of my friends played a prank on a guest over at his house,” Pickens said. “What he did is he took a

MakerBot and he started printing a bowl. He left with the guest and then, while he was gone, he had one of

his friend switch it with an already printed bowl that was lled up with milk and cereal. The friend comes back

in, and the guest completely believed that it could print that.

“The fact people think that we are already at that age of Star Trek replicator technology is not very helpful to

the eld, because people are going to be let down. We’re not there yet, and there’s a lot of work that needs to

be done.”

For that work to be done, it will take effort

from the 3D printing manufacturers, the

material producers, and the 3D printing

advocates—and Pickens wants MadeSolid to

lead the charge on the materials side.

“We’re focused on functional materials,” he

said. “We want a future where everything is

printed and we’re, essentially, one of the few

Documents

Business Posibilities of 3D Printing