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Changing the world with 3D printing?

Newcastle Science City and Newcastle University hosted an exclusive workshop as part of the three-day Thinking Digital last week all about 3D printing.

The workshop used theory as well as practical experiments to help delegates understand what 3D printing can do, and how it can be used to help design new products to bring to market.

Speaking about the event, Professor of Manufacturing and Engineering at Newcastle University, Kenny Dalgarno said: “We wanted to use this workshop to dispel some 3D printing myths by showing just how easy it is to test and use this tool in the product development process, something which would be of particular interest to SMEs with smaller R&D budgets.

“Working together with Newcastle University Institute for Ageing, we used the concept of getting older as the basis for designing, printing and testing a product which could address an age associated problem.”

One such problem is that of decreased dexterity in the hands which increases with age, and can hinder everyday tasks like opening a tin of food.

Delegates were split into teams and given the task of using a ring pull to open a can of pop, with the added difficulty of wearing boxing gloves to mimic the sort of impaired dexterity that an elderly person might experience. The teams were then asked to design and 3D print a tool to help make the job of opening the can much easier.

Simon Devine, one of the delegates who took part in the workshop said: “This was a fantastic opportunity to get a better understanding of the pros and cons of the 3D printing process. It was an awful lot of fun and I’d like to think as a result of our efforts, we would have helped more aged people than we maimed with our ring pull devices!”

The resulting products were presented at the Thinking Digital Conference closing party, where each team got to put their product to the test.

Speaking at the event, Simon Green, Head of Business Support at Newcastle Science City commented: “Most people have heard of 3D printing but it isn’t often that you get the opportunity to get involved in the actual process.

“I hope that by running this workshop we’ve been able to shed some light on the mystery surrounding 3D printing, to show just how effective it can be in product design and testing, particularly for SMEs.”

To find out more about how Newcastle Science City can support businesses in developing and commercialising products, contact the business support team on 0191 208 4117.

Newcastle Science City is part financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), managed by the Department for Communities and Local Government, securing £2.3million of ERDF investment. The ERDF Competitiveness Programme 2007-2013 is bringing over £300m into the North East to support innovation, enterprise and business support across the region.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Newcastle Science City .