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3D Printing in India: Slow Adoption & What the Future Holds

Researchers from India are exploring the economic potential of 3D printing technology globally, and in relation to their own country, releasing the findings of their study in ‘A Study on The Entrepreneurial Opportunities, Global and Indian Economy in 3D Printing Sector.’

Taking a look at Industry 4.0 and the transformative nature of 3D printing in manufacturing, the authors consider the future, and especially the opportunities that should be available within India. This is especially true as digital fabrication has evolved substantially from a rapid prototyping tool to a catalyst for change in manufacturing complex, functional components—many of which are already critical to organizations like NASA, the military, automotive companies, and more.

India has been slower to embrace 3D printing, with the exception of medical applications where progress has been notable—especially in the area of implants (check out the case we followed on their 3D printed ear).

3D fabricated implantable ears [Image courtesy of: Times of India]

As 3D printing and accompanying technologies continue to evolve at an accelerated rate, they are impacting many industries in India; however, the authors point out the realities of converting from traditional methods to more progressive technologies—mainly that within the scientific realm—embracing such change can be overwhelming and many are resistant.

The construction industry in particular has a long way to go in India, along with other applications where 3D printing remains surprisingly unused in comparison with Europe and the US. As for startups, the authors realize that, while they may be entirely focused on 3D printing, it may not be “sufficient to show significant GDP growth.” Affordability and accessibility to technology are still needed in India, along with “more knowledge, and developmental work in terms of performance.”

3D printing service bureaus may prove to be profitable for some entrepreneurs, and in some cases, it may be the only technological service they offer, while yet others still have a stronger focus on conventional methods of manufacturing parts. The researchers also mention the importance of “3D printing groups” as users encourage each other to innovate further. In the midst of such evolution and revolution, the usefulness of prototyping should not be downplayed either.

In referring to data from a previous annual Wohlers report, the authors cite the following data:

“… more than 278,000 desktop IMAGES printers (less than $5,000) were purchased worldwide this past year. The additive manufacturing (AM) markets were up 25.9% by the Wohlers Review 2016 to $5.165 million in 2015.”

Their 2018 report shows the following:

“In 2017 the AM industry was generally about 21 trillion, with nearly all AM goods and services around the world exceeding $7,336 billion. The rise in 2017 will be comparable to a 17.4 percent increase in 2016 if Airbus, Adidas, Kia, Toyota, Stryker and many other rms, big and small, achieved a $6.063 and a $25.9 percent growth by 2015. This entire industry estimates $7.336 billion excluding domestic sales.”

Materials have also been up significantly, according to the most recent report, showing that revenue from the metal 3D printing realm grew 41.9 percent, in line with a five-year growth trend over 40 percent each year. Wohlers Associates also stated that “this kind of strong activity among materials suppliers and customers is a telling indicator of the increasing use of AM for production applications.”

It is interesting to note in other recent news (and opinion) also, that the country seems to be on the precipice of entering the market further, but they aren’t there quite yet, citing further 2018 Wohlers data:

“Industry analysis from the Wohlers Report, published in 2018, shows that India accounts for roughly 3% of total units installed across the Asia Pacific region when China hits 35% and Japan 30+%,” says Rajiv Bajaj, managing director, Stratasys India.

Overall, the authors see a “new phase” for 3D printers in India, and recent accessibility to printers like those of HP just introduced in the country last January show definite progress—and in terms of affordability too.

Along with stating that considering the true potential of the future of 3D printing “could make the least materialistic person drool,” the authors point out that there are still questions as to how manufacturing will really be impacted. While they do not expect traditional factories to be eliminated, it is certainly feasible that they will experience a “massive makeover.”

“The moment AM technology will dissipate as typical production procedures, it is rational to expect the decrease of AM systems expense, and consequently, soon the breakeven point will be expected to shift towards the creation of larger production amounts than the one considered. Under Indian native economic circumstances, a large GDP growth has been achieved. In addition, AM systems replace conventional and common production technology,” concluded the researchers.

Other researchers project that India’s presence in the 3D printing market will approach $79 million by 2021, but this depends on further education regarding the technology and whether the average consumer or business owner understands the benefits.

Bahubali’s Mahishmati empire arrangement [Image courtesy of: Sahas Softech][Source / Images: ‘A Study on The Entrepreneurial Opportunities, Global and Indian Economy in 3D Printing Sector’]

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Objectify and 3DPrint.com Partner to Launch Advanced Additive Manufacturing Webinar Series

Under the Objectify AddMics (derived: Additive Academics) initiative—from India’s largest additive manufacturing bureau—Objectify Technologies joins hand with one of the most followed 3D printing media houses in the world, 3DPrint.com, to launch a series of webinars to increase the outreach of additive manufacturing technologies. The series will start July 16th and will feature a large number of industry leaders from around the world along with Objectify experts.

The webinar series aims to boost the adoption of the technology, inform buyers about the new technical advancements & selection of various processes, chart out various applications of AM, discuss pre- and post-processes, materials, and other topics.

Ankit Sahu, Founder and Director of Objectify Technologies.

“After successfully organizing three series of webinars, we got inquiries from various Indian and overseas companies to conduct training sessions for their engineers. We conversed with many experts and crafted session topics and kept it open for all to reach out to a wider audience. With this series, we aim to address some of the challenges that exist in the industry and inform engineers that 3D printing technology is ready to play a big role in mainstream production in the coming days,” says Ankit Sahu, Founder & Director, Objectify Technologies.

Topics for the webinar include:

  1. How to Be an Informed AM Buyer
  2. Pre- & Post-AM: Enabling design, quality and traceability
  3. AM Materials: characterization, development and testing
  4. Aerospace, Space and Defence Applications of AM

The target audience for these webinars are projects managers, design professionals, technical heads, plant managers, and 3D printing hobbyists, among others.

“3DPrint.com has been the voice of the global 3D printing industry and has played a huge role in spreading awareness about the technology. We are proud to partner with 3DPrint.com and I thank them for joining hands with us in this initiative. I am confident that, together, we will be able to update the industry with the latest technological advancements,” concludes Ankit.

 

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3D Printing in Ophthalmology: Smartphone Slit-Lamp Adapter for Diagnostics

A trio of researchers from hospitals in Egypt and India recently published a paper, titled “Custom-made three-dimensional-printed adapter for smartphone slit-lamp photography,” about their work designing a custom 3D printed smartphone slit-lamp adapter for photography applications in ophthalmology. A slit-lamp consists of a high-intensity light source, used with a biomicroscope, that can be focused to shine light into the eye for examination of the anterior and posterior segments in order to diagnose many conditions, like macular degeneration, cataracts, corneal injuries, and a detached retina.

3D printed adapter fixed on eyepiece to refine the sizing.

Many people have smartphones these days, and they are being paired more often with 3D printing for diagnostic and imaging purposes, especially in the offices of eye doctors.

“Smartphone photography in ophthalmology has a wide variety of uses including examination with or without other examination tools such as slit lamp or condensing lenses,” the researchers wrote. “Smartphones can be used for fundus photography,[2],[3],[4] slit-lamp photography,[5] microscope-free anterior segment photography,[6] gonioscopy,[7] and more.[5]“

3D printed adapters can help make these tasks more efficient, as they are a quick, low-cost option. Custom adapters are built for just one smartphone design and slit lamp, while universal adapters can be adjusted to fit many designs. There are pros and cons for each option, which is why these researchers chose to “combine the advantages of both approaches” for their 3D printed smartphone slit-lamp adapter.

Two copies of the blink 3D printed slit-lamp adapter (in gray and black ABS material) fixed to universal smartphone holders.

“It is built upon a commercially available part used in selfie sticks and tripods which is used to hold the phone,” they explained. “The rest of the adapter is designed and 3D printed to enable attaching the mobile with that holder to the selected eyepiece.”

Smartphone fixed on the Blink adapter and placed on slit-lamp eyepiece.

The goal was to make a design that complements different slit-lamps and automatically fits the microscope eyepiece that slides into the adapter; gravity, plus the weight of the smartphone, will keep it in place.  Then all of you have to do is place the phone’s camera against the eyepiece. The team named their creation Blink, for its “ease of use and quick adjustment like in a blink of an eye.”

After they chose their target slit-lamp microscope, the researchers used Vernier calipers to measure the eyepiece, and used the dimensions to create a CAD model of the adapter in Tinkercad. They refined the model using SketchUp, and prepared it for printing with Repetier software. The adapter was then 3D printed out of ABS material on a Rostock MAX v2 3D printer from SeeMeCNC.

Measurements of slit-lamp eyepiece being taken with digital Vernier calipers.

The 3D printed adapter was then fixed to the universal smartphone holder, and finally the fitting was “tested and refined to account for manufacturing tolerances.” Once the smartphone was placed in the holder, the device was attached to the slit-lamp’s eyepiece for easy imaging.

“The blink 3D-printed smartphone slit-lamp adapter was successfully designed, modeled, 3D-printed, and tested,” the researchers wrote. “Each type of slit-lamp eyepiece required a small modification in the 3D design based on measurements. Good-quality images could be captured in diffuse, slit, retro, and cobalt-blue illumination.”

The time it took to remove and modify the device was only seconds, which makes the 3D printed adapter very useful in slit-lamp photography.


“More units can be easily made by printing the same CAD file and fixing it to the universal smartphone holding bracket,” the researchers noted.


Additionally, the team confirmed that they could image the fundus – the part of the eyeball opposite the pupil – using a 90D lens.


“Our article describes the process of designing and building a smartphone slit-lamp adapter to solve the problem of slit-lamp photography,” the researchers concluded. “The cost of 3D printing a small part such as the adapter described here is small and can be done at a 3D printing shop which is available in all major cities in India, Egypt, and many other countries. Most of the work involved is in designing the CAD model according to measurements and physical constraints.

“Development of this type of innovation from idea to virtual design to hardware does not need much time or money – only an innovative mind and the drive to learn these new techniques.”

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

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3D Printing News Briefs: May 12, 2020 Nanofabrica, Voxeljet, Elementum, AMPOWER

We’re all business today in 3D Printing News Briefs – Nanofabrica has raised $4 million in funding, and voxeljet is expanding its presence in India. Elementum 3D has achieved an important industry certification. Finally, AMPOWER has released its 2020 report.

Nanofabrica Raises $4 Million in Funding

Tel Aviv startup Nanofabrica, which makes 3D printers for fabricating complex electronic and optical parts for semiconductors and medical devices, has raised $4 million in funding, and the round was led by Microsoft’s venture arm M12, which invests in enterprise software companies in Series A through C funding with a focus on infrastructure, applied AI, business applications, and security, and NextLeap Ventures, an investor group made of former Intel Corp employees. The startup says it will use the funding – it’s raised a total of $7 million so far – to expand its sales and continue its R&D work.

M12 partner Matthew Goldstein said, “Nanoscale, precision manufacturing is a growing need for R&D organizations, as well as production-scale manufacturing companies,” and that the technology allows for the “digital mass manufacturing of precision parts.”

voxeljet Grows Presence in India with Sale of VX4000

The VX4000 is voxeljet’s largest 3D printer and has a building volume of 8 cubic meters

Industrial 3D printing solutions provider voxeljet AG has expanded its Asian presence with the announcement that Indian steel casting experts Peekay Steel Castings Pvt Ltd is investing in its 4000 x 2000 x 1000 mm VX4000 3D printer – the company’s largest industrial system. Peekay Steel, which makes high-quality steel castings, will use the printer to expand into new business areas and better cater to its current clients’ increasing demands. The flexibility, size, and speed of the VX4000 will allow the company to continue supporting the foundry industry in its native India, but also give them the opportunity to build a new Knowledge Center centered around the large 3D printer that will provide open access to a training facility. The VX4000 will be set up at a new Bangalore location in the Airport City.

“We want to offer our customers an end-to-end solution and position ourselves as a supplier of high-quality, ready-to-install components in record times. With the VX4000, we are able to increase the flexibility of our production in order to be able to react quickly, even to complex projects,” said K.E. Shanavaz, Jt., Managing Director, Peekay Steel Castings (P) Ltd. “3D printing gives us a unique competitive advantage, especially when it comes to expanding our business areas. Since the beginning, we have emphasized the importance of co engineering with our customers, most of these are Fortune 500 companies, to optimize and customize the product design, to lend better functionality and a clear competitive advantage. A specialized Design Center aligned to the VX4000 will help add value for our customers.”

Elementum 3D Achieves Quality Management Certification

Colorado metal 3D printing materials company Elementum 3D announced that it has received the important ISO 9001:2015 certification. This is recognized as the worldwide standard for quality management practices and systems, and was issued to the company through the Denver-based ISO 9001 management certification firm Platinum Registration, Inc. The scope of its certification includes manufacturing prototype and production parts to customer specifications, designing and manufacturing advanced composites, metals, and superalloys, and developing new manufacturing processes.

“This is an important milestone for Elementum 3D. It’s a rigorous process to become ISO 9001 certified. Our staff worked very hard with Platinum Registration’s auditors to demonstrate we meet the requirements of the standard. Not only does that make us feel confident we’re the most efficient that we can be, it assures our customers that we have a completely transparent and robust management system; and that means we have reliable, repeatable, continuously improving business processes so that our customers receive the best value for their money,” said Dr. Jacob Nuechterlein, Elementum 3D President and Founder.

AMPOWER Releases 2020 Metal AM Report

Metal additive manufacturing consultancy AMPOWER has released its new 2020 report, containing analysis based on over 250 data sets of metal AM supplier and user surveys. If you purchased the previous AMPOWER Report, you can get the latest edition for free through the online portal, or you could subscribe to the report to start getting it; either way, the publication is chock-full of helpful information. For instance, a separate section analyzes the possible impact scenarios of the COVID-19 pandemic on the metal AM industry in both 2020 and 2021, and new contributions from the worlds of standards and startups are included from ASTM and AM Ventures, respectively. The report includes in-depth market data, and has also added new databases with over 700 entries, so readers can browse through a list of material, service, and systems suppliers; the new interactive cost calculator has been updated with the most recent productivity values.

“We hope the AMPOWER Report 2020 continues to support our customers in making the right decisions in these challenging times,” AMPOWER’s Matthias Schmidt-Lehr, Dr. Maximilian Munsch, and Dr. Eric Wycisk wrote in an email.

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

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3D Printing News Briefs: April 4, 2020

It’s the first 3D Printing News Briefs of the month! To start with, SelfCAD released a new update, and ACEO is hosting a webinar series about 3D printing with silicones, while Objectify Technologies and TAGMA India are hosting a webinar series about AM adoption. Finally, SHINING 3D and Scan the World are using 3D scanners to bring art and culture to people during a time when most can’t leave their homes.

SelfCAD 2.9.2 Release

SelfCAD has released its latest software update, SelfCAD 2.9.2, which improves upon existing features and adds new ones to make 3D modeling and printing more efficient. First, there’s a new Environment Map feature in the Settings dropdown menu that lets you add lighting and scenery to your model, and even an environment map. In advanced settings, the new Macro Preview feature lets you see the results of the macros you’ve added without having to finalize your choices.

You can set a Minimum Step Size for Drawing, Transformation, and Deformation tools, and apply several operations, such as Chamfer, Fillet, Round Object, and Simplify, to Profiles. In addition, SelfCAD has fixed some bugs, and added more settings and options to the Round Object tool. If you have any questions or bugs to report, you can join the SelfCAD Facebook group or email support@selfcad.com.

ACEO Presenting 3D Silicone Printing Webinar Series

Due to newly implemented health and safety measures during the COVID-19 pandemic, ACEO continues to be operational, but is unable to receive customers right now. So, in an effort to stay connected during these strange times, the company’s team of application specialists, design engineers, and material experts are presenting a series of webinars – in English – all about silicone 3D printing.

The first one, “ACEO Basics,” will be held Tuesday, April 7, from 9-9:30 CET, and Wednesday, April 8, from 4-4:30 CET. You can sign up for the webinars here; the event password is jVMGwgX$242. Future topics for the series, with dates not yet announced, are “Real Silicones,” “Design Freedom,” and “ACEO Use Cases.” Please email service@aceo3d.com with your name, company/organization, and country if you’d like to sign up. A modern browser (i.e. not Internet Explorer) is recommended to watch the webinars.

Objectify Technologies and TAGMA India Holding Webinars

As many people around the world are staying indoors and away from other people during the pandemic, it’s easy to get bored. But, you can spend your time in a productive way, which is why Objectify Technologies and TAGMA India are holding their own 3D printing webinar series together. The series, themed “3D Printing: Prototype to Production,” was created to promote adoption of and spread awareness about additive manufacturing. Webinars will begin on April 6th and go through April 14th, with topics such as Additive Manufacturing/3D Printing 101, Learnings and Misconceptions, and Current Challenges and Demand of the Industry.

“To help engineers around the world learn something new in this lockdown time, we have come up with a series of webinars on Additive Manufacturing (AM). The idea behind this webinar is to spread awareness regarding the AM technology and help companies in their journey towards industry 4.0,” said Ankit Sahu, Founder & Director, Objectify Technologies Pvt Ltd. “The objective is to encourage individuals ranging from students, researchers, and industrialist, on 3D Printing and the value it possesses for Industry 4.0.

“I thank Mr. DK Sharma, President TAGMA India and the entire team of TAGMA for their support. During this challenging time, it’s the collective effort that will help us all grow. Let us all do our bit to help the industry in skill development.”

3D Scanning to Build a Museum Without Walls

Continuing on in our list of things to do while stuck inside during the coronavirus crisis, SHINING 3D has been working with MyMiniFactoryto to digitize important artifacts for its Scan the World community-built initiative, which archives 3D printable sculptures and other culturally significant objects. Together, they are basically building a 3D museum without walls that anyone can access at any time and from anywhere. Many museums open their data with an open license  in 2D, but don’t have the necessary resources to do so in 3D. Scan the World founder and manager Jon Beck is offering museums a free end-to-end service of scanning the sculptures, with the EinScan Pro 2X Plus, before processing the data into 3D models and uploading them to the museum’s Scan the World profile.

“The quality is very nice for the price that you pay. Scanning is still quite a high-level-entry technology, but what SHINING 3D has been able to do is to create an accessible affordable product, which still produces very good results for a wide range of industries, for me working with sculptures I haven’t found any issues so far working with marble and plaster sculptures and even bronze sculptures. EinScan has been able to solve all of these problems for me,” Beck said.

“There is so much story behind every single artwork whether it’s an original or it’s a copy which is quite beautiful and so, working with each member of staff in the museum who want to tell a different story about their collection is great.”

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

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India: Researchers Continue to Review AM Processes in Bioprinting

In the recently published ‘A Review on Additive Manufacturing for Bio-Implants,’ authors Tajeshkumar R. Jadhav, Dr. Nitin K. Kamble, and Pradnesh R. Padave explore one of the most fascinating topics in 3D printing today as researchers make huge strides in developing medical devices with the use of innovative materials.

While some scientists are focused on the complex task of tissue engineering human organs, many others have made huge progress in the area of patient-specific treatment. This includes the development of devices like titanium bone implants, while others continue to develop new 3D printed prosthetics, dental and orthodontic implants, and more. In this review, researchers from Patil College of Engineering in Pune, India discuss scientific advances in the biomedical realm with digital fabrication.

As millions of patients are operated on daily, medical scientists, doctors, and surgeons are always exploring new ways to treat patients better. Tissue engineering and 3D printing are quickly moving to the forefront as one of the most innovative alternatives for tissue, bone, and organ regeneration, usually through the fabrication of scaffolding and other biocompatible structures used to promote growth. Additive manufacturing via extrusion is being used often with a wide range of materials to include polymers, inks, hydrogels, pastes, and more.

“While applications of bioprinting of oral tissues are still in early stages, this strategy has displayed interesting results in various preclinical studies and seems encouraging, progressing beyond templates and models,” state the researchers. “However, for successful clinical translation it is important to develop a road map, which includes studies to receive the required FDA approval and CE marking at an early stage in the process.

Additive rapid prototyping process diagram

Steps are being taken to create more safety and standardization guidelines, while also finding a balance with new developments and methods for making patient-specific treatment plans and customizations previously unheard of in medicine.

While the technology of 3D printing and additive manufacturing has already led to countless, groundbreaking inventions—some of which may substantially improve or even save lives—there are still many challenges to overcome; for instance, equipment is often out of reach financially, materials may be difficult to come by, and there are other complexities and inconveniences like processing and finishing issues.

Scientists use a variety of different methods today for the fabrication of bio-implants, to include:

  • Inkjet printing
  • 3D printing
  • Stereolithography
  • Selective laser melting
  • Bioprinting

Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM)

 

Three-Dimensional Printing (3DP)

“Currently, there are three main ways that cells can be printed on the implants directly, (i) Inkjet, (ii) Extrusion and (iii) Laser Assisted Based (LAB). Indirect printing technologies do not print biomaterials. Such methods are used mainly for the construction of scaffolds which are then used for the seeding of cells, drug delivery systems, potential biochips or biosensors,” state the researchers.

Users have many options to choose from today but must be aware of the pros and cons of each method of digital fabrication, as well as that of different software, hardware, and materials.

Stereolithography (STL or SLA)

Selective Laser Sintering (SLS)

Researchers are already working on both the macro- and micro-scale, however, learning more about how to manipulate larger materials as well as nanosized particles during in vitro studies.

“Direct fabrication of implants and prosthetics is however limited to the direct metal AM technologies that can produce parts using FDA (The US Food and Drug Administration) certified materials plus the small number of technologies that are capable of non-load bearing polymer scaffolds,” concluded the researchers.

“As more inter-disciplinary researchers are recruited into the field together with the advancement in biomaterials, it is likely that AM machines and techniques will be further improved over the years.”

What do you think of this news? Let us know your thoughts! Join the discussion of this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com.

– Additively manufactured scaffolds for periodontal regeneration. (a)
Biphasic scaffold facilitating fiber orientation (b) Biphasic scaffold in
combination with cell sheet technology (c) Enhanced biphasic scaffold (d)
Triphasic scaffold (e) First additively bio manufactured scaffold for
periodontal regeneration applied in human

[Source / Images: ‘A Review on Additive Manufacturing for Bio-Implants’]

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IISc & Wipro 3D to Collaborate on India’s First Industrial Grade Metal 3D Printer

India continues to place a growing emphasis on the expansion of 3D printing, from the study of materials to bioprinting, as well as creating critical medical devices, surgical guides, and much more. And just as many other government organizations, labs, and industries are discovering the benefits of metal 3D printing, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and Wipro 3D have just announced over the weekend that they are launching a major collaboration to build an industrial-grade metal 3D printer. The system has been built over the course of a three-year secret partnership and is currently undergoing testing.

(Image: Wipro 3D)

According to Wipro 3D, the Bengaluru-headquartered leader in additive manufacturing solutions for India, this will the first metal 3D printer of its kind, emerging after the opening of their new ‘solution and experience center’ for metal additive manufacturing just last year.

“The country’s first 3D printing machine works on selective electron beam melting technology and offers higher build rate, better thermal management, higher density and superior mechanical properties,” explained the two organizations in their recent announcement about the partnership for metal AM development.

As Wipro 3D, the AM business side of Wipro Infrastructure Engineering and the IISc begin their latest industrial hardware endeavor, Ajay Parikh, Wipro 3D business head, has commented that the new 3D printing facility will be undergoing benchmarking as they focus on pushing additive printing technology to the forefront in their country.

“The Government of India, Department of Heavy Industries has been instrumental in enabling such an important program. We are happy to see our collaboration with Wipro 3D has culminated in this product development,” said Anurag Kumar, IISc director, emphasizing further that their science research institute collaborates with businesses as they look for potential in new research, development, and production.

A.R. Sihag, the Department of Heavy Industries Secretary, also commented on the collaboration, pointing out that the efforts between IISc and Wipro 3D should ‘mature enough to compete in the future globally.’

While the IISc is an academic institution engaged in ‘training future leaders in science and technology,’ Wipro 3D offers services in additive manufacturing, product engineering, and consulting to a range of industries. They also specialize in creating AM and research and development centers. We have followed the progress of Wipro 3D throughout the years as the $8 billion Indian technology company, founded in 2012, has continued to pick up steam within the 3D printing realm—also operating as a leader in information technology overall.

Metal 3D printing continues to expand as businesses, researchers, and users around the globe continue to refine its uses for many different applications—from automotive to aerospace, and far beyond. While traditional parts can be produced more affordably, faster, and are now stronger and lighter in weight when necessary, many different components are now being manufactured that simply were not possible with conventional methods.

What do you think of this news? Let us know your thoughts! Join the discussion of this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com.

(Image: Wipro 3D)

[Source: Outlook India]

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The Pondicherry Coastal System is Getting a Boost Thanks To 3D Printing

Worldwide, there have been plenty of efforts to 3D print artificial coral reefs. Ever since Alex Goad invented the Modular Artificial Reef Structure, better known as MARS, and funded Reef Design Lab in Australia, he sparked a lot of interest in this type of 3D printed structures. Now, a seventeen-year-old student from Mumbai has also created his own 3D printed coral reef in Pondicherry, a quaint beachfront city in the Eastern coast of India very popular among scuba divers. A scuba diver himself, Siddharth Pillai, said in many interviews with local news outlets that he has been actively diving for the past five years, and during that time he witnessed first-hand how rising ocean temperatures have bleached coral outcrops. In May 2018, on a trip to Pondicherry, Pillai and his youngster sister went diving and were deeply affected by the conditions underwater.

“They (coral reefs) lose colour, crumble and die in 30 days. Seeing dead coral on the sea floor is disgusting and heart-breaking,” said Pillai. “When I was sixteen, while scuba diving in the Andamans, I learned about coral bleaching and the precariousness of the global situation regarding the overall marine ecosystem. Since then, I decided to work to the best of my ability to contribute towards rescuing these marine animals, as I felt I owed it to them.”

Siddharth Pillai and his sister in Pondicherry with the 3D printed blocks for the artificial coral reef

The shallow coral reef ecosystem along the Indian coast is being savagely destroyed, threatened by global ocean warming, and is affecting the reef habitats, which are an essential source of larvae and livestock. Sedimentation, dredging, overfishing, pollution, unsustainable tourism and coral mining are damaging near-shore reefs, while the use of explosives and bottom nets in fishing are damaging offshore reefs in specific sites.

But it’s not just India: according to National Geographic, half of the Great Barrier Reef, in Australia, has been bleached to death since 2016. Mass coral bleaching, a global problem triggered by climate change, occurs when unnaturally hot ocean water destroys a reef’s colorful algae, leaving the coral to starve.

After seeing the problem in his country, Pillai designed and patented a system of interlocking blocks which he chose to assemble along the Pondicherry coast to create the country’s first 3D printed modular artificial reef. The young student, an 11th-grader at Mumbai’s BD Somani School, christened the project Bennington’s Reef, in honor of the late musician and frontman from the alternative rock band Linkin Park, Chester Bennington, who died in 2017.

Last year, after Pillai joined Curiosity Gym, an innovation hub based in Churchgate, South Mumbai, he took a 45-day 3D printing course. Simultaneously, he got in touch with Suneha Jagannathan, a marine biologist and CEO of the Temple Reef Foundation (part of Temple Adventures), in Pondicherry, who has been working hard to restore the balance in the reef’s ecosystem for many years, as well as diving to find ghost nets and take them out of the water and overall protecting marine life. She agreed to help him with the necessary resources and guided him on the project.

After that, Pillai started working on the design and structure that would resemble the natural coral bed and came up with a way to make the model porous so that coral can latch on to it. He filled the prototype mold with cement mix at home first and eventually raised 200,000 Indian Rupees (2,798 dollars) through crowdfunding and managed to produce about 200 3D printed blocks, weighing 11 kilograms each, that were later sent to Pondicherry. Then, Temple Adventures, a dive center in the area, helped him install it last July and estimated that it will start hosting marine life this month.

Pillai said that “it was a complicated structure to develop because it had to be porous, there should be crevices and it should be conducive for organisms to grow and thrive on it.”

The 3D printed artificial coral reef blocks

The first design he created was a plastic model that he built at home. But that didn’t work and after a few trial and error runs he went for blocks using cement and dolomite (composed of calcium magnesium carbonate) and took help from a company that agreed to print out the new blocks. The blocks were designed with manual crevices so that they can connect to each other, making the process easier to build, assemble, and scale.

But the question still remains, will 3D printed coral reefs be enough to help save our oceans? Millions of people depend on the reef for food, jobs, and coastal protection, the ridges in coral reefs can even help reduce wave energy providing protection from tsunamis, erosion, and storms. Efforts to manage some of the impacts of climate change and high sea temperatures are focusing on restoring degraded reefs, many using 3D printing to develop similar structures that can help the marine life ecosystem. Famous marine biologist Jaques Cousteau’s grandson, Fabien Cousteau, helped develop 3D printed coral reefs in the Caribbean, attracting marine life again. But reefs need growing, healthy corals to subsist and function normally, so perhaps other global issues will need to be tackled before the 3D printed structures become incredibly relevant for the oceans. In the meantime, it is a great way to get people interested in marine conservation, to learn about the fantastic coral reefs, and how important they are for our survival.

The 3D printed coral reef in place

[Images: Temple Adventures]

The post The Pondicherry Coastal System is Getting a Boost Thanks To 3D Printing appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

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Divide By Zero Introducing New High-Speed Aion 500 MK3 Polymer 3D Printer

Mumbai-based 3D printer manufacturer Divide By Zero Technologies (DBZ) is well-known for its patented Advanced Plastic Fusion Modeling (APFM) technology. Rather than adhering to a uniform material flow, the process adapts to the needs of each layer and the complexities of the design, greatly improving layer adhesion and the overall strength and accuracy of the print.

The company’s industrial Aion 500 and advanced Aion 500 MK2 3D printers have already been adopted by several leading tech companies and design firms in India. Now, the award-winning startup is introducing its newest product – the Aion 500 MK3. The printer was recently unveiled at the Automotive Engineering Show in Chennai, and the company is touting its incredible speed.

“3D printing technology has been in the industry for the past 30 years and we all are fascinated by its potential, however, speed has been a drawback – until today,” said CEO & Founder Swapnil Sansare. “AION500 MK3 is 3X faster than conventional CNC machines. The printing speed is 10x more than any polymer extrusion-based platform anywhere in the world. Basically, you can now print the anatomical model of a human skull in minutes. Companies need not wait for a week for their orders when they can have it in mere hours.

“The RoI for this machine is barely 4 months.”

Powered by the company’s AFPM process, the new Aion 500 MK3 can print what DBZ says is ten times faster than other comparable systems without losing accuracy, mechanical properties, or surface finish. The company spent years researching how to make a high throughput, high speed 3D printer that could put the ‘rapid’ back in rapid prototyping, and the Aion 500 MK3 is the result.

“It is undoubtedly a ‘Breakthrough’ in the 3D Printing Industry and has the propensity to put INDIA on the GLOBAL MAP for Rapid Prototyping,” Shruti Karlekar, from Divide By Zero’s PR team, told 3DPrint.com.

“This machine is extrusion (fff) based 3D printer but it can print with speeds upto 600mm/Sec with travel speeds upto 1.5 m/s and Accelerations upto 1.5G. Material deposition rate on this machine is 100-270 grams / hour based on material type.”

Because they adhere to international standards of quality, DBZ’s 3D printers are often used in its home country of India by professionals in sectors such as automotive, defense, education, and manufacturers of customized jigs and fixtures. Some 3D printing methods are not well-suited for manufacturing jigs and fixtures, due to lack of affordability, speed, and strength, but DBZ claims that its “Next-Gen Industrial Grade Workhorse” is a great solution.

The company claims that its latest 3D printer is “Industry 4.0 ready,” as live imaging reduces the amount of time the user has to be physically present.

“This machine is also ready with interface for robot handshake in case of implementation of complete automatic print setup,” DBZ wrote in the product brochure.

The Aion 500 MK3, weighing in at 280 kg with a 450 X 450 X 450 mm build size, features a robust, high-speed print engine with rapid acceleration on the servo gantry. It uses a special blend of polymers that can be printed faster than other conventional 3D printers. Other features include:

  • maximum extruder temperature of 380°C
  • a unique X-Y motion system
  • 10-micron positional accuracy
  • new dual drive liquid-cooled print head
  • active carbon filter
  • patented precision filament flow sensor
  • USB, Wi- FI, and Ethernet connectivity

Take a closer look at DBZ’s new high-speed Aion 500 MK3 3D printer in the video below:

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

[Source/Images: Divide By Zero Technologies]

The post Divide By Zero Introducing New High-Speed Aion 500 MK3 Polymer 3D Printer appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

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India: Improving FDM 3D Printing Through Process Parameter Optimization

In ‘Process Parameter Optimization for FDM 3D Printer,’ researchers from India discuss varying ways to improve popular fabrication processes, exploring basic parameter settings like density, layer height, and shell thickness—and how they affect mechanical properties like surface roughness, hardness, and tensile strength of 3D printed parts.

Specimen printing parameter variations

Using 1.75mm PLA as their material of choice, the scientists used an I3D Minds 3D printer for testing, SOLIDWORKS for design, and CURA for slicing. The I3D Minds offers a build volume of 190x190x180 mm and nozzle diameter of 0.4 mm, and automated setup and manufacturing.

Design samples were opened in CURA, and varying parameters were set:

  • Different layer heights – 0.1mm, 02mm, and 0.3mm
  • Fill densities – 50%, 75%, 100%
  • Shell thickness – 0.6mm, 0.8mm, 1.0mm

Sample files were converted into G-Code, and then sent to the 3D printer:

“The nozzle was maintained a temperature of 215 ºC for the extrusion of the PLA material and the build plate was maintained at 60 ºC,” stated the authors. “The printer prints the layer through the nozzle print head onto bed, one layer by layer, from bottom to top, and the same test setup was used for all specimens. The post hardening was observed to investigate the unconditional effect of printing parameters on physical and mechanical properties of the printed specimens.”

Cad modeling

The researchers also touched on common issues such as how to prevent issues due to common errors that may occur at the .stl file stage, often easily averted with ‘repair’ fixes in the original model.

“Generally, STLs that have been produced from a model obtained through 3D scanning often have more of these errors,” said the authors. “This is due to how 3D scanning works—as it is often by point to point acquisition, reconstruction will include errors in most cases.”

Printing a ‘slightly oversized version’ of the object is also suggested for greater precision in parts.

In discussing the Taguchi method, created by Dr. Genichi Taguchi, one of the leaders in parameter design, the researchers suggest using an orthogonal array for balanced results. This balance also means that each part can be evaluated on its own because each one is equal.

“On the basis of varying different parameters in different levels a Design of Experiments was carried out which can be used for preparation of specimens for optimization of 3D printed products for different parameters of 3D printing,” concluded the researchers. “Testing machines are selected for testing mechanical properties such as tensile strength, hardness and surface roughness of 3D printed specimens.”

While many may refer to 3D printing as magical, plenty of brainpower—in labs around the world—still goes into thinking of ways to refine nearly all methods. In FDM printing, researchers explore ways to improve layer adhesion, review how products like sensors are created, and discuss popular types of composites. Find out more about how scientists are improving parameter optimization here. What do you think of this news? Let us know your thoughts! Join the discussion of this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com.

Surface roughness test

[Source / Images: Process Parameter Optimization for FDM 3D Printer]