Reflection on Societal and Individual progress

Societal Reflection- People have been creators of both simple and fantastically complex items with the intent of fulfilling some need or solving some problem. Long before STEM/STEAM education, the archaeological record shows that ancient people used science, created, and invented.

Some milestones in science, technology and engineering:

• 28000 years ago, until the start of recorded history- Archaeological finds of human bones, tools, pots, baskets
• 9000 years ago, evidence that maize production in Mexico is consistently increased year over year
• 3000 years ago, Babylonian medical handbook
• 2000 years ago, the first mechanical engineer creates the water clock and seismometer
• 500 years ago, Galileo lives and is viewed by some as the father of modern science
• 300 years ago, an inefficient steam engine pumps water from a coal mine, the first machine

Individual Reflection- As I reflect, compare, and contrast my career with science throughout human history, it strikes me that the list of fantastic inventions in the last 300 years is limitless (autos, airplanes, space stations, computers, medical technology, etc.). Technological advances now come so fast I pose the hypothesis: building on Moore’s Law, technological advances in the last ~7 years equals the 100 prior years. (assume 2^x=100, then X=6.64).

Upon further reflection, some of the most fascinating progress came during the time of the Apollo missions. Slide rules were the engineer’s best friend and science fiction Start Trek included communicators, tricorders, lasers, photons, and replicators. Less than a lifetime later, communicators and tricorders went from science fiction to smart phones, Lasers are in common use, and replicators are the precursor to 3D printers. The days of punching out a Fortran program onto a deck of cards for compiling and loading into a Vax 11/780 mainframe computer are long gone.

Perhaps the most fantastic thing to this author is the coming of age of Additive Manufacturing (AM), also known as 3D printing. In the 1960s, we saw fictional “replicators” on the TV show Star Trek to create food, parts, clothes from a verbal command. In the 1970s the 3D printing idea was created in the real world, since that time we read more about slow progress and many issued to be researched and resolved. Lately, the technology is coming of age and we are reading about the successes and repeatable processes that can be used to make many more reliable products. The best engineers are always willing to reinvent themselves to capture the value of the latest technology.

The need for an individual engineer to re-invent

 My latest re-invention of self was to sign up for the MIT online course “Additive Manufacturing for Innovative Design and Production.” One of the first assignments made a tremendous impact on my attitude. That particular article explained that AM could provide mechanical parts with isotropic properties equivalent in every way to traditional fabrication or machining with various grades of 300 stainless steel.

That was a magical moment, coming to the realization that 3D printing was here to stay and I needed to be part of the new wave. By choice, all previous skepticism was cast aside and I was committing 100%.

The early stages of getting the new me involved- Since earning the MIT certificate, two weeks ago, I have been approached by several clients where AM offers huge advantages over traditional methods, both in cost and time.

The topic of this writing came from a project where I was asked for input for a few simple components on a potential new invention to optimize water treatment processes. The request was to create a particular shape for a water cup. I could envision some elaborate instrumentation and control logic that would come later but this would all be speculation. My assignment was to create the cup and a holder.

The result was a unique shape for a water cup which can be printed (i.e. produced via AM without wasting any material) from clear polycarbonate plastic.

The “old school” approach #1- One traditional approach for creating this part would have been to procure a chunk of polycarbonate and then machine a void to create the cup. The basic process is to remove or subtract the material we don’t want. Much of the material we purchased will end up on the machine shop floor and the total cost for this approach would be several hundred dollars.

The “old school” approach #2- Alternately, if we wanted many of these parts, it would be possible to invest in the tooling required to create this part with injection molding, extrusion, or vacuum forming. The cost for the first cup produced would be many thousands of dollars because we have already invested in the required mold and other tooling before creating the first piece. This first piece or prototype would cost in excess of $10k. however, there is an advantage if producing many thousands of the same or similar parts. A good example of this would be the popular Lego sets that produce 10’s of millions of standard blocks with a per piece cost of pennies.

It is also noted that the ability to mass produce multiple duplicates of this cup has other disadvantages. This piece with high depth to width ratio would require assembly of three pieces, the back (support plate), the left, and right sides of the cup. The most cost-effective method would involve an assembly step where these three relatively flat pieces would be assembled and joined with adhesives or other plastic welding techniques.

The Innovative Approach- The graph above indicates the economic benefits of small production runs of a unique plastic product. Additive Manufacturing offers the following benefits:

• The first single piece can be produced for ~$100
• Additional pieces are a similar or lower cost,
• The design model, can go directly to the AM shop as a single computer file for loading into the AM production machine
• A completed product ready for use will come out of the 3D printer. There will be no seams which means no assembly labor, no adhesives, and higher quality (less likely to develop a leak)

So, here I am getting further involved in the AM economy and satisfying my human need to create and invent with engineering.

Where do we go from here? - One end of the scale, the big players GE, Boeing and many others will increase budgets and grow their departments and we will all read about their continued successes with AM. How about us on the other end of the scale? I am but one semi-retired engineer willing to work on any project. I have knowledge and an eager, can-do attitude. How do I work with smaller players that can also benefit from AM?

Where could I use your help?

• Is there some marketing guru that can help me grow this business?
• Does any owner of a 3D printing system want to team up with me?
• Do any industries want to evaluate 3D printing via consultancy as opposed to starting a new department with new hires and a big budget?

Any and all thoughts, critiques, suggestions are welcome.

FYI, stay tuned for a future update after I do a little more research into a patentable idea for AM