Cover Story
The popularity of 3D printers has expanded extraordinarily in the past couple of years. Machine reliability has increased dramatically, and new materials for printing are being introduced each day, with printers now being capable of delivering one-off prints in everything from plastic to metal. Some forward-thinking research groups have even begun working on creating 3D printed chocolate structures and human tissue.
Today’ s desktop printers are significantly closer to the quality and features of industrial 3D printers. A high rate of innovation has resulted in faster printing speeds, greater reliability, and the availability of unique new materials. This makes Additive Manufacturing an appropriate technology for new applications in more sectors. While desktop 3D printers were earlier used by hobbyists or for constrained utilization in the education sector, these printers are progressively discovering applications in different industries, for example, engineering, art, jewelry, product design, dentistry, architecture, biomedical and consumer products.
The desktop 3D printing segment is less than a decade old, with many of the most significant advancements occurring in the last 5 years. Industrial 3D printing had been in use for over three decades, but high-cost entry constrained it to be used by trained technicians in well-funded corporate environments. As desktop printers came into the picture, a much broader audience was able to experience the thrill of an object coming to life before their eyes. These new printers were smaller, more user-friendly, and could be purchased for a fraction of the cost. The market was taking root, but a need for reliable software to make the most of this technology was rising as well.
Truth be told, the potential for success exists for those who seize the opportunity before anyone else. Clayton Webster set out to tackle these software challenges by founding Simplify3D in 2013. Today, Simplify3D provides industryleading 3D printing software that is trusted by professionals worldwide. The software analyzes your digital 3D models to determine the best way to fabricate these parts through additive manufacturing. Acting as the brain of the 3D printer, the software precisely controls speed, temperature, cooling, extrusion, and positioning to ensure the highest quality of output.
The team at Simplify3D is driven to empower innovation through 3D printing. They strive to simplify the process and improve the results, thereby enabling more designers, inventors, and engineers to harness the power of additive manufacturing. At present, Simplify3D is trusted by users in over 120 countries to provide total control over the printing process and consistently deliver the best results.
A Visionary Set Out to Make a Difference Nearly a decade ago, Webster was studying Engineering at Purdue University when he got his first taste of 3D printing. At the time, 3D printers were very costly and were typically only accessible to skilled technicians. Purdue offered a Computer Aided Design( CAD) course that allowed students to design digital models on their computers, and then fabricate those models using one of the SLA 3D printers at the university.“ I remember having to pay $ 20 to use the machine and waiting about three weeks to receive the finished parts”, Webster recounted.“ The parts were quite brittle, and if a change was needed, you were stuck waiting several more weeks before you could get a replacement.” Despite these constraints, watching a digital design come to life in a real physical part was a transformative experience, and he quickly started looking at ways to make this technology more accessible.
Great leaders do not set out to be a leader; they set out to make a difference. Webster wanted to make a difference so that 3D printing would be more accessible and thus became a part of the early group of pioneers in the personal 3D printing sector, working to lay a foundation for the industry. There were no off-the-shelf machines or kits back then that could be purchased, so Webster took a leap of faith, and designed and fabricated his first 3D printer in his college dorm room.“ After the printer was built, raw materials became the next hurdle. I convinced a local plastics company to create a small batch of specialty filament that would work with this new type of 3D printer. It was expensive, but it worked!”
The next two years were spent on electronics and control systems development. One of his largest contributions during this time was the development of the printer firmware that handles communication, motor control, sensors, and printer kinematics. He released the code to the open-source community, and many printers on the market today are still powered by a variant of this firmware. With an intimate knowledge of hardware, electronics, and