00:00As long as you can design it, this is where you can really just explore and play around.
00:04Chances are, you can 3D print it.
00:07From manufacturing microscopic medical devices, to creating stunning cosplay costumes, to
00:13even building affordable homes, 3D printing is increasingly woven into the fabric of our lives.
00:19For design and prototyping, it's really an enhanced communication tool.
00:23If you use a piece of paper to communicate, or use your computer screen to communicate
00:27today, this is just the next level of that, that you have something in your hand that
00:31you can communicate.
00:32And many products using 3D printing in their production process are already being used
00:37in our day-to-day lives.
00:39Consumer goods like razor heads, they need very high tolerances, they're very high resolution.
00:443D printed materials are also found in retainers, mascara brushes, and even some shoes.
00:50In 2023, the 3D printing market was worth over 20 billion dollars, and a report from
00:57Grandview Research projects that the industry will grow by 24% in the next five years.
01:03I think the 3D printing industry is the big win in what a lot of people talk about.
01:07That's John Koala, he's the CEO of Boston Microfabrication.
01:12His company specializes in making detailed parts that require the utmost precision.
01:17And as the name suggests, his company works with clients who commission parts for machinery
01:21that are extremely small.
01:24We can generally get down to about 10 microns, so most people may not have a sense for how
01:28small that is.
01:29It's actually hard to see 10 microns.
01:31Human hair is about 80 microns in diameter, so that gives you a sense for scale.
01:36Some of these microscopic parts can be found in medical devices.
01:40At the low end of that scale, that could be components used for eye surgery, and those
01:45are less than a millimeter, and so that means I could probably fit a thousand of them in
01:50my hand.
01:51Very, very small.
01:52Upwards to parts that are a few inches in size.
01:56BMF specialization points to a trend of miniaturization that's seen across much of tech today.
02:02There's lots of things getting smaller in the world, in medical device.
02:06So whether it's knee surgery, or oral surgery, or eye surgery, increasingly tools are being
02:12developed to make those procedures less invasive.
02:16The opening in your body is smaller, so you need tools that are smaller.
02:19In electronics, maybe our phones aren't getting smaller anymore.
02:22There was a trend where they were all getting smaller, but now there's a lot more in those
02:26phones than there used to be even one, two, three years ago.
02:29But the 3D printing industry encompasses more than building tech and medical devices.
02:34In recent years, 3D printing has become more accessible for consumers.
02:393D printers have become increasingly common at universities and public libraries.
02:43It's also become a near limitless space for creatives to bring their ideas into the world.
02:48Hi, my name is Clayton Parker.
02:50I'm from Rochester, New York.
02:52I am 44 years old, and I'm known online as Uncle Jesse.
02:58I produce a lot of 3D printing content.
03:02Primarily things around cosplay, or just fun builds that I find of different things online
03:07that I find entertaining that I'm assuming lots of other pop culture fans would also
03:11find entertaining.
03:12He found his start in 2014, when he purchased his first printer.
03:17A decade later, Parker has earned nearly half a million subscribers on YouTube, showing
03:22off his 3D printed creations.
03:24My very first 3D printed mask that I've designed in Nomad Sculpt.
03:29Today, you can find 3D printers ranging from a few hundred bucks all the way up to $100,000
03:35higher for premium machines.
03:38Parker says technology has improved since his start.
03:41Even today, it's still a relatively new tool and technology, and it's getting easier and
03:46easier every year.
03:47From my first 3D printer to 3D printers you can buy now, it's insane.
03:52Pretty much now, you take them out of the box, there might be 15 minutes of assembly
03:55that you have to do, and you're up and printing, versus what I had to do before, which was
03:59like a full day of a build, it was very complicated and I had to troubleshoot things.
04:04And the process has become profitable for Parker.
04:06At the height of a TikTok trend.
04:08So there's no way that I'm not going to print one of those.
04:11He sold $3,000 worth of 3D printed ghosts in just a weekend.
04:15To me, that is such an awesome opportunity of not needing to actually produce anything.
04:22You just spend the time creating a digital file once, and then share that online, and
04:27people are then able to pay you for access rights to that, so then they can then spend
04:32the time on 3D printing, troubleshooting, engaging with customers, answering emails,
04:37all of that fun stuff that comes with buying and selling things online.
04:41So if we can easily print something with the right ideas and technology, why can't manufacturers
04:47just 3D print everything?
04:49So I think the misconception may be that that's easy, that we should be printing everything
04:53in the world today instead of using conventional methods, but that's hard work.
04:58So it requires hardware technology, software, materials.
05:01These tools need to be cost effective.
05:03And that's happening over time, and there's some really big wins there.
05:06But I think that maybe the misconception is that you could really print anything.
05:09And I think certainly you can print most shapes, but if you really want it to be something
05:12functional, there's more work for that.
05:14Despite the challenges, could the current state of 3D printing be wielded for public good?
05:19It hasn't stopped companies from seeing its greater potential.
05:23Companies like Alquis 3D have started using 3D printing methods to build concrete homes
05:28in Greeley, Colorado.
05:30In a partnership with the Greeley Weld Habitat for Humanity, the company will build 22 single
05:35family homes, 154 duplexes, and 315 multifamily units.
05:42This multi-million dollar project was funded by land donations, grants, government support,
05:48and investments from private companies.
05:51Alquis 3D hopes that these homes can ultimately create more opportunities for affordable housing.
05:56And if continued successfully, what's to say that innovators can also use 3D printing
06:02to improve other corners of society?
Comments