What You Need To Know About 3D Printing

The 3D printing industry has gone through rapid changes since the technology has become more accessible. Now, every home could have a 3D printer in it, and just about anybody could learn to use it. The technology that was once used mainly for prototyping and small-scale projects has grown into an industry of full-scale production lines, with some ‘3D printing farms’ operating with over 300 printers.  

While most of the demand is industrial in nature, the small-scale demand is also increasing. 3D printing brings otherwise hard to come by items more accessible in remote areas, or smaller towns. 

Acumen Research and Consulting forecasts that the global market for the 3D printing industry could reach up to $41 billion dollars by 2026.  

How does it work? 

It all starts with the creation of a 3D model. While there are websites like Thingiverse, and Printables, where anybody can search and download ready-to-print 3D files, some items require a designer to create the file from scratch. 

These files are rendered on 3D modelling programs like Blender, or Tinkercad to name a few. This can be a tedious task, and it requires more skill than the average PC user has. However, thanks to the glorious abyss that is the internet, there are thousands of free tutorials online to teach anybody who is interested in how to do it.  

Once the file is created and ready, it is then put through a slicing process. There are various programs that do this, too. The item is essentially sliced into hundreds or thousands of separate layers. Those layers are programmed into a file that the printer can read, and stored onto an SD card or flash drive.  

Then, the file is taken to the printer. But first, the printer needs to be correctly set up. The bed needs to be levelled; nozzles need to be checked. Print speed and temperatures need to be correctly set depending on the type of material being printed. 

Finally, the object is ready to be printed. Even if all of these steps are done perfectly, there is still the risk that the initial print or even the first three prints fail. Each time, it is back to the drawing board to find where the problem lies and correct it until a perfect print is produced. 

What can be printed?  

This is where it can become overwhelming. When the possibilities are endless, how do you choose and where do you begin?  

Here is a list that outlines a small portion of what is most commonly 3D printed. 

• Industrial Products (like prototypes and tools, etc.) 

• Prosthetics

• Dental Products

• Consumer Products (like fashion items, decor, toys, etc.) 

• Props

• Architectural scale models

• Reconstructions (fossils, remains, ruins, artifact replications, forensic evidence.) 

• Parts to improve your existing 3D printer 

3D printing at Jelly Wobble Media is still small-scale, but we’ve decided to make it accessible to everyone in Stanford. If there’s something you need, or you’d simply like to learn more, or see a printer in action, then come through to our new studio at Morton Square, and we’d be happy to see you!