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The International Space Station Welcomes The Moon Gallery Art Collection Onboard, Including A Miniature 3D-Printed Cube

The International Space Station Welcomes The Moon Gallery Art Collection Onboard, Including A Miniature 3D-Printed Cube

Although the Moon is around 238,855 miles (or 384,400 km away), humanity has always been fascinated by it. From ancient lunar calendars to the Moon landing in 1969 to low and high tides affecting shorelines at this very moment, Earth’s natural satellite is entwined in our past and present. But how will it shape our future? Discover how the Moon Gallery — including a 3D-printed cube — aims to teach us about the unique conditions in space for future generations and extend humankind’s cultural reach into this final frontier.

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Brighten Up Your Holiday Season With 3D-Printed Gifts

Brighten Up Your Holiday Season With 3D-Printed Gifts

Whether it’s a gift with an extra personal touch or a decoration for your tree that you just won’t find in shops, there’s plenty to inspire you right here on i.materialise. We’ve dipped a toe into that pool of creativity to bring you some of our favorite ideas in our very own holiday season gift guide.

The lights go up. The sweaters go on. You fondly remember that Michael Bublé exists. It can only mean one thing: the holiday season is here again. It’s a wonderful time of year, filled with friends, family, and of course, a thoughtful gift or two. This year, you can make it more special, unique, and fun than ever by combining it with your love of 3D printing. Just take a look at some of these incredible designs to get you started.

Deck the halls in whatever you want

Tired of tinsel and shiny metal balls? Probably not — it’s hard to beat a classic, after all. But you can definitely add something new to your festive set-up. Take this beautiful Quin Ornament by Bathsheba Grossman or t

Finding The Sweet Spot By Designing For 3D Printing

Finding The Sweet Spot By Designing For 3D Printing

Confiserie Van Damme produces over 19,500 tons of marshmallows in different shapes, sizes, and varieties every single year: a delicious product with small margins that requires relatively expensive machinery. And that’s where our parent company Materialise’s advisory team Mindware came in. With their knowledge of design for 3D printing, they could efficiently translate an essential machine part for design — the nozzle — into something customizable yet more affordable. 3D printing’s design freedom and short development time was an essential key for the company to open up production, with new designs for clients that they previously had not been able to work with.

Part of being able to introduce new styles of marshmallows is having a unique nozzle that can pump out marshmallow cream in the correct flow, shape, and separation of colors to create a particular design. Typically, a single nozzle consists of 12 metal parts that are welded together and a nut. The conve

11 Fascinating Facts About 3D Printing

11 Fascinating Facts About 3D Printing

If you’re reading this blog, chances are you’re no stranger to 3D printing and know a fair bit about it — but we reckon we can still surprise you with our 11 fascinating facts from the wide world of additive manufacturing.

Every day’s a school day here at i.materialise. We’re always learning something new, and we’re more than happy to share that knowledge with you. That’s why we’ve dug a little deeper into the past, present, and future of 3D printing to come up with the greatest listicle the internet has ever seen.

OK, so we’re exaggerating a little. But what we DO have are some entertaining facts that we think you will enjoy. Let’s take a look!

  1. It’s older than you think

Many see 3D printing as something for the future or consider it a budding technology. Compared to some of the alternatives, that’s arguably true, but it doesn’t change the fact that 3D printing is older than you might think. It started in the mid-1980s when Chuck Hull invented the stereolithography pr

An Interview With Materialise’s CEO: The Top 5 Highlights

An Interview With Materialise’s CEO: The Top 5 Highlights

Looking back at three decades

In June 1990, Fried Vancraen and his wife, Hilde, founded Materialise and embarked on a mission to create a better and healthier world through our hardware and software infrastructure and an in-depth understanding of 3D printing.

But the radical change didn’t come overnight. With incremental steps, 3D printing has indeed revolutionized the way we manufacture products and has helped to save lives. This interview between Fried and Kristof Sehmke, our Communication Manager, goes over the last 30 years of the company’s story with a look forward to the future. Read on to learn about five highlights from the interview!

1. Surprise at the evolution of AM

Fried says, “I always recognized 3D printing as a paradigm shift in manufacturing and as a technology with huge opportunity,” but he has been pleasantly surprised with the technology as it exists today — especially when it comes to metal sintering. He adds, “It h

What Materials Should You Use For 3D Printing? The Choice Is Yours.

What Materials Should You Use For 3D Printing? The Choice Is Yours.

You’ve got a great idea, you’ve drawn it out, and you’d love to see it come to life through 3D printing. But what material should you choose? With i.materialise, it’s entirely up to you — whether it’s plastic, metal, or resin, you’ve got plenty of options, and we’re here to walk you through them.

But first… what do you need to know?

The material you choose will impact more than how your model looks and feels — it’ll even decide which 3D printing technology is used to make it! But, what matters most is that you get to see just how many options you really have — by discovering all the possibilities, you’ll be able to create a design that truly makes you happy and best suits your needs.

3D printing in Polyamide

When you’re looking to create a model from plastic, Polyamide is the most popular choice. When used for Laser Sintering, it is strong, flexible, and can create moving or interlocking parts. Though naturally white, Polyamide can be easily dyed to bring a burst of color to your d

A Groom-To-Be Creates His Own 3D-Printed Wedding Band For The Most Special Day Of His Life

A Groom-To-Be Creates His Own 3D-Printed Wedding Band For The Most Special Day Of His Life

Wedding days are special days for everyone, and Daniel Weinberger is no exception. To celebrate love and to tie the knot with his beloved wife, this creative IT professional decided to make a custom-made 3D-printed wedding band.

Based in California, Dan has been a long-term fan of 3D printing. Back when he was still in school, he was fascinated with SolidWorks, a 3D CAD software that helps designers create authentic design experiences. Even though he built his career in IT, his interest in design and 3D printing didn’t cease.

“I’ve known about 3D printers for years! Currently, I work in medical device production, and our R&D department has resin printers to quickly prototype and design products we make. It’s nice to have the possibility to see how 3D printing works!” says Dan.

Daniel Weinberger, the maker & designer of the 3D printed wedding band. Photo credit: Daniel Wenberger

Creating a personalized wedding band is a beautiful way to honor a unique bond with your partner