We have just pulled the trigger to offer 3D Printing to all of our students here at Missouri S&T. It was not difficult to confirm that 3D Printing is about to explode in use and availability so what better venue to make it available then at a university full of engineering and science students.  Plus I have faculty who are renown for their work with 3D printing or Additive Manufacturing as they call it. They have provided me with the advice I needed to select the appropriate 3D printers for student access.

Stratasys 3D Printers

I will write another post when we open our new 3D printing service in a few weeks but for now I will give you the basics of our plan. We bought 2 Stratasys uPrint SE Plus 3D printers, the same models that UPS just ordered for their leap of faith into this business venture for their select stores. We will place these printers in our library print media area where we can manage them with IT tech support students. We have a lot to learn about the business process but it appears we can let our students pay for the objects printed with their PaperCut account. All the students need to do is submit their 3D drawing file and the uPrint CatalystEX software will help us to choose the most effective positioning and calculate the materials cost. We have a regular and an ultrasonic washer with a good sink area for cleaning off the lattice support, so here we go. The goal is to make this printing available to everyone at the most affordable price. We know that the increased access to the printers will be beneficial to our engineering design classes and I am hearing that it will be invaluable for supporting our graduate student researchers so I am hopeful that this will turn out to be a wise decision.

Will 3D Printing Change the World?

Video story by Springfield, MO, KY3 TV’s Lindsey Henry