hp 3d printing Archives - Perfect 3D Printing Filament

Wi3DP: Experts Discuss Challenges and Trends in 3D Printing Sustainability

A virtual panel discussion and networking event by Women in 3D Printing (Wi3DP) gathered three industry experts and leaders to share their insights and experiences on sustainability trends in additive manufacturing (AM) and how they will impact the industry’s choice of materials, energy usage, and waste.

Hosted by AM-Cubed President and Founder, Kristin Mulherin, and supported by AM service company Link3D, the live event featured Ellen Jackowski, HP’s Chief Sustainability and Social Impact Officer; Sherry Handel, the newly appointed Executive Director of the Additive Manufacturer Green Trade Association (AMGTA); and Cindy Deekitwong, Global Head of Marketing and Strategy for 3D Printing at Henkel Adhesive Technologies. The group touched on several hotly debated topics, like the lack of research on the environmental benefits and challenges of AM and how to generate a fully circular economy for the industry, underlying the importance of finding ways to enhance the already visible benefits of the technology.

Mulherin asked the experts to discuss how sustainability initiatives can respond to many of the challenges facing 3D printing. For Jackowski, companies need to start making more sustainable decisions that will help move the industry forward in a responsible manner. Adding that everyone in the industry, no matter what role they play, need to have what she likes to call “sustainability contact lenses,” meaning that, even if the job description does not involve sustainability, they need to figure out a way to make decisions that will have an impact on the carbon footprint, the community, or the health and safety of a manufactured product.

“We certainly don’t want to start seeing 3D printed parts bobbing around in the ocean like we see so many other things these days. We all need to continue to drive the energy efficiency of this business,” suggested Jackowski. “For example, when you plug those 3D printers in, they suck up a lot of energy, and that is certainly an area for innovation. So, I would say that whatever part of the 3D printing industry you are in, think about your impact on sustainability. It is also crucial to understand the implications of the materials we use, where we source them from, and how our customers use them in the most sustainable manner.”

Ellen Jackowski visiting an FSC-certified forest to see responsible forest management in action. (Image courtesy of HP)

The other panelists agreed that sustainable impact is about collaborative efforts, and having everyone involved in reinventing the company for sustainable impact. Deekitwong highlighted that the technology itself lends to more efficient designs that create less waste and eco-friendly supply chains, but she believes the industry should enhance sustainability efforts by reducing fuel consumption, working with suppliers to find biorenewable materials and collaborate with ecosystem partners and consumers to recycle end-of-life parts. Deekitwong shared how Henkel’s recycling initiatives led the company to collaborate with TerraCycle to upcycle garbage from used 3D printed parts, resins, and packaging.

For Handel, who is focused on promoting the inherently positive environmental benefits of AM within key industries and the public at large, the existing research does not provide enough good metrics in data. This is why AMGTA is commissioning academic research through life-cycle assessment (LCA), to quantify and provide data and metrics on what it takes to produce a particular part via both traditional and additive manufacturing processes. Eventually, this will help the industry better understand what the eco-footprint is, and reveal some areas that will make the industry even more sustainable in the future.

Handel then centered on one of AMGTA’s core projects that will help create a more circular economy by empowering companies to develop a global set of standards to properly and cost-effectively recycle powder condensate, a vaporized metal powder that collects on the chamber walls and in the filter unit during a build process.

“The powder condensate cannot be reused and is considered a hazardous waste by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). It usually ends up in a landfill, so we want to find a way to repurpose it, recycle it, and publish a a set of standards in early 2021 that we can share with our member companies and industry to help mitigate this challenge,” indicated Handel.

Then, Mulherin shared an overview of the importance of avoiding greenwashing, an unsubstantiated claim to deceive consumers into believing that a company is environmentally friendly. For both Deekitwong and Jackowski, this point is crucial, especially since both Henkel and HP have over 50,000 employees, and need to convey the message to everyone that the company’s reputation could be destroyed with one wrong move. Jackowski further described how it could be easy for employees to make a judgment call that could lean toward greenwashing, but said HP is “very aware of the boundaries of greenwashing.”

Cindy Deekitwong. (Image courtesy of Henkel Adhesive Technologies)

Both companies have seemingly strong objectives in place. For Henkel, reducing carbon footprint in operations means a 65% reduction by 2025, 75% by 2030, and becoming “climate positive” in 2040. While HP’s awareness of its responsibility around creating a circular economy led to policies to use fully recyclable materials in 3D printers.

“Our eye is looking at how we set up this industry, and as we’ve transitioned, we have seen increased adoption during the pandemic because of the flexibility and speed that 3D printing offers. But I think there are a lot of opportunities to continue to innovate and, as we stand up this industry, as we all transform from traditional manufacturing to 3D, we need to think about it holistically and doing it right from the beginning,” said Jackowski.

Sherry Handel, Executive Director of the Additive Manufacturer Green Trade Association. (Image courtesy of AMGTA)

A clear challenge for Handel is the lack of awareness of environmental management system certifications. AMGTA encourages member companies to get ISO 14001 certified, an international standard that helps set the framework for a company to benchmark where they are and help them improve environmental criteria over time, like energy use. But Handel said that “not everyone is going to be able to flip on a dime and hit the easy button to get things accomplished and starting somewhere is better than nothing,” which is why AMGTA suggests third party certifications, like the Green Business Bureau, taking companies on a pathway towards more environmentally sustainable practices.

Toward the end of the conversation, Mulherin suggested that organizations need to recognize that sustainability efforts will generate revenues, instead of simply costing the companies money. In fact, Jackowski indicated that customers are taking notice of a company’s sustainability initiatives, detailing how HP saw $1.6 billion in new sales in 2019 due to the company’s actions in sustainability, a 70% increase year over year.

“We are seeing a shift, an awakening of general consciousness in consumer behavior and purchase patterns surrounding sustainability, and we only expect it to get stronger. That provides financial motivation for everyone in this space to continue to accelerate what we are doing. Whatever part of the value chain you are in, you are going to start feeling it more: the pressure to go sustainable,” said Jackowski, who also emphasized HP’s continued commitment to sustainability since founders David Packard and Bill Hewlett created the company in 1939. “As it has evolved over the years, sustainability has gone from being founder-led to across the DNA of the company.”

The virtual event gathered a wide array of participants worldwide, most of them working in the AM industry and eager to learn about sustainable practices thriving in 3D printing. As with previous panels, this Women in 3D Printing event facilitated a networking experience both before and after the speakers virtually took the floor, with crowded tables and a lot of simultaneous chats about the importance of environmentally sound practices in additive.

The post Wi3DP: Experts Discuss Challenges and Trends in 3D Printing Sustainability appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

HP and Dyndrite Partner to Create Next Generation 3D Printing Solutions

Seattle startup Dyndrite announced a strategic new partnership with Hewlett Packard (HP) to license Dyndrite’s geometric kernel technology and power the next generation cloud and edge-based digital manufacturing solutions. By combining HP’s end-to-end manufacturing management expertise with Dyndrite’s cutting edge additive technology, HP is hoping to deliver a software platform capable of powering the additive manufacturing (AM) factories of the future.

In 2019, 26-year old Harshil Goel’s company Dyndrite emerged out of stealth mode to reveal the world’s first GPU-native geometry engine, the Dyndrite Accelerated Geometry Kernel (AGK). Since geometry kernels were first introduced decades ago, they have been a crucial component in advancing 3D CAD/CAM/CAx software. Still, the company claimed this software have not kept pace with changing computational architectures, modern manufacturing technologies, and modern design needs. In order to address this challenge, Goel teamed up with veteran mathematicians, computer scientists, and mechanical engineers to develop a new solution that could level the playing field so that the manufacturing hardware no longer surpassed the software, facilitating the AM industry to reach its potential.

“The promise of 3D printing is to deliver unique parts and tools not possible through traditional methods, and do so on an industrial and global scale. For this to happen the industry must evolve and Dyndrite’s mission is to accelerate this change,” said Goel, now CEO of Dyndrite. “HP is a clear leader in industrial 3D printing and this collaboration speeds the game-changing impact our technology brings to the AM community at large. We applaud HP’s vision and look forward to a long and fruitful partnership for years to come.”

The new alliance builds on HP’s focus on expanding its software and data platform to help customers fully realize the transformative power of 3D printing technology. Through the development of new solutions that leverage the Dyndrite kernel, HP expects to improve efficiency, enhance performance and quality, enable mass-personalization, automate complex workflows, and create scalability and extensibility for continued partner and customer innovation. The ultimate goal for both companies is to change how the software works in the AM industries, driving new performance and functionality.

In that sense, Dyndrite claims that its fully native GPU Kernel easily handles additive specific computations such as lattice, support, and slice generation, in some cases reducing compute times from hours or days to minutes or seconds. For heavy use cases, the Dyndrite kernel is naturally scalable with access to additional GPU nodes, whether locally or in the cloud and provides both C++ and English-readable Python APIs, making application development accessible to a wide variety of users, including non-programmers such as students, mathematicians, and mechanical engineers. Probably what most interests HP is providing developers and original equipment manufacturer (OEM)s with a tool capable of representing all current geometry types, including higher-order geometries such as splines (NURBs), surface tessellations, volumetric data, tetrahedra, and voxels, allowing the development of next-generation applications and devices.

Using Dyndrite solution for additive manufacturing (Image courtesy of Dyndrite Corporation)

“Innovations in software, data intelligence, and workflow automation are key to unlocking the full potential of additive manufacturing,” said Ryan Palmer, Global Head of Software, Data and Automation of HP 3D Printing and Digital Manufacturing. “We are committed to advancing our digital manufacturing platform capabilities and this strategic collaboration with Dyndrite is an exciting next step on the journey.”

Building upon HP’s leading position as a behemoth technology firm, the company has acquired and partnered with dozens of companies to broaden its ecosystem and accelerate innovation and speed product development and supply chain efficiencies. HP also supports numerous 3D printing and digital manufacturing open standards to ensure data interoperability and choice for customers.

As a global provider of industrial-grade 3D printing and digital manufacturing solutions, HP offers systems, software, services, and materials science innovation to its customers. These solutions already include numerous software and data innovations, like its HP 3D Process Control and HP 3D Center software offerings.

Dyndrite’s new GPU-powered, python-scriptable, additive manufacturing build processor at work (Image courtesy of Dyndrite Corporation)

The new HP and Dyndrite partnership builds on a relationship that first began when HP became one of the inaugural members of the Dyndrite Developer Council, a group of leading 3D printing systems, software, and solutions providers. Along with Aconity3D, EOS, NVIDIA, Plural Additive Manufacturing, and Renishaw, HP was chartered with steering the future direction of the company’s roadmap. The driving force behind Goel’s venture is advancing the design and manufacturing software tools used today, which he said were built more than 30 years ago and are becoming bottlenecks to today’s creativity and productivity. Especially when compared to the manufacturing hardware that over the past few years has given rise to new design philosophies and a whole new paradigm of manufacturing production.

In this sense, Dyndrite is creating next-generation software for the design, manufacturing and additive marketplace, with the goal to dramatically increase the workflow and efficiency of AM technologies. With Dyndrite joining HP’s global ecosystem, HP advances 3D printing and digital manufacturing solutions, improving the overall experience for its customers and moving the industry forward.

The post HP and Dyndrite Partner to Create Next Generation 3D Printing Solutions appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

3D Printing Webinar and Virtual Event Roundup, August 2, 2020

It’s another busy week in the 3D printing industry that’s packed full of webinars and virtual events, ranging in topics from medical materials and flexible electronics to polypropylene and market costs. There are four on Tuesday, August 4th, two on Wednesday, August 5th, and the week will end with the last KEX webinar on Thursday, August 6th.

ASTM’s AM General Personnel Certificate Program

Last week, the ASTM International Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence (AM CoE) training course all about additive manufacturing safety. Now, the AM CoE is starting its AM General Personnel Certificate course, which will begin August 4th and run through the 27th. One of its key focus areas is promoting AM adoption, and helping to fill the knowledge gap with training for the future AM workforce is a major way that the AM CoE is doing this. The online course is made up of eight modules covering all the general concepts of the AM process chain, and attendees will learn important technical knowledge that will allow them to earn a General AM Certificate after completing a multiple-choice exam.

“This course will feature 17 experts across the field of additive manufacturing to provide a comprehensive course covering all of the general concepts of the AM process chain to its attendees. The course will occur over the month of August consisting of two modules per week for four weeks. More information can be found in the course flyer.”

Online registration will open soon. This is not a free course—you can learn about the fees here.

Nexa3D & Henkel: Medical Materials Webinar

Recently, SLA 3D printer manufacturer Nexa3D and functional additive materials supplier Henkel announced that they were partnering up to commercialize the polypropylene-like xMED412, a durable, high-impact material that can be used to 3D print biocompatible medical and wearable devices; in fact, it’s already been cleared to print nasal swabs. Now, the two are holding a virtual leadership forum on “Advances and Breakthroughs in 3D Printed Medical Equipment and Device Materials,” like xMED412. Topics to be discussed will include new possibilities for 3D printing medical equipment and devices, the benefits of using AM to fabricate these products, and the advantages additive manufacturing has over medical materials made with traditional manufacturing. Panelists will engage with attendees after the discussion in a live Q&A session.

“3D printing has introduced all kinds of new possibilities for developing stronger and lightweighted equipment but we’ve only scratched the surface of what’s possible. These past few months have driven the industry to new realms of creativity with the need to quickly deliver medical supplies, devices and materials. With new lightweight, sturdy materials designed to withstand impact, moisture and vibration, access to lower cost medical equipment is becoming more widely available thanks to 3D printing.”

SOLIDWORKS Design Solution Demonstration

Also on August 4th, at 11 am EST, Dassault Systèmes will be holding a brief demonstration of its 3DEXPERIENCE SOLIDWORKS design solution. This demonstration of the platform’s capabilities will last just 22 minutes, and will teach attendees how to collaborate and stay connected to data while creating new designs with SOLIDWORKS when connected to the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, exploring the latest tools available on the platform, and design a model using both parametric (3D Creator) and Sub-D modeling (3D Sculptor) tools with the help of complementary workflows.

“SOLIDWORKS is the design tool that has been trusted by engineers and designers around the world for decades. Part of the 3DEXPERIENCE WORKS portfolio, SOLIDWORKS is now connected to the 3DEXPERIENCE platform with cloud-based tools that enable everyone involved in product development to collaborate on real-time data. Doing so enables you to efficiently gain the insight needed to create revolutionary new products.”

You can register for the demonstration here.

NextFlex Innovation Days

The last August 4th event in this week’s roundup is NextFlex Innovation Days, the flagship showcase event for the consortium of academic institutions, companies, non-profits, and local and federal governments that make up NextFlex and are working to advance US manufacturing of flexible hybrid electronics (FHE). The event will run through Thursday, August 6th, and will include panel discussions on how FHEs are continuing to transform the world, including a panel featuring a special guest speaker from the US Senate. FHE innovations that will be highlighted during the event include a wearable biometrics monitor from Stretch Med, Inc., flexible skin-like sensors from Georgia Tech, a flexible UV sensor out of the NASA Ames Research Center, miniaturized gas sensors that GE Research integrated into wearables and drone formats, and Brewer Science’s integrated FHE solutions in a brewery application.

“This multi-day virtual event will feature over 50 customer, partner and member company presentations online available at no cost. If you watch live, you’ll have the chance to interact with presenters and flexible hybrid electronic (FHE) experts from the comfort of home via webinars and virtual labs, or you can watch video demonstrations at your availability.”

Additive America & HP AM Webinar

HP is currently sponsoring a webinar series highlighting business in the AM industry that worked to transition their production processes in order to help fill the supply chain gap that’s been caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This week’s episode, which will take place at 1:30 pm EST on Wednesday, August 5th, will feature a discussion with Additive America on “the lasting impact of COVID-19 on additive manufacturing.”

“Listen in on conversations with our customers to learn how they have adapted to the change in business climate, whether it be a shift in production workflow to address supply chain gaps, enabling a faster product development cycle to support changing customers’ needs, or bridge production.”

You can register for this webinar here.

Prodways, BASF, & Peridot Talk Polypropylene

Also on August 5th, Prodways, BASF, and full-service product development company Peridot Inc. will be holding a free webinar together called “Rethink Additive Manufacturing with Polypropylene.” Led by Lee Barbiasz from Prodways, Jeremy Vos from BASF, and Peridot owner Dave Hockemeyer, the webinar will focus on how PP 1200, a tough, chemically resistant, low density polypropylene enabled by BASF for selective laser sintering (SLS) 3D printing, is being used to bridge the gap between additive manufacturing and injection molding, as well as growing opportunities and applications in short run manufacturing. Hockemeyer was an early adopter of the material, and will share a variety of use cases for PP 1200. There will also be a chance for attendees to ask questions about the material.

“3D Printing with Polypropylene is here! After more than three decades, 3D printing technology has evolved the ability to 3D print polypropylene material. Polypropylene enables scalability in manufacturing, reduces barriers to entry in 3D printing and reduces manufacturing costs by 25-50%!”

You can register for the webinar, held on Wednesday, August 5th, from 1-1:45 pm EST, here.

KEX Knowledge Exchange on Market, Costs & Innovation

The last entry in this week’s roundup will take place on Thursday, August 6th. KEX Knowledge Exchange AG, a former spinoff of Fraunhofer IPT, held webinars in July about powder bed fusion technology and post-processing, and the last in its series will be an online seminar on Market, Costs & Innovation. Sebastian Pfestorf from KEX and Lea Eilert, the project and technology manager for the ACAM Aachen Center for Additive Manufacturing, will be the speakers for this webinar.

“In this online seminar, you will learn:

Current AM market and industrial trends
What markets the technology has penetrated the most and why
How to go about implementing AM, including risks and uncertainties

You can register for the hour-long webinar here. It will take place on Thursday, August 6th, at 8 am EST.

Will you attend any of these events and webinars, or have news to share about future ones? Let us know!

The post 3D Printing Webinar and Virtual Event Roundup, August 2, 2020 appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

Replacement Parts for Assault Amphibious Vehicle 3D Printed with HP’s Metal Jet

In 2018, HP announced that it was entering the metal side of the additive marketing industry with the introduction of its Metal Jet technology. While Metal Jet has been used for applications in the automotive industry, the United States Marine Corps is now adopting it to make parts for a very different kind of vehicle: the 26-ton, bulletproof AAV, or Assault Amphibious Vehicle. Nicknamed the AmTrac, AAVs have been carrying over 20 humans and a storehouse of supplies safely back to shore since 1972, chugging through the water at eight mph. There are over 1,000 vehicles in the fleet, all of which will be phased out of operation in the next two decades.

An AAV (Assault Amphibious Vehicle)

Unfortunately, because the AAVs are set to retire, private manufacturers that have long made replacement parts for the vehicles are less enticed to do so now. This is causing a negative effect on the USMC supply chain: AAVs are sitting around unused, and Marines may even go to battle without them.

Kristin Holzworth, chief scientist for the Marine Corps Systems Command’s Advanced Manufacturing Operations Cell, stated, “This is a critical part of our future, ensuring readiness of those in uniform.”

HP Metal Jet

That’s why the AAV program is turning to HP’s Metal Jet technology to 3D print replacement parts by the hundreds, like bolts and brackets, couplings and cranks, at California manufacturing company Parmatech.

“We go into some pretty remote areas and the supply chain is just not available to us yet. So, the ability to make our own parts at the point of need is critically important,” said Scott Adams, a civilian member of the USMC.

Most of these parts were previously made with subtractive manufacturing, but, by using metal 3D printing, they can be mass produced much more quickly. Metal Jet printers can place up to 630 million nanogram-sized drops of liquid binder per second onto the powder bed, and a polymer binds the metal particles together during the process to make high-strength parts.

“Being able to clasp (what used to require) 50 different, subtractive-manufacturing lines into a couple of prints, you almost can’t even put words to that. The efficiencies that are likely to come from that are absolutely astronomical,” said USMC Col. Patrick M. Col. Tucker, commanding officer of Combat Logistics Regiment 15 at Camp Pendleton, California, where marines train in AAVs.

Examples of replacement parts 3D printed for AAVs.

A Marine Corps analysis conducted in April found that many AAVs have to wait, on average, 140 days for replacement parts, some of which have been back-ordered for over a year.

“It takes those Assault Amphibious Vehicles offline. As of (April 1), here at Camp Pendleton, we had 41 of our 214 vehicles in maintenance. It’s a very important platform to our combat readiness,” explained Col. Tucker, who served in the Iraq War and helps manage the Metal Jet program.

Additionally, Metal Jet 3D printing allows the soldiers to fabricate assemblies of multiple pieces as a single part, rather than welding them together.

Sgt. Jonathan Anderson, part of the 1st Supply Battalion at Camp Pendleton, said, “It gets rid of welds period, which is absolutely amazing. A weld is always a weak point. We are actually increasing the life cycle of these parts and potentially increasing the life cycle of the vehicle.”

At the moment, fewer AAVs can be used for training at Camp Pendleton, and even out in the field at distant bases, due to current part shortages.

Col. Tucker noted, “In extreme times where we have a kinetic operation, you could foresee that we may have to send (Marine) units without that.”

Soon, the 3D-printed AAV parts in the Metal Jet program will enter the first testing phase to make sure that they function properly in test vehicles and have accurate size and weight. Holzworth says that it’s “promising work” and that all parts tested so far have passed. In the second part of testing, the parts will be installed into the test AAV, which will then be driven in order to test the reliability.

One of the 1,024 AAVs the US Marine Corps hopes to outfit with 3D-printed replacement parts

Once the testing is complete, the retiring AAV fleet will be serviced much more quickly.

“It’s all about equipment readiness, and about our ability to deploy into an area or to sustain ourselves while we are there,” said Adams, who is on the team working to equip AAVs with 3D printed parts.

Col. Tucker states that the AAV is a “good Guinea pig tester,” but notes that the team is also looking into other USMC platforms that may benefit from the use of Metal Jet technology. Additionally, the program could have further reaching ramifications for the entire US military.

Because the Marine Corps is so small, it has what Col. Tucker calls a “shallow” supply chain, which means that the parts it needs aren’t as big as what the US Army uses. And just like with the AAV replacement parts, industrial manufacturers aren’t as inclined to use their machines to make the parts. Also, because the USMC works to defend our country’s interests all around the world, this small supply chain is often strained as well.

“That’s why something like rapid metal is so interesting. This capability would allow us to move around that problem,” Col. Tucker said.

Discuss this story and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts in the comments below.

(Source/Images: HP)

The post Replacement Parts for Assault Amphibious Vehicle 3D Printed with HP’s Metal Jet appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

HP’s Partner Network Teams Up to Battle COVID-19 with Simple Designs & 3D Printed Innovations

Normally, this is the time of year when we’re fielding a constant flood of press releases, firming up travel plans, and starting to set interview schedules for the annual 3D printing extravaganza that is RAPID + TCT. But SARS-CoV-2, otherwise known as COVID-19 or the coronavirus, has changed all that. On top of nearly all major additive manufacturing shows in the near future (and the Tokyo Olympics) being canceled, the pandemic is wreaking havoc elsewhere as well.

Field ventilator that includes parts made with HP’s MJF 3D printing.

According to the World Health Organization, there are currently close to 400,000 cases of the disease around the world, with that number rising every day, and we’ve all added the phrase “social distancing” to our vocabulary. On a personal note, I’m a frequent theatre volunteer, and the shows I was working on have either been postponed or canceled. Last night, I delivered groceries (though not toilet paper) to my 94-year-old grandparents since they’re not supposed to leave the house, waved to my mother from six feet away, and I’ve participated in numerous Zoom conferences and FaceTime calls with friends over the past week, since Ohio is under a “stay at home” order.

Image: Huffington Post

But, as the above quote from beloved American TV personality Fred Rogers says, you can always find people who are helping during the hard times. HP Inc. is one of those helpers: the company, along with its digital manufacturing community, is mobilizing its 3D printing experience, technology, production capacity, and teams to help find solutions for the worldwide battle against COVID-19.

“HP and our digital manufacturing partners are working non-stop in the battle against this unprecedented virus,” stated HP’s President and CEO Enrique Lores. “We are collaborating across borders and industries to identify the parts most in need, validate the designs, and begin 3D printing them. Our deepest appreciation goes to our employees, partners, customers, and members of our community for their tireless efforts to support the medical professionals making a difference on the front lines.”

HP’s worldwide network of digital manufacturing and production partners has stepped up to the plate to create and deliver 3D printed critical parts during this pandemic to help support the global health community, and more than 1,000 parts have been delivered to local hospitals already. The company’s 3D R&D centers in Washington, Oregon, California, and Spain are banding together, working with partners all around the world to ramp up production of these parts in order to help the healthcare sector meet the urgent needs of its many patients, and contain the spread of COVID-19, through 3D printing.

Face shield 3D printed with HP’s MJF.

Because HP’s network of manufacturing partners is global, these 3D printed parts should be available to hospitals in any region in the world. The company is working with industry, health, and government agencies to make sure that the approach is effective and synchronized, and its partners are making many of their validated 3D design files available for download free of charge here. The available designs consist of parts that don’t require complex assembly, so that production can keep up its accelerated pace.

There are several important applications that have already been finalized for industrial 3D printing, such as respirator parts and nasal swabs. Another is a face shield, which is one of the personal protection items in high demand at the moment. A critical component of these shields are 3D printable brackets that help ensure a comfortable fit.

Thousands of 3D printed mask adjusters were delivered in China and Spain.

Hospital staff are often required to wear face masks for extended periods of time now. A 3D printed mask adjuster features a clasp that helps provide the wearer with some relief from ear pain caused by wearing their masks for so long.

One of the most germ-infested items in any hospital, home, or workplace is the door handle – just think how many different people have touched it in a 24-hour period! On second thought, maybe don’t think about it. But a 3D printed adapter makes it possible to easily open doors with your elbows: a hands-free option that obviously keeps things much cleaner.

3D printed door handle designed by Materialise.

Plenty of other 3D printed applications to help contain COVID-19 are currently in the testing and validation phase, and production for these should start in the coming days and weeks. One such example is the FFP3 face mask, which helps protect medical providers as they treat a higher volume of patients. HP is currently validating multiple hospital-grade 3D printable face masks, and they should be available soon.

3D printed field ventilator part.

A simplified design that requires 3D printed parts for a field ventilator is also being validated. The mechanical bag valve mask (BVM) was designed to provide short-term emergency ventilation to patients with COVID-19, and while it’s definitely an important application, the design makes the device simple yet strong, which helps speed up the production and assembly process.

3D designers who are interested in helping fight COVID-19 can visit this HP website to contribute ideas and applications. If you, or someone you know, would like to order parts that can help in the pandemic battle, or require support with application development, requests can be submitted here. Be safe, be smart, and stay healthy!

Discuss this news and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts in the Facebook comments below.

(Images: HP, unless otherwise noted)

The post HP’s Partner Network Teams Up to Battle COVID-19 with Simple Designs & 3D Printed Innovations appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

HP and NTU Singapore Officially Open Joint Corporate 3D Printing Lab

This week, Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore officially opened the doors to a new corporate lab that will help manufacturing companies as they work towards adopting digital technology. This new lab, created through a collaboration between the university and HP, will offer a digital manufacturing skills development program for Industry 4.0.

L-R: The HP-NTU Digital Manufacturing Corporate Lab was officially opened by NRF Singapore Executive Director Lim Tuang Liang; NTU Senior Vice President (Research) Prof. Lam Khin Yong; HP Inc CTO Shane Wall; and HP Inc Chief Technologist, Print, Glen Hopkins.

The facility has been dubbed the HP-NTU Digital Manufacturing Corporate Lab, and features a variety of technologies, such as supply chain models that enable faster time to market and intelligent design software tools that automate advanced customization, that will help make manufacturing operations more cost-effective, efficient, and sustainable. Members of tomorrow’s workforce can then become better equipped for work in the future manufacturing industry.

The partnership between the university, HP, and the National Research Foundation Singapore (NRF) was first announced last October, and this new facility is HP’s first university laboratory collaboration in Asia. Using the lab’s intelligent design software tools, engineers will be better able to customize and optimize the mechanical properties of their materials, while the automated technology will allow for designs that use the best combination of these properties so the resulting 3D printed parts have the necessary flexibility, strength, and weight. Then, manufacturers can rapidly scale production of custom goods even when the demand is high.

“HP’s passion for innovation, together with NTU’s world-class research capabilities, allow us to achieve new breakthroughs and unlock new solutions for both business and society,” said Shane Wall, Head of HP Labs and the company’s CTO.

One of NTU and HP’s joint goals is to recruit 100 researchers to work in the new lab, which already employs 60, in order to create new and innovative products. One current research project taking place there is focused on designing and optimizing end-to-end supply chain operations, so that manufacturers can use better business models and analytics to reduce how much time is needed to find parts that may be good candidates for fabricating with 3D printing, and also better measure their impact on the world’s carbon footprint.

This proof-of-concept project, and others, were presented at the opening of the HP-NTU Digital Manufacturing Corporate Lab, along with several technology demonstrations. Additionally, the grand opening was part of HP’s anniversary celebration of 50 years of growing its business in Singapore,

NTU Professor Tan Ming Jen and Dr. Mike Regan, co-directors of the HP-NTU Digital Manufacturing Corporate Lab, holding up 3D printed products from the HP Multi Jet Fusion 3D printer.

In conjunction with opening the new lab, NTU and HP worked together to create six SkillsFuture courses for manufacturing professionals.

“Our joint work in 3D printing, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, security and sustainability will produce disruptive technologies that define the future of manufacturing,” stated Wall. “Working together, we can create the workforce of the future and ensure the fourth Industrial Revolution is also a sustainable revolution.”

The skills development program will offer training in additive manufacturing and digital design under SkillsFuture, covering topics like AM fundamentals, automation, user experience, digital product designs, business models, and data management. About 120 workers each year can participate in these courses.

“The advanced technologies and automation solutions jointly developed by NTU and HP are expected to impact businesses in Singapore and beyond, as these innovations are geared towards efficiency, productivity and most importantly, sustainability,” said Professor Lam Khin Yong, NTU’s Senior Vice President of research.

“The new SkillsFuture courses developed jointly with HP also bring valuable industrial perspectives to help upskill and train a critical talent pool for Singapore.

“This will support the country’s drive towards becoming a smart nation as it faces the challenges of the fourth Industrial Revolution.”

Discuss this story and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts below.

[Source: The Straits Times / Images: NTU Singapore]

The post HP and NTU Singapore Officially Open Joint Corporate 3D Printing Lab appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

Interview with Elisabeth Moreno on HP and 3D Printing in Africa

Elisabeth Moreno, the Vice President and Managing Director Africa at HP Technology, talks to us about HP’s role in 3D printing in Africa, as well as the company’s influence in promoting the technology.

Elisabeth Moreno

Can you tell us about your involvement in 3D printing and additive manufacturing?

HP’s vision in 3D printing is to change how the world designs and manufactures and to lead in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

The combination of our IP, an expanded platform and a portfolio of products, and a continuously growing ecosystem of partners makes us a leader in 3D printing. We have alliances with organizations and companies including BASF, Materialise, and Siemens; and with industry leaders like Jaguar Land Rover, Vestas and more, all of which embrace HP 3D printing solutions.

Just a few weeks ago we announced a new 3D Printing and Digital Manufacturing Center of Excellence in Barcelona, Spain, which brings together hundreds of the world’s leading additive manufacturing experts in more than 150,000 square feet of cutting-edge innovation space.

In Africa, we know from Albright Stonebridge Group that 3D printing technology is expected to become a $4.5 billion industry in emerging markets by 2020. The technology is already being used today in various industries throughout the continent, including medical, agricultural, infrastructural and manufacturing applications.

What special projects or works have you done or are currently developing in the 3D printing landscape?

Globally, our work in 3D printing is quite vast. HP 3D printing technology is used for everything from prototyping to mass production. A few examples include:

HP LIFE Centers throughout Africa are one area we’re exposing youth and women to disruptive technologies like 3D printing. Through these LIFE Centers, HP is giving entrepreneurs in Africa the tools and education needed for jobs of the future, and no doubt 3D printing will play a huge role in this transition.
Recently we announced our work in South Africa with Tarsus Distribution and Solid Edge Technology. HP Multi Jet Fusion technology will be available through Tarsus’s and Solid Edge’s networks, particularly benefiting the automotive, industrial, healthcare, consumer goods markets.
Globally, we recently announced an expanded collaboration with customer SmileDirectClub to revolutionize the way that millions of people can achieve a straighter smile. By leveraging HP Jet Fusion 3D printing, SmileDirectClub will produce 50,000 unique mouth molds a day, and nearly 20 million individual 3D printed mouth molds in the next 12 months.

HP Multi Jet Fusion 3D printers family

What can you say about Women in 3D Printing and their influence or contribution to the technology?

3D printing can help make life better for everyone, everywhere. But like all other industries, if the people shaping the technology and the way it is used do not reflect society, we will be let down.

As an African woman, this topic is near and dear to my heart. We must ensure this next industrial revolution is inclusive and powered by the diversity of thought. HP prioritizes diversity in all that we do, and our 3D printing business is no exception.

How do you see 3D Printing and Additive manufacturing’s growth and development?

Although 3D printing technology isn’t necessarily new, the scope of its potential has taken off in just a matter of years. 3D printing is already being used in major industries like automotive, healthcare and heavy industry, just to name a few.

Here in Africa, we’re working closely with leaders like Tarsus Distribution and SeTech to bring 3D printing to South Africa.

SeTech’ s demo center, just outside of Johannesburg, is fully functional with an HP Multi Jet Fusion 4200 production unit and will enable customers to do benchmarking for a variety of verticals mentioned above.

Working with SeTech and Tarsus, we are spreading the knowledge about the possibilities 3D printing can offer to the African landscape, provide training sessions with experts and teaching customers about the technology.

HP Jet fusion 3D printer

Around the world, we also see 3D printing playing a huge role in education and skills provision for future jobs. For example, we’re beginning to see universities adopt 3D technology to prepare the future workforce for the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Model printed with HP Multi Jet Fusion

Two universities in Turkey have recently installed HP Multi Jet Fusion 3D printers to drive education and R&D purposes. Celal Bayar University has installed Multi Jet Fusion 3D printers in their Technology Centre, which they are using for both education and R&D purposes.

And, Istanbul Technical University, a highly respected university dedicated to the field of technology, has installed MJF 3D printers in their incubation center, ITÜMagnet, giving startups access to 3D printing technology.

ITU Magnet Incubation Center

What is your current organization’s position on 3D Printing and Additive manufacturing?

No doubt, there is a digital revolution happening in all areas of design, distribution, sustainability, and the entirety of the end-to-end manufacturing process. This revolution is enabling companies to do great things – innovate faster, leverage flexible manufacturing, reinvent their supply chains, create new markets, and produce new applications in new ways that were previously impossible.

And we’re just getting started. The World Economic Forum (WEF) recently estimated the value of digital transformations in the Fourth Industrial Revolution to be as much as $100 trillion over the next 10 years.

Parts printed at Incubation centre using HP Multi Jet Fusion

The post Interview with Elisabeth Moreno on HP and 3D Printing in Africa appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

3D Printing News Briefs: October 10, 2018

It’s business news as usual to kick things off in today’s 3D Printing News Briefs, and then we’re moving on to a little medical and metal 3D printing news, followed by a 3D printing experiment and a superhero-sized 3D printed statue. The LEHVOSS Group is expanding the production capacities for its LUVOCOM material, DyeMansion has announced that its new RAL colors are now available, and the Million Waves Project receives a large grant from Shell Oil. A medical technology company is using HP’s Multi Jet Fusion to 3D print dental aligners, a YouTube video shows the depowdering process for a metal 3D printed turbine, and an experiment shows if it’s possible to use a DLP 3D printer for PCB etching. Finally, WhiteClouds designed and 3D printed a huge statue of She-Ra for a special event.

LEHVOSS Group Expanding LUVOCOM Production Capacity

Not long ago, the LEHVOSS Group, which operates under the management of parent company Lehmann&Voss&Co., revealed that that it would be showcasing its high-performance, thermoplastic LUVOCOM 3F 3D printing compounds at upcoming trade shows. Now, in order to keep meeting the ever increasing demand for these materials, the company has taken important steps, such as constructing a new laboratory and innovation center in Hamburg and commissioning an additional compounding line, to expand the worldwide production capacities for LUVOCOM.

“At the same time, these investments are just another consistent step within the framework of our long-term growth strategy,” said Dr. Thomas Oehmichen, a shareholder of Lehmann&Voss&Co. with personal liability. “Additional extensive investments in the expansion of our plastics business are currently the subject of detailed planning and are set to follow shortly.”

DyeMansion’s New RAL Colors Available

While attending the TCT Show in Birmingham recently, DyeMansion launched three machines that work together to depowder, surface treat, and dye 3D printed parts. The DM60 is the fully automated dyeing part of the system, and the company added a brand new palette of 170 standard RAL colors for PA2200 to its portfolio to let people expand the color range of the system significantly.

DyeMansion has now announced that its new RAL colors for the PolyShot Surfacing (PSS) finish are now available for DM60 color cartridges, and can be ordered via the DyeMansion On-Demand Service. To check if your favorite colors are available, type in the RAL color code on the website. To learn more about the RAL palette and the Print-to-Product workflow, visit DyeMansion’s booth 3.1-G61 at formnext in Germany next month.

Shell Oil Gives Million Waves Project a $5,000 Grant

About 40 million people in the developing world don’t have access to the prosthetic limbs they desperately need, while an estimated 28 billion pounds of plastic trash is dumped into our oceans each year. 501c(3) non-profit organization the Million Waves Project is working to fix both of these problems by using recycled ocean plastic to make inexpensive, 3D printed prosthetic limbs for children. The organization is pleased to announce that it will be now be able to make even more 3D printed prosthetics for kids thanks to a $5,000 grant that Shell Oil is providing.

“We are so excited to partner with this incredible nonprofit that aims to help serve the millions of people in need of prosthetic limbs,” said Brenna Clairr, an external relations advisor at Shell. “Our vision at the refinery is to proudly fuel life in the Pacific Northwest for our employees, contractors and our community, and we help bring that vision to life by collaborating with organizations like a Million Waves Project.”

HP’s MJF Technology Used to 3D Print Dental Aligners

Swiss medical technology company nivellmedical AG is focused on developing, manufacturing, and distributing nivellipso, a novel clear aligner system for correcting misaligned teeth. The system, a more aesthetically pleasing alternative to the conventional fixed braces, uses biocompatible, invisible plastic splints that gently move teeth to the desired position. The company is using HP’s Multi Jet Fusion technology to make its dental aligners, which has helped improve its digital workflow.

“We are putting our focus on precision and quality work,” said Dr. Milan Stojanovic, the head of the nivellmedical board. “3D printing technology has simplified a lot of the production of aligners.

The patient’s mouth is scanned, and the scan is then sent to the laboratory, where a model is 3D printed and used to properly fit the aligners before they are shipped out to the patient. Learn more about the process in the video below:

Depowdering a Metal 3D Print Build

Have you ever seen those videos on the internet that are supposed to be ‘oddly satisfying’ and stress-reliving in a way you can’t quite figure out? The ones that show a ton of matches lighting up in a pattern, or someone slowly squishing their hands in a beautifully decorated pile of slime or some other weird material? Nick Drobchenko, a YouTube user from Saint Petersburg, has now introduced the 3D printing equivalent with his video of using a brush to slowly remove the metal powder from a 3D printed part.

“Hollow stainless steel turbine, 90mm diameter. Printing time 4.5 hours,” Drobchenko wrote in the video description. “Printing cost $140, about 30 cm3.”

If the video below does not soothe and/or satisfy you, then I’m not sure what will:

Can a DLP 3D Printer Be Used for PCB Etching?

A maker named Andrei who goes by Electronoobs online recently acquired a couple of DLP 3D printers. After reviewing them, he wanted to see if it was possible to use DLP 3D printers to build the mask for PCB etching. So he created an experiment – with surprising results – and published a video about his experience on YouTube.

“I would only use the UV light of the printer to create the mask for the PCB, and then etch it using acid for copper PCBs just as always,” he explained in the video.

In addition to the DLP 3D printers, other things required for this experiment included copper boards, dry photosensitive film, sodium carbonate, latex gloves, and an iron. Spoiler alert – Electronoobs succeeds in using DLP technology to 3D print a mask for PCB etching. To see the rest of his impressive experiment, check out the video below:

3D Printed She-Ra Statue for New York Comic-Con

[Image: Darinda Ropelato via Facebook]

Utah-based 3D printing services company Whiteclouds has plenty of experience with the technology in many applications, from aerospace, gaming, and mapping to medical for both animals and humans. But recently, the employees got to participate in a project that was, as Whiteclouds CEO Jerry Ropelato told 3DPrint.com, “one of the coolest (and funnest) 3D prints” they’ve ever worked on. The company was asked to design and 3D print the statue of She-Ra at the recent New York Comic-Con.

“It was our tallest at 11 foot tall,” Ropelato told us.

DreamWorks and Netflix are bringing She-Ra and the Princesses of Power back to life with an animated series that will begin next month. According to a Facebook post by Ropelato, Whiteclouds enjoyed every bit of the Comic-Con project, which included designing and 3D printing She-Ra’s throne and sword. The team used touch-sensitivity electronics for activating the sound and lighting for the statue, and were proud to have a small part in the She-Ra reboot.

Discuss these stories and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts in the comments below.