Tag Archives: 3d printing labs

DigiFabCon Explores How Digital Fabrication Such as Laser Cutting & 3D Printing Is Changing the World

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From a mobile Humanitarian Fab Lab in refugee camps that uses laser cutting for building temporary housing to 3D Printing on the International Space Station, Digital Fabrication is changing almost every aspect of our lives.  On March 30 and 31, 2017 at the Microsoft NERD Center in Cambridge, MA, visionaries at DigiFabCon will explore the opportunities and challenges found in bringing these CAD based technologies to new, exciting arenas.  Whether for manufacturing workforce training, K – 12 education, rapid prototyping, re-designing standard products, improving surgical procedures, or fostering entrepreneurship, the tools of digital fabrication are impacting entire communities.

DigiFabCon will feature keynotes from Sherry Lassiter, Director of the Fab Foundation and Dale Dougherty, founder of Maker Media which includes MAKE: Magazine and Maker Faires.  They will give an overview of the compelling digital fabrication stories from Fab Labs and makerspaces around the world.  Dr. Neil Gershenfeld, Director of the MIT Center for Bits and Atoms, will discuss technical advances that are making digital fabrication tools accessible to “anyone who wants to make (almost) anything”.   This includes work in his lab on Machines that Make Machines, although Dr. Gershenfeld always says the impact of these tools is social, not technical!

Courtesy: DigiFabCon

 

The interactive program includes:

  • Sarah Boisvert, past President of LIA, describing a new national digital fabrication certification program for operators and technicians with a panel discussion with participants from Indian Hills Community College, the Community College of Baltimore Country, Century College and the Space Coast Fab Lab
  • David Ott explaining the International Committee for the Red Cross Humanitarian Lab project
  • Tomas Diez, from Fab Lab Barcelona, reporting on progress for self-sustainable Fab Cities
  • Andreas Bastian, of Autodesk, sharing design challenges in the Enable Community Foundation 3D Printed prosthetic hand project
  • A panel from Limitless Child International, Fab Lab Tulsa and Fab Lab San Diego on utilizing mobile fab labs to bring technology to rural and underserved areas.
  • a participatory exercise by TIES fellows examining biomimicry in design

The program includes a Fab Festival where participants can get hands-on demos in 3D Printing, laser cutting, CNC machining, CAD and much more.  Preliminary exhibitors include ShopBot Tools, the Roxbury Innovation Center, 3D Print Life, Limitless Child International, and Fab Lab Hub.  The Festival will also feature book signings by Dale Dougherty, founder of Maker Media, and Rachel Ignotofsky author of Women in Science. Generous sponsorship from Chevron, Microsoft, and ShopBot Tools keeps DigiFabCon registration to just $49.

In this, DigiFabCon’s 5th year, a pre-conference short course has been added. LEAN 101 is a hands-on workshop to introduce manufacturing managers, startup founders and entrepreneurs, and makers to methods for improving time to market, production cost and product quality through a simulated, hands-on making exercise.  Our instructors are LEAN gurus of the first rank.  Joe Rizzo, CEO of Lean is Green, previously ran factories for GE when the legendary Jack Welsh was CEO and Scott Gauvin, CEO of Macresco, focuses on creating high performing, humanistic workplaces.

For details and to register, please go to www.DigiFabCon.org.

Livermore Scientist Wayne King to Deliver LAM 2017 Keynote

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In preparation for LAM® 2017, Lasers Today takes a closer look at the presenters and industry leaders at this year’s workshop.

The Laser Additive Manufacturing Workshop (LAM) is just around the corner, kicking off the next round of conferences and seminars designed for laser professionals. The Workshop is of importance in the ever-growing world of additive manufacturing; 3D printing and other additive manufacturing processes continue to reshape manufacturing as we know it, often creating revolutionary solutions to numerous challenges in a wide array of industries. Additive manufacturing is also creating jobs, and in some cases, reducing the environmental footprint of parts manufacturing.

At LAM, researchers and industry leaders come together to showcase research and developments in additive manufacturing. Sharing emerging technologies and concepts is how these experts aim to project the future of where additive manufacturing is headed to next. One of these presenters is Dr. Wayne King of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). King will deliver the Day Two keynote, “Modeling of Selective Laser Melting Process.”

About Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

For the most part, LLNL is closed to the public. However earlier this year, a few publications were welcomed into the facility for a small glimpse of the work being performed at the facility.

They are not just known for their 3D printing capabilities. The laboratory and its scientists, in association with University of California, have made more than a few key scientific discoveries and developments. To them, adding new elements to the periodic table and developing supercomputers are everyday tasks that are integral parts of their scholastic organizational culture.

Their 3D Printing Labs

LLNL is one of the largest additive manufacturing developers in the world. It is also home to the National Ignition Facility, which features the world’s largest laser. The facility’s primary focus is on metal parts, with two of the three 3D printing labs focusing on metal-based processes. In these labs, a jet engine was built in just eight days for approximately $10,000 dollars.

The laboratory is not just dedicated to its personal development of additive manufacturing. LLNL also launched the Accelerated Certification of Additively Manufactured Metals Initiative; a program which aims to improve metal 3D printing processes, while simultaneously increasing its adoption across industries. This initiative is directed by King.

Researchers at LLNL were the ones to discover what caused tiny, porous surfaces in 3D printed metal structures. They were also responsible for a breakthrough laser design using a powder bed select laser melting (SLM) 3D printer. That only scratches the surface of the progress underway at the laboratory, as LLNL also delves into 3D bioprinting, 3D printed foam and new state of the art 3D printing techniques.

With this much already under their belt at LLNL, one can only imagine what developments are in the near future. To learn more about the 3D Labs at the laboratory, check out this tour with 3ders.org before attending the Keynote Presentation by Wayne King at Day Two of LAM.

Laser Additive Manufacturing Workshop will take place February 21-22, 2017 in Houston, Texas. For more information, and to register, please visit www.lia.org/lam.

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The Laser Institute of America (LIA) is the international society for laser applications and safety. Our mission is to foster lasers, laser applications and laser safety worldwide.