3D Printing is an Environmentally Friendly option.

3D printing creates a lot less waste material for a single part plus materials used in 3D printing generally are recyclable.

3D printing allows designing and printing more complex designs than traditional manufacturing processes.

3D Prints have strong and Lightweight Parts.

3D printing can print objects within hours, which is much faster than moulded or machined parts.

3D printers are becoming more and more accessible with more local service providers offering outsourcing services for manufacturing work.

3D printing saves time and therefore costs associated with using different machines for manufacture.

3D Designs can be located within the virtual library and printed when needed.

3D printing is the construction of a three dimensional objects from a digital format.

3D printing is done by building up the object layer by layer. Usually, 3D printers use plastic, because it is easier to use and cheaper.

With 3D printing, you can produce functional shapes, while using less material than normal manufacturing methods.

The first step in 3D printing something is to make it on a computer. People do this with CAD (Computer Aided Design) software or a 3D scanner.

To design models in CAD, people start with basic shapes, and build from that point. 3D scanners take lots of measurements of the object and automatically make a model on the computer.

CAD models are usually saved on computers as STL files. They are saved as lots of triangles, which saves space on the computer.

There are a lot of different ways that 3D printers work. There are also many different materials that can be used.

The printing process turns a whole object into thousands of tiny little slices, then makes it from the bottom-up, slice by slice. Those tiny layers stick together to form a solid object. Each layer can be very complex.

Typical layers are around 100 μm thick, or about one tenth the thickness of a human hair. Prints can take anywhere from less than an hour to many days.

After printing the model, it is sanded using grit sand paper to achieve a smooth finish without sanding lines.

The model is then primed it turns the 3D print into a professional product and makes the painting process effortless by creating a flawless final surface.

The final step is to paint the 3D print, it is usually hand painted, to get the details right.