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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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The Top 10 SelfCAD Improvements of 2019

Let’s start 2020 with something positive – reflecting on the awesomeness of 2019. 2019 was a productive year for us at SelfCAD. We listened to your feedback, fixed bugs and other nasty things and improved most of our tools. We added a bunch of useful new features. Which one do you like the best?

Here are 10 SelfCAD improvements of 2019 graded by how much they added to your modeling experience. If you’d like to learn more, please visit our FAQ and the SelfCAD Manual.

#10 – Revolve tool can make objects with holes now

2018 Revolve tool closed all the holes. 2020 revolve tool doesn’t. You get the gist. We took a long, hard look at this tool, which creates a new shape out of revolving (for example) a plane. We realized it doesn’t make sense to automatically plug all the holes, and it sometimes makes creating the shape you want unnecessarily difficult. 

You can also revolve around any shape by selecting Revolve Around Edges/Profiles or even guides in the ‘Settings’ section. You no longer need to merge objects to revolve around them.

#9 – Snap Tool

Snap tool is another quality of life tool. You can use it to snap any shape to any location in the workspace. You can also use it to snap and collapse vertices. When used with ‘Remove Duplicate’ tool found in the Utilities section it will remove details in the vertices.

#8 – Drawing Tool Improvements

We’ve made a lot of changes to our drawing tool in 2019.

We’ve added smoothness to the text tool and real-time intersection. Real-time… what?

Before, when you drew something which has a hole in it, you were losing that hole after generating a 3D object from the drawing. Now, this tool creates a hole automatically if you indicate your object should have one!

Additionally, when you use the FreeHand Tool and set the height settings to zero, it will automatically create a profile.

#7 – Flatten, Inflate

SelfCAD added some crucial tools to your toolbox. Flatten and Inflate do exactly what it sounds like – Flatten makes the object gradually flatter, while Inflate will inflate the selected area like a balloon. Flatten is useful for quickly slicing a sphere, among other things.

#6 – Gear Generator

Our (relatively) new Gear Generator is located in the ‘3D Shapes’ category. No need to model your gears by hand, this flexible tool is here to save your time.

#5 – The Marquee Selection Tool

You can now select polygons by dragging your mouse.

If you drag towards the right, it will select only the included faces.  But if you drag towards the left you will select everything. We wanted selection to be as convenient as possible.

#4 – Part Selection Tool

This is a nifty tool that allows everyone to select specific parts of the model.

#3 – New Material Section ( including Shadows, Shininess, Light Sources and Targets )

In 2019 we added additional features to make SelfCAD models look even better while you model. You can now control shadows, shininess of the material, decide if the model is a light source etc. It will work even better with rendering!

#2 – Improved Slicer

The new and improved SelfCAD slicer, we’ve practically remade it. The new menu, more options than ever and you can now get you a preview of how your model will be 3D printed. Which is pretty neat, you have to agree.

#1 – Animation

In October, we added an animator to SelfCAD. It’s our first step to make SelfCAD a choice for every creator. 

When you click the record button, you can change the color, move or transform your 3D model to make a clip and then put these clips together to create something unique.

Up next: we are planning to add rendering in 2020 and a rigger in the future, making this feature feel more complete.

I hope you enjoyed reading this list – create your free SelfCAD account by clicking here.

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Interview with Aaron Breuer, the CEO of SelfCAD

With perhaps only ten to twenty million people being proficient in CAD we can maintain that everyone could or should 3D print but the reality is that this isn’t in our hands. 3D modeling and CAD software let people design for 3D printing and if they are still too complex or take thousands of hours to master then the pool of available people that can really fully use 3D printing will always be limited. There are a number of easy 3D modeling tools out there that make the learning curve less steep and are entry-level alternatives that get you closer to making your ideas, faster one of these is SelfCAD. We know SelfCAD’s CEO Aaron Breuer well because he teaches the 3D modeling component of our 3D printing classes. We thought it high time that we interviewed him to find out more about SelfCAD.

What is SelfCAD? For who is it intended?

SelfCAD is an easy to use fully-featured online 3D modeling and slicing software. It enables users to model, sculpt and slice all under a single platform. SelfCAD is intended for Do It Yourself people and hobbyists. That is, those who design 3D models as a hobby and those own a 3D printer and design models for 3D printing.

Why should I get it?

The future of manufacturing is 3D printing and in the near future people will be able to design their own 3D models and 3D print them, and hence this is the right time for one to get into it.

What are some of its features?

SelfCAD is a fully functional CAD application because everything that one can do with professional CAD software can be done in SelfCAD too.

SelfCAD has several unique features that allow both novice and professional users to create simple and complex designs. For example, the Image generator that converts any type of Image into a 3D model. There is also the magic fix tool that automatically fixes your model to make it printable. SelfCAD also has an in-built slicer for slicing the model to prepare it for any FDM printer. Now we are working directly with other 3D printing companies in order to add more new interesting versions of 3D printing.

In addition to its unique tools, there are also standard CAD features like the technical drawing and sketching tools which are easier to use to enable users to explore their imagination and design abilities. There are also artistic features like the Sculpting tools that are easier to use.

How many people are working on SelfCAD?

20+.

Where do you hope to be in five years?

In a few years to come, we hope that most people with 3D printers will be using SelfCAD because they can design any type of 3D model and slice it too.

How do you make money?

SelfCAD is software as a service. We have a monthly and yearly subscription but we are far less expensive than our competitors.

How is SelfCAD optimized for 3D printing?

SelfCAD is an online program, hence users can share and collaborate on the cloud with others with ease. Secondly, everything created in SelfCAD is printable, whether it’s a model imported into SelfCAD or designed from scratch, the magic fix tool prepares the model for 3D printing.
There is also an in-built Slicer that generates the G-Code of the model after designing it without leaving the software. So from start to finish, one doesn’t need any additional software as one can design, customize and slice in a single program.

What does the education version include?

We give a 65% discount to the educators and it includes the same features as the paid version.

Why is it so easy to use?

SelfCAD has a simplified user-friendly interface that is simple to work with and one can master easily. It has also been designed in a way that the number of tools is less when compared to other programs, and these tools are reusable. That is, one can use the same tool to do different things. This is because SelfCAD was created by creative minds and brilliant UX designers who put a lot of emphasis on the usability of the program and hence they consolidated many similar tools.
There are also video tutorials and instructable guides that help the beginners to master SelfCAD in just a few days.
It has also been created in a way that makes it’s easy to work with basic shapes, unique designs, innovative concepts, and both simple and complex designs.

What’s it like competing with Autodesk and other huge companies?

Our main goal is not to compete with anyone, rather, we focus on providing a program for all people, both beginners, and professionals that will solve their design and slicing challenges. The users who have been struggling to create 3D models in other professional software can now get started easily in SelfCAD without taking months of designing. So generally our joy is to see people creating useful things and 3D printing them. Additionally, we are also working with schools directly to make 3D designing easy for them.

Who would you like to partner with?

We would like to partner with everyone, more so those who won’t our development resources. So far we have partnered with some 3D printing companies and schools and we look forward to more partnerships in the future.

Discuss this article and more on the 3DPrintBoard or comment below to tell us what you think.

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3D Print Crash Course – Design Essentials for 3D Printing – Learn with Experts

It’s back to school! Learn 3D print design essentials with us! 

We have an introductory 3D print design course that will give you the tools and knowledge to start your 3D print projects. Through two live tutorials with experts, followed by an instructional assignment with feedback from a facilitator, you’ll become an expert at Tinkercad and SelfCAD — setting you up as a 3D design pro.

We’ll kick things off on Wednesday, October 23 at 11:00 am ET with a lesson from Jordan Pelovitz, senior 3D artist at Wayfair. Jordan will show you how to think like a designer, giving you ways to approach designing basic shapes for 3D printing. He’ll give you a demonstration on how to use Tinkercad, an easy-to-use 3D modeling program that allows you to turn your idea into a design for a 3D printer.

Jordan Pelovitz

Jordan’s presentation is followed by an interactive tutorial from Aaron Breuer, founder and CTO of SelfCAD. He’ll show you the newest features of SelfCAD, a browser-based fully-featured 3D modeling and slicing software, that make designing shapes fast, easy, and fun. You’ll learn best practices on how to create an object from scratch with 3D sketching, basic shapes, and the shape generator. He’ll guide you through a comprehensive design to print flow.

Aaron Breuer

The interactive crash course works like this:

There will be two guest speaker livestream sessions presented over 90 minutes. Each lesson will provide key principles and case studies, followed by an interactive Q&A. All live sessions will be recorded and posted in the online classroom for on-demand access.

There is an online workshop component. In the workshop, you get an assignment to apply what you learn, which you share in a small group workshop and get feedback from an industry expert.

Thank you to our Design Essentials for 3D Printing sponsor, SelfCAD, for the support.

 

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Take Our Summer 3D Printing Design Courses and Enter Our Design Contest!

 

Our summer courses are just a couple of months away and we are excited that attendees of our Advanced Design for 3D Printing crash course get to have their design entered into our design contest!

At the end of the one-week course starting June 11, the team at 3Dprint.com will vote on the best design, and the winning design will be printed by CoKreeate, a 3D Printing & Scanning services company. *

*The winning design may have to be modified based on the expertise of the designers at CoKreeate. The designers will work with the winner to make the design perfect under CoKreeate’s guidelines. General sizing guidelines: Sandstone: 7x7x7 inches, FDM: 8x10x8 inches, and Resin: 7x7x7 inches.

In the Advanced course, you’ll level up your skills and learn how to navigate the nuances of design software and tools in this crash course from 3DPrint.com. You’ll learn about animated assemblies, parametric design, and more, making you a more confident 3D print designer, and allowing your ideas to take shape with precision and detail. The best part? Create your own bold design in just one week with one-on-one support from a coach.

>> Register by May 1 for discounts for Advanced Design for 3D Printing

Need to learn the fundamentals first? Join us at our Beginner Design for 3D Printing online crash course the week before. In fact,  you can bundle the courses for discounts and completely immerse yourself into the 3D print world. Take one, two, or all three courses and get applicable 3D printing skills for your upcoming ventures.

Thank you to our Beginner Design for 3D Printing and Advanced Design for 3D Printing sponsor, SelfCAD, for the support.

 

 

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Beginner Design for 3D Printing Starts Tomorrow Kicking Off Our Month of Crash Courses

Our roster of March crash courses will set in motion tomorrow, March 5, starting with our first spring course, Beginner Design for 3D Printing! There’s still time to sign up for the one-week online class, which mixes two live guest speaker sessions with online discussions and personalized help from an industry expert.

In the live webcast session and workshop, you’ll learn the essentials of 3D modeling programs (CAD) and the design rules for 3D printing from design experts. This foundational course will cover the complete design process, from conception through final prototype. You’ll hear from speakers Jordan Pelovitz, Senior 3D Artist at Wayfair, and Jason Slingerland, QA Engineer at OnShape.

 

 

 

Speakers Jordan Pelovitz, Jason Singerland

The course will focus on learning design and printing principles, and learning how to apply them to cutting-edge tools. You’ll get accompanying guided assignments to help you create a unique design in just a few days.

This first beginner course is part of the cumulative crash course series that launches tomorrow. Bundling these courses not only gives you a unique learning experience and enriches your 3D printing knowledge but also saves you money. Here are the other courses to check out:

  • Advanced Design for 3D Printing – March 12, 2019
    • Session 1: 3Developing Real Modeling Skills
      • Speaker: SelfCAD
    • Session 2: Coding/Generative Design
      • mathgrrl/Dr. Laura Taalman, Mathematician and 3D Designer
  • Essentials of 3D Printing with Metal – March 19, 2019
    • Session 1: Introduction to Metal Additive Manufacturing
      • Speaker: Melanie Lang, Co-founder and Managing Director, Formalloy
    • Session 2: Design and Materials Considerations
      • Speaker: Frank Medina Ph.D., Consulting Technical Director, EWI: Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering, UTEP

Thank you to our Beginner Design for 3D Printing and Advanced Design for 3D Printing sponsor, SelfCAD, for the support.

 

 

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3D Printing News Briefs: November 7, 2018

We’re starting with more formnext announcements on today’s 3D Printing News Briefs, then moving on to classes and workshops. Verashape is launching a new 3D printer at next week’s event in Frankfurt, while Cubicure will be presenting its new CSS software solution for 3D printing. In the meantime, SelfCAD is releasing an updated version of its software. Finally, the EU-funded METALS project has published an online 3D printing course, and the people behind a new program for 3D printed construction technology in India are organizing a workshop on construction 3D printing.

VSHAPER 500 Med Launching at formnext

Just like Polish 3D printer manufacturer Verashape introduced its 5-Axis VSHAPER 3D printer at last year’s formnext, the company is taking advantage of the 2018 event in Frankfurt, estimated to gather a record number of participants in its largest space yet, to launch its newest 3D printer – the VSHAPER 500 MED, which was developed to meet the growing demands for spatial printouts used in the medical field. The VSHAPER 500 MED, which includes a vacuum table, a closed chamber with UV light, and silver-based antibacterial coatings, is perfect for creating precise, high quality 3D printed medical models. The 3D printer also has a 420 x 420 x 400 mm workspace, along with an extruder with two V-JET heads.

“3D Printing technology is becoming an increasingly valuable tool in medical diseases treatment, fighting disabilities and increasing the effectiveness of complicated surgeries,” said Marcin Szymański, the company’s VSHAPER Product Manager. “The technology is already used to aid the creation of dental crowns, bone parts, blood vessels and hip-joints prosthetics.”

To see the new VSHAPER 500 MED 3D printer for yourself, visit Verashape at formnext from November 13-16 at Stand 3.1-G88.

Cubicure Presenting CSS Software Solution at formnext

Cubicure, a spin-off company of TU Wien, will be presenting its new, platform-independent software solution for additive manufacturing data preparation at formnext. The software, called CSS for Cubicure Support & Slice, can generate complex support geometries, as well as edit STL files. The comprehensive tool allows users to generate, edit and repair 3D models, in addition to easily exporting layer information for the 3D printing process. Developed with graphic software provider DeskArtes and based on 3Data Expert, CSS is applicable for DLP and SLA (stereolithography), and Cubicure’s own Hot Lithography technology, and also comes with an intuitive import function of several surface models, a user-friendly GUI, and data conversion tools.

Dr. Robert Gmeiner, the CEO of Cubicure GmbH, said, “With this software solution Cubicure offers another important product for the additive manufacturing value chain.”

You can visit Cubicure Booth G59 in Hall 3.1 at formnext.

SelfCAD Releasing Updated Software

Browser-based 3D design platform SelfCAD, founded in 2015, combines 3D modeling, slicing, and several other tools and functions in one easy program. Now, SelfCAD has launched an updated version of its software, which was developed based on users’ expectations of powerful but easy to use 3D modeling software. Version 2.0 of the modeling software includes more capabilities, like a 3D sketching toolset to increase the user’s level of freedom, and simplified design, including an intuitive user interface with a less confusing toolbar that makes it easy to use, even for beginners.

Additional features include new selection modes, a simple objects view with both light and dark modes, a measurement option for easier design of accurate models, new sketching brushes, and new shapes. What’s not new is that SelfCAD, with a price of $14.99 a month or $139.99 a year after a 10-day free trial.

METALS Project Publishes Online 3D Printing Course

The three-year MachinE Tool Alliance for Skills (METALS) project, funded by the European Union under the Erasmus+ program and coordinated by CECIMO, ended last week, but not before releasing a free, online course about the fundamentals of AM. The project was characterized by a comprehensive partnership across Germany, Italy, and Spain, with a goal of increasing the competitiveness of Europe’s machine tool industry by providing the necessary skills to benefit from new disruptive technologies, such as 3D printing. The e-learning course, which is available in English, German, Italian and Spanish, intends to support the development of the AM workforce, and includes 27 learning units divided along three main areas: knowledge of AM, work-process, and entrepreneurship.

“Training and education are important elements for the industrialisation of additive technologies in Europe, which is the objective of CECIMO,” said Filip Geerts, CECIMO’s Director General. “With METALS, learners will be able to access relevant online knowledge at no cost and start building their competences to interact with AM. Coupled with on-hands training, which remains essential, initiatives like METALS are useful to increase the overall awareness of what AM concretely is and entails.”

National Workshop in India on 3D Printing Construction

Indian 3D printing startup Tvasta Manufacturing Solutions, based out of Bangalore and Chennai, is a design and manufacturing organization that specializes in industrial 3D printing. The startup, founded by a group of alumni from the Indian Institute of Technology Madras, developed India’s first 3D printed concrete structure in collaboration with the IIT Madras Civil Department. Now, Tvasta and IIT Madras are organizing a national workshop, to be held in Chennai on November 16, all about 3D printing in construction.

The objective of the conference is to present how construction 3D printing has the potential to majorly boost the country’s affordable housing sector. Many reputable speakers from around the world, including academic and industry experts, have been invited to speak about developments in automation, specialized concrete mixes, structural design, and other topics during the workshop. The conference will be held in the IC & SR Auditorium at IIT Madras.

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: July 20, 2018

We’re starting out with some construction news in today’s 3D Printing News Briefs, then following that with a little business, a little metal, and a little 3D design. Russian firm AMT-SPETSAVIA has updated two of its construction 3D printers, and the University of New Brunswick has chosen a Concept Laser 3D printer to use for its upcoming research. Mass Portal’s software team went through a reorganization, and attendees learned all about lightweight aluminum material at the recent AMAP forum. Finally, users of browser-based SelfCAD 3D software can access the MyMiniFactory design library…and share their own work there as well.

Spetsavia Completes Updates on Large Construction 3D Printers

Three years ago, Russian firm Spetsavia presented its home construction methods and 3D printers at the 3D Print Expo. Now, the group of machining and 3D printing companies collectively known as AMT-SPECAVIA has updated its range of construction 3D printers (Construction Objects Printing or COP) to introduce two new large-format models. The S-300, with a “working field” of 11.5 x 11 x 5.4 m, is able to print directly on the foundation of buildings up to two stories and 120 square meters, while the S-500 features an 11.5 x 11 x 15 m field and can 3D print buildings up to five, or even six, floors. However, the latter can be increased to a working field of 40 x 11 x 80 m, which Spetsavia says makes it “the largest 3D construction printer in the world.”

“New models of the S series are essentially the next generation of building printers. We’ve always been asked for a solution for multi-storey construction,” said Alexander Maslov, the General Director of AMT-SPETSAVIA. “Now we declare with confidence that such a solution exists! The AMT S300 and S500 printers are high-performance equipment with unprecedented capabilities and competitive price. During the development we’ve taken into account the wishes of the developing companies, at the same time maintaining the inherent reliability of our equipment, ease of management and maintenance.”

Both the S-300 and the S-500 have a direct flow print head for increased productivity, in addition to a new feed station that prepares the concrete mixture. The first shipment of the S-500 is scheduled for this fall, and a team of engineers will accompany the 3D printer to the customer for training.

University of New Brunswick to Use Concept Laser M2 Cusing

L-R: Keith Campbell, Senior Sales Director, GE Additive; Dr. Mohsen Mohammadi, Director of Research and Development for the Marine Additive Manufacturing Centre of Excellence; Hart Devitt, Director of Industry and Government Services; Duncan McSporran, Director, Programs and Innovation, Office of Research Services, University of New Brunswick

GE Additive has announced that the University of New Brunswick (UNB) in Canada, together with commercialization partner Custom Fabricators & Machinists and training partners Nova Scotia Community College (NSCC), New Brunswick Community College (NBCC), and the College communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick (CCNB), has chosen its Concept Laser M2 Cusing metal 3D printer to use in its latest research.

UNB is in charge of the country’s first Marine Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence, which will be the very first in Canada to fabricate certified parts for the marine industry with metal 3D printing. The M2 Cusing will mostly be used by UNB’s Dr. Mohsen Mohammadi, who will be the Director of Research and Development for the new center, and his team for multiple R&D areas, including bast resistance, enhanced corrosion protection, and hybrid 3D printing processes.

Mass Portal Announces Reorganization of Software Team

Latvian 3D printer manufacturer Mass Portal has reorganized, and appointed new leadership for, its software team, which is now an independent company called FabControl. The company will be building an open, next-generation software platform for managing 3D printers and AM workflows, and Mass Portal’s current CEO and co-founder Janis Grinhofs, the founder of FabControl and in charge of developing Mass Portal’s flagship Pharaoh 3D printers, will now serve as the CEO of the new company. Imants Treidis has been named the new CEO of Mass Portal.

“We will continue to serve our existing customers and industrial partners, in the same time striving for excellence in supplying the industry with highest quality machines and tailor built solutions for additive manufacturing needs,” Treidis said.

All About Aluminum at AMAP Forum 

Not too long ago in Aachen, scientific and industry experts gathered at the AMAP Forum (Advanced Metals and Processes) to demonstrate the continuing potential of researching non-ferrous metals, like aluminum, for the purposes of lightweight automotive design. 14 entrepreneurs from industry and five of the RWTH Aachen University institutions formed the AMAP Open Innovation Research cluster at the forum, and discussed topics ranging from new production technologies and materials development to modeling and metallurgic process technology. Some of the specifics included using aluminum hollow castings to create structural components with functional integration, additive manufacturing, and new design and calculation methods for high-strength aluminum alloys.

Dr. Klaus Vieregge, Chairman of the AMAP Advisory Board and Head of the Hydro Aluminium Research and Development Center in Bonn, said, “We are an efficient network. New members are always welcome, but a high number of members is not the focus of the AMAP cluster, we want to convince people by the efficiency of the work and the research results.”

SelfCAD Partners with MyMiniFactory

Online 3D design platform SelfCAD, founded in 2015, combines 3D modeling, slicing, and several other tools and functions in one easy program. Earlier this year, the platform announced a partnership with popular 3D printable model marketplace MyMiniFactory.

This partnership makes it easy for SelfCAD users to access the design library in MyMiniFactory, and also gives them the ability to download their 3D models directly from the marketplace while still in the SelfCAD program. In addition,  it’s also possible for users to upload their models directly to MyMiniFactory for maximum exposure.

To learn more, check out this helpful video:

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