1. 3d Printing BY AARON ALLISON & GERSON MOUZINHO

2. Beginnings  Earliest use of 3d printing was for quickly producing prototypes during the late 1980s  This allowed companies to have a working prototype in hours instead of days or even weeks  This allowed companies to design and redesign much faster resulting in cheaper research and development costs along with better products

3. Origins  Early 3d printing equipment was invented by Chuck Hall who would later create the 3d systems corporation.  Chuck Hull invented a process known as Stereolithography  Stereolithography works by using a UV laser to harden a photopolymer layer that has been printed  Each layer is hardened to build an object resulting in a 3d printed object  Today the process is a lot faster taking minutes rather than hours and is mostly automated

4. Current Challenges  Current state of metallurgy and chemical engineering is unable to create strong enough components to use in a 3d printer for many everyday applications  Designers often have to use extensive engineering to overcome this but it is still over not enough to overcome these challenges  Polymers are undesirable over a longer period of time because they deteriorate much easier and faster than metals from various temperature extremes and exposure to elements and chemicals

5. Current challenges cont  Lack of practical everyday applications  Products need further sanding  Products need protective coatings  Plastic injection molding currently offers a more efficient way to manufacture goods

6. Opportunities  Ability to replace current inefficient manufacturing methods of milling, stamping and event casting  End out sourcing with manufacturing  Custom parts will become much cheaper to produce

7. Opportunities cont.  Convenience  Efficiencies  Logistical

8. Designing a 3d image  autoCAD  multi-industry use  offers the most flexibility with design creation  like photoshop is it difficult to use initially as well as many people attend schools and course just to learn how to use it  Niagara College offers 2 courses on how to use this software  Expensive software  Can be used through the College’s educational software licensing system

9. DEMO  Tinkercad.com

10. 3d scanners  3d scanner uses lasers to copy a 3d object  2 main kinds (rotating plate & standalone version)  Scanners can also pick up colour  Many scans are needed to create a complete 3d image

11. Average cost of a 3d printer  Cost range of a 3d printers is around $800-3000  Printers can be wifi compatible  Printers range use polymer cartridges  Price will reflect the features of the printer’s capabilities  Cost of printer’s polymer cartridges should be examined as well

12. Outsourcing  Fiverr.com  All contracts are initially $5  Option to add more services for a fee  Odesk.com (over 180,000 experts, hourly rate)  Elance.com (over 1millon US based freelancers)  Freelancer.ca (Canadian based)

13. Further reading  3ders.org