Janine Benyus on 3D printing and the circular economy

This is another video worth seeing. Janine Benyus, author of “Biomimicry : innovation inspired by nature” talks at the inaugural Circular Economy 100 Annual Summit, sponsored by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation this June. Her message is about how 3D printing can help us on the way towards a sustainable economy. Quite inspiring 20 min with some good examples.

MakeSpace in Cambridge

Yesterday, I visited the MakeSpace in Cambridge. A recently started collaborative fablab made possible with generous funding from ideaSpace, the Institute for Manufacturing (IfM), ARM, TTP, Microsoft Research and Cambridge Science Centre.

They got great equipment to build whatever you want, from laser cutter, 3D printer, but also the „old school“ equipment for drilling and milling. I hope this space inspires a lot of people to become creative and innovative.

3D printer manufacturer

ARCAM, based in Göteborg (Sweden) seems to be one of the leading 3D printer producer tailoring their devices specifically for medical applications.

By the way, 3D printing is also called additive manufacturing in contrast to manufacturing techniques where material is removel. According to AdditiveManufacturing.com, additive Manufacturing (AM) „is an appropriate name to describe the technologies that build 3D objects by adding layer-upon-layer of material, whether the material is plastic, metal, concrete or one day…..human tissue.“

Users innovate collaboratively in fab labs

Fab labs are on the rise. One has recently opened here in Cambridge, named „Makespace„.  In Hamburg we have Fabulous St. Pauli since 2011. These are places where users can turn their ideas into prototypes using state-of-the-art 3D-printing, but as well more conventional tools such as CNC or drilling machines. A recent brand eins article dealt with the phenomenon, particularly in the context of sharing knowledge, resources and just forming local communities. Several examples exist. Visit also the website of the International Fab Lab Association for more information and several examples. According to the article, the first fab lab in Germany was the „Münchner Haus der Eigenarbeit“ founded already in 1987.