Paul Bunyan Needs A Makerbot

One day over Christmas break, my father and I were participating in his favorite pastime; cutting up trees for firewood in the our native Ozark hills. During a break, he lamented the poor design of a chainsaw fuel cap, which had broken in half as he tightened it that afternoon.

Musing aloud, I wondered if we could get a 3D printer to make a new one of better plastic.  Our subsequent conversation sparked some interest regarding what 3D printers could mean for businesses and the future of innovation.

3-D printer is a machine that makes 3 dimensional  solid objects from a digital model. It does this by adding successive layers of material with multiple passes from a printer. After multiple passes, it creates the object.  This is distinct from traditional machining which drills and cuts away material from a solid block to create the object.

3-D printers and rapid protyping machines have been around for over twenty years, but recent technological developments have made them affordable for DIY hobbyists. Makerbot is a company that has been instrumental in bringing 3D to the masses. Founded in 2009, it’s goal has been to bring desktop 3D printing to the consumers at an affordable price.  Current versions of their Replicator model cost under $1800.

I listened to a recent interview of Bre Pettis, Makerbot CEO and cofounder, and was intrigued by his vision for 3D printing, particularly with respect to industry disruption.  Pettis believes that the 3D printer is an example of “democratizing technology”, and  will in turn spur innovative ideas and businesses.

Many of us have seen Square, a smart phone attachment that allows small retailers to scan credit cards without costly credit card contracts and equipment.  Square Helper is a small plastic device that keeps the Square from spinning around its jack when the card is swiped.  A simple invention, Square Helper has been made possible because of the capabilities of the makerbot, which manufactures these units at extremely low cost, and small scales. It is also significant because it allows someone to manufacture with very low capital investment, compared to plastic extrusion and molds.

Another customer that has seen the potential of the makerbot is NASA. It has recently used a makerbot to prototype for its research. Ford plans to supply desktop units for every engineer's work station.  This is significant in its savings for rapid prototyping, compressing  the iterative design process from weeks to hours.

DIY enthusiasts are excited as well.  I recently perused Thingaverse, a website that provides opensource 3D digital models for hobbyists to print. I was astonished by the variety of useful (and not so useful) things that people had made. Everything from camera lens caps to Ipod holders, even a bicycle.  All of which were replicable by someone with internet and a 3D printer.

In the same way that Youtube and cheap video making equipment have democraticized media and art, it will be exciting to see what cheap and accessible 3D printing will do for design and innovation.