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3D testing taking over America Makes
YOUNGSTOWN
For one weekend all eyes of those interested in 3-D printing at home are watching Youngstown to see the results of testing organized by the staff of Make: magazine.
More than 20 smaller 3-D printers are being tested to identify the best machines for home 3-D builders.
The America Makes facility is the entire reason the testing was brought to Youngstown this year, said Jason Babler, creative director for Make: magazine.
It’s good that communities are taking up President Barack Obama’s initiative to create cities where things are being made, he said.
Cindy Lum, managing editor of the magazine, said she was surprised to see the number of tech companies in downtown Youngstown.
“This is what I think a lot of other cities want to look like,” Babler said, referring to the tech companies working with America Makes and the Youngstown Business Incubator, along with Turning Technologies.
Just five of the 3-D printers were running for Thursday’s open house event to kick off the Maker City weekend. However, there were crowds of people watching them. Testing won’t start in earnest until today.
The goal for the testing was to get the most knowledgeable people about 3-D printing possible to come to Youngstown to help test these machines, said Anna Kaziunas France, fabrication editor at Make: magazine.
“The software is just as important as the machine,” she said. “You can put a machine with different software and it can work a lot better.”
Matt Stoltz came from Providence, R.I., to help test the 3-D printers. They will be tested by making multiple objects of different sizes, he said.
“They work kind of like a hot-glue gun building things as they go,” Stoltz said.
The printers also will be tested on jobs of various lengths of time, France said.
“We’ll test them with overnight jobs to see if they jam,” she said.
It was like Christmas for many of those doing the testing because of their interest in 3-D printers.
One of the first tests done is the “straight-out-of-the-box test,” France said. In that test, they go through the instructions to see how effective they are and what might have been left out.
“We’re all pretty knowledgeable, so we know what they left out,” she said.
The point of the testing is to make recommendations about the printers for consumers, said Dale Dougherty, founder and CEO of Make: magazine.
“We’re trying to encourage people to get involved in 3-D printing, he said.
These machines are changing the way that people make things, Dougherty said.