i.materialise 3D printing service blog

Meet the designers: AmniosyA

By Tatiana | April 26, 2013 | Meet the Designer | No comments

AmniosyA, a design collective from Florence Italy made their first collection EntropyA. Read all about them.

Can you tell a little bit more about studio AmniosyA?
« AmniosyA is born as a research group focusing on architecture, design and fashion. The studio consists of five architects and one professor: Marco Carratelli, Lucia Lunghi, Elvira Perfetto, Lorenzo Pianigiani and Leonardo Pilati. The last is our indispensable mentor Marino Moretti who has joined and encouraged us and gave us his passion. »

SHAPE
« We all met at university where each of us had started a very similar research path. The place where our passion took its first steps were in the lectures of our professor who still follow us. After a couple of years we wanted to join forces and had to merge six different personalities. Amniosya was born in a small living room of about 15 square meters. Our interests focuses on the world of new technologies, and on the dynamic simulation used as incipit of morphological shape at different scales; we are also interested in 3d printing related to complex geometries. »

The team in Italy.

Who designed this collection?
« Each project we work on is a collaboration between all members. Each of us is fundamental for technical and conceptual notions: from the idea to the final product. »

Can you tell us more about this design?
« EntropyA is Greek and indicates a spontaneous change of state. EntropyA is the result of a fluid simulation that through physico-dynamics property deforms a plane, and deforms a Euclidean geometry. In this project we recreate spatial movements and that complexity recalls the softness of a cloth, and the articulation of natural interactions between different parts of a high density fluid.
An element that starts from a classic design of the jewel begins to develop its own unexpected geometry. »

I read that you’re from Italy. How big is 3D printing there?
« Except a couple of experiences abroad, we live and work in Italy, more specifically in Florence. In Italy, 3dprinting is something quite new and the information about it is not very widespread. We only have a couple of universities that have a 3d printer. Anyway, this field is expanding very quickly and the changes begin to be noticed. »

Can you describe the style of AmniosyA?
« We don’t have a definition for our style, because all our work is the result of an interaction between individual styles with a common root. We try to express spatial articulation, sensibility, research that goes into generation of composition and technological innovation. Our style is about us, our natural interest in the spatial complexity and natural aggregation systems. We are inspired by the research of various Universities, such as SCI Arc, AA, from the work of Wiscombe, Hernan Diaz Alonso and LaRoche. The inspiration for our projects comes from unexpected suggestions, sometimes linked to scientific studies. Therefore, they are different every time. We can confirm that most of the times the best ideas are generated during the night! »

Is this your first 3D print project?
«No, this isn’t for any of us. We have already had several individual and collective experiences, in Italy and abroad. The first 3d printing experience for each of us goes back about 3 years, with many difficulties and a unique choice of material. We found out about this technology several years ago, when we had to build some morphologically complex models. »

Did 3D printing change your view on designing?
« We believe that 3D printing has not changed the way we see design, it simply made it possible to express something in a real space and not only in a virtual space. 3d printing has contributed to the development of our research in the field of complex geometries. We believe it is one of the greatest innovations for people working in this field. »

If you had the freedom of designing anything you want, what would it be?
« It is a difficult question, the quick answer is that we would like to design and then build one of our projects, Inflowing Bridge .. or why not, Arxipelaga .. »

What materials do you like the most and why?
«We want to test many materials but we found nylon and especially polyamide quite suitable for our prototypes.
We are looking forward to experiencing the bi-materials and materials in high flexibility, because it would allow us to develop new projects. »

How do you see your future?
« We imagine our future full of ideas, projects and research, all of them linked to the development of new technologies and new materials, elements essential for us to develop innovative processes in the field of architecture and design. We imagine a future for which our studies and research have been helpful and important. »

Website: http://amniosya.blogspot.be/

Featured Friday: Showing your 3D printed designs!

By Tatiana | April 26, 2013 | Featured Friday | No comments

There are so many new gallery entries that it was hard to choose just a few. Here are our picks:

Barney, a final year product design student from Brunel University in London, made an interesting project: “As part of a group project, we had to design products for an existing brand: we chose Moleskine. I ended up designing a conceptual handheld device for 3D artists allowing them to capture a digital library of textures and 3D objects on the go.”

“It was printed in stainless steel; I’m really pleased with the unique texture of the print.”

Stainless steel gives the product a rough look, just what it needs!

Dutch designer Maaike van der Horncreated this ‘Bracelet Constructionist Narrow’: “This is the narrow, more subtle version of the Constructionist bracelet. It was inspired by modern architecture and its use of complex repetitive geometrical structures. I am fascinated by how these structures can behave to create buildings and objects that look seemingly organic and unique, buildings that change their appearance depending on the angle you look at them. Here new techniques like 3D printing have opened up a world of design possibilities -this bracelet would be impossible to make using traditional jewellery techniques.”
Sizes are upon request!

Will du Toit also created a Stainless steel (medieval pewter finish) design: a three legged robot.

It's got the size of a battery!

Have a nice weekend everyone and keep the design vibes going!
Don’t forget to put your own designs in the gallery!

Tutorial Thursday: Don’t underestimate the power of search!

By Tatiana | April 25, 2013 | Tutorial Thursday | No comments

Not everyone can be a pro when it comes to Search Engine Optimization (SEO). But if you want people to find your designs in our gallery, then it’s important to follow some basic rules.

1. Use keywords

When people go to the i.materialise gallery, they often use the search field to find nice designs. Use the description field to explain your design in a few sentences and add a good title. Designer Michael Mueller, who created this ‘Decision Spintop’ uses a good description for his product with some quirky sentences. You know immediately what it is (a spintop), what material (gold plated brass) and the use (pendant).

2. Tags
It’s very important to use enough tags (try to find 5-10) that describe your product. To give you some inspiration: use your designer name, the material, the use, the category, the color and the name of your design.

We see a lot of designers don’t use tags for their designs, which gives them less chance to be found with our gallery search option.

2. Choose the correct category
Some people just like to see all the designs of a certain category (such as jewelry) and scroll through it. For these people it’s very important you choose the correct category to add your designs to. So think about and choose the right one!

Do you have any other tips? Feel free to share them with our community through Facebook, Twitter or just comment on this article!

Make Munich was a great succes!

By Tatiana | April 24, 2013 | Community, Events | 2 Comments

For the first time Munich held their own ‘Maker Faire’. Nils Hitze, one of the organizers, estimates there were about 2000 visitors, other sources say 3000.

Anyway: they really pulled of this first session. Families, designers, makers and hobbyists found their way to the event last weekend. While our team was talking about 3D printing, drones were flying over our heads and people on skateboards (with attached 3D printers) were passing by.

It’s great to see the ‘Maker Movement’ expanding more and more and see how 3D printing has conquered its place in it.

Let’s take a look at some pictures:

Lands of Ruin had some great designs on display.

Our booth to showcase the designs of our community.

PA: we had our army of colored and velvet finished figurines with us.

Bert, our Product Designer, gives some more explanation about our service.

Check out the pictures below, want to see more? Check our Facebook.

Featured Friday: Showing your 3D printed designs!

By Tatiana | April 19, 2013 | Featured Friday | No comments

Happy Friday everyone! We’ve got so many great new entries in our gallery: here are the picks of this week!

David Zip made a scaled version of a Gas Plant: “This 1920′s Gas Plant was scanned with a Faro Focus3D laser scanner from 17 positions inside and outside the shed. That captured some of the structural elements and avoided holes in the mesh. The registered point cloud was converted to an STL mesh using the Thinkbox Frost in 3DS Max.”

David 3D printed his design in polyamide.

Will du Toit had fun making this robot -with too many guns. He 3D printed it on prime gray.

So many details for such a tiny figurine.

This Michael jackson statuette is designed by Anas rafiq: “This is him doing his famous and extravagant move that defies gravity; the lean of the smooth criminal.” It’s 3D printed in brass gold plated and polished.

Move like Michael Jackson.

Have a great weekend and don’t forget: we’ll be at Make Munich!

i.materialise to exhibit at Bay Area Maker Faire

By Becky | April 18, 2013 | Events | No comments

We are very pleased to announce that i.materialise will be an exhibitor at the Bay Area Maker Faire on May 18-19, 2013. And we hope that if you’re going, you’ll stop by to see us!

For those of you not familiar with the Maker Faire, here’s a description from their site:

“Part science fair, part county fair, and part something entirely new, Maker Faire is an all-ages gathering of tech enthusiasts, crafters, educators, tinkerers, hobbyists, engineers, science clubs, authors, artists, students, and commercial exhibitors. All of these ‘makers’ come to Maker Faire to show what they have made and to share what they have learned.”

Franky, Katrien (Marketing Manager) and I will be showcasing examples of our 3D printed items to show people what great and cool things can be printed in 3D, and what types of materials you can print with us. We’ll be happy to answer all your questions about our services and 3D printing in general. At the event will be interesting panel discussions, lectures and workshops about makers and 3D printing.

And make sure you stop by our booth because we’ll have LOTS more going on. Like promo codes for you to use as a thank you for dropping by. Samples in a variety of materials to look at — up close and personal. And a couple of fun surprises as well… like maybe a prize drawing or two! Stay tuned for more details.

One more thing… we’ll be hosting a Meetup during the Faire! Eventbrite is now open for registrations.

Want to know what we’ll have on display in our booth? What fun giveaways we’ll have both BEFORE and DURING the Faire? Check back soon as we reveal more of what’s in store at the 2013 Bay Area Maker Faire.

See you there!

Natural PU coated brass is back!

By Tatiana | April 17, 2013 | News | 2 Comments

Brass PU coated is back in the building! The previous material didn’t live up to our expectations, but after some more tests we’re ready to run a new trial period!

We weren’t really satisfied with the PU coated brass last time: it was too shiny and the distinction with the gold plated version wasn’t good enough.
Wim, (y)our Business Process Manager, did some tests to offer brass with a more natural look. Now we’ve found a new process to give our community the brass we were aiming to give them.

Brass PU coated versus gold plated. Design 'Spintop' by Michael Mueller.

If you look at the picture you see the differences regarding finishings. Michael Mueller, who designed the spintop you see in the picture: “It’s less shiny than the gold plated brass. I like this!”

Some people asked us why we use the PU coating, well, it’s for the following reason: it protects your design from oxidation, scratches and skin irritations (if you have a very sensitive skin).

“Oxidation? I love oxidation!” We know a lot of people from the Steampunk community love the oxidation of the material. Unfortunately we did the test and showed it to some designers: the designs turned blue and green instead of getting a nice antique look.

Greedy Fish by Michael Mueller.

DESIGN TIPS
As a designer you need to be aware of a few things. If you have small details on your design, the plating won’t always stick to it. So be careful with tiny details. On the picture of the spin top you see that the details are reddish which is the original brass color.

The process is pretty stable, but of course there are always exceptions.

Compared to gold plated polished brass (brass electroplated with a tiny layer of gold), your design will have a vintage look which you see a lot nowadays. If you compare the two finishes, you can clearly see the difference. More information can be found on the material page.

Designers use this finish for different creations such as jewelry or sculptures. It’s a very appropriate material for all your Steampunk designs, which need that 19^th century scientific romance look.

And what about pricing? The price is directly related with the volume of the model to print.
The bigger the model volume, the less you pay per cm³. Here are a few examples to give you an indication of cost:

1 cm³ costs about 25 euro (excl. VAT)
5 cm³ costs about 95 euro (excl. VAT)
10 cm³ costs about 160 euro (excl. VAT)

We’re looking forward to seeing your designs. Keep us posted!

PS: Do you want to check out the material? Sample kits are now available for 25 euro.

Tips and tricks to design 3D printable models

By Franky | April 17, 2013 | News | No comments

When you are designing something you want to have 3D printed, it’s important to keep in mind what material you are designing for. That’s why we have design guides to provide you with basic rules, tips, and tricks when designing for a certain material.

To make your ideas real you can choose between 16 different high quality 3D printing materials. But with different materials, different 3D printing technologies come with the territory. So, depending on certain requirements for your design, like wall thickness or dimensional accuracy, our design guides can help you in finding the right material. By browsing through these design guides, you’ll quickly discover why that specific material you had in mind might just (or not) be right for you.

Here are a few examples of the basic rules, tips, and tricks you will find in our design guides:

What is this wall thickness?

Choosing the right space between your moving parts

Keep your multicolor model away from water

Engraved text and surface details

What’s the clearance of my ceramic model?

Have fun designing!

Dezeen and Blurb launch magazine Print Shift

By Tatiana | April 16, 2013 | Community, News | No comments

Dezeen launches Print Shift, a print-on-demand magazine about 3D printing produced in collaboration with cutting-edge publisher Blurb.

3D Printing is changing the lives of many people. For this reason Dezeen just launched a magazine to cover different aspects of the 3D printing world such as fashion, design, architecture and the medical industry. The Magazine features interviews with the key pioneers driving this strategic shift, including fashion designer Iris van Herpen and Belgium-based Materialise.

Our director, Miranda Bastijns, will be speaking at the press conference today to give everyone a heads up about 3D printing.

Print Shift is the result of extensive research into the 3D printing technology. Dezeen has spoken to architects, designers, scientists and researchers around the world, travelled across Europe and visited some of the leading studios and factories -such as Materialise- at the cutting edge of a technological revolution.

©Dezeen

Features in the magazine include a report on the race to build the world’s first printed house; an investigation into the impact additive manufacturing is having on the fashion industry; and a look into the future of printed food.

The magazine is available to buy now from the Blurb bookstore at £8.95 plus postage and packing.

For more details about Print Shift and to read additional content, visit www.dezeen.com/printshift.

‘A Design Award 3D printed by i.materialise

By Tatiana | April 12, 2013 | Events, News | 1 Comment

We’re happy to announce that we 3D printed one of the A’ Design Awards, the annual juried design competition that honors the best designers worldwide! The design comes from OMC Studios Italy. Check out the pictures: