The answers to your 3D printing questions
16 December 2014
Renishaw has collaborated with the Manchester Museum of Science & Industry (MOSI) on a free exhibition that will debunk myths about 3D printing.
The exhibition celebrates this exciting new technology and explores how it is being used in applied fields, including medicine, manufacturing and aerospace.
The exhibition called 3D: Printing the Future is now open to the public until April 19, 2015. Over 500 objects made using the technique can be seen at the exhibition, including the world’s first bike with a 3D printed metal frame that Renishaw manufactured in collaboration with Empire Cycles.
The MOSI exhibition aims to educate the general public about 3D printing, a process also known in industry as additive manufacturing. The technology can be difficult to grasp for the uninitiated, but by exposing the general public to the actual 3D printing process, MOSI and its collaborators hope to make it easier to understand. Throughout the exhibition, visitors can observe a plastic 3D printer in action.
Renishaw provided several bespoke parts for this exhibition, including the central piece – a bike with a metal 3D printed frame. To demonstrate the versatility of 3D printing, Renishaw helped produce topologically optimised bottle openers, an exhaust manifold, a knee replacement, a dental bridge, a skull with maxillofacial implants and other complex structures.
Lucy Grainger, product marketing engineer at Renishaw’s additive manufacturing division explains, in 2013, Renishaw sponsored a sister exhibition organised by the Science Museum in London. Exhibitions are a great way of raising awareness about new technologies. They allow companies to explain realistic applications of 3D printing and what it can do for manufacturing, industry, medicine and consumers alike.
Sarah Baines, exhibition’s curator commented that 3D printing is revolutionising the fields of medicine and engineering. They wanted to celebrate the technology and inspire the next generation of engineers - not just in London, but also in other areas of the UK. They are keen to explain to visitors of all ages how 3D printing has democratised design, encouraged innovation and what kind of opportunities it holds for the future.
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