iMakr Med Platform Offers 3D Printers & Bioprinting Technology for Medical & Dental, Features Invivo Hybrid 3D Bioprinter

As the 3D printer came into inception in the early ’80s, certainly it was going to be an advance for engineers in prototyping, and that was more than exciting enough at the time. Today however, 3D printing is a serious catalyst for change. Processes are changing in nearly every sector for the better, from the way cars are manufactured to the way roads are repaired, and from eliminating waiting lists for organ transplants to creating titanium spinal implants that allow patients mobility again. While researchers may have been decades ahead of us, most of us never considered how very many things might could change for the better—or how.

The medical field has certainly been high on the list in terms of the positive benefits being afforded through 3D printing. And while much bioprinting has been done behind the scenes, with results being heavily guarded in labs, the technology is becoming much more accessible and affordable, meaning that it’s not just the rare scientist sequestered away doing the growing of human cells anymore. It might seem like an advanced science for your doctor’s office to be dabbling in, but with the advent of platforms such as iMakr Med, both the medical and dental communities will now be offered a single source for their 3D printing requirements, as well as having a greater resource for progressive, modern technology and data stemming from the research lab.

Obviously, in giving more researchers, scientists, doctors, and dentists access to 3D printing and even bioprinting, iMakr Med is acting as a forerunner in changing the playing field for healthcare, taking all the benefits of 3D printing and applying them to the medical arena, first with self-sustainability in technology allowing for more personalized patient care, affordability in doing so, and speed in production. Overall, this leads to better workflow from the office, higher efficiency, better products—and in the end, a happy patient.

“iMakr strives to offer the best in class desktop 3D Printers for medical and dental industry,” states the team on their website. “We support our customers before and after the sales with outstanding supply service and tailored made advice.”

Numerous 3D printers are found on the site, but currently highlighted on the platform is the Rokit Invivo Hybrid Bio 3D Printer, a machine that we reported on earlier this year. Retailing at £30,000 (which translates to just over $34,000 USD), this is a major innovation for researchers everywhere, functioning as the first hybrid, modular bioprinter in the world.

“It is the world’s 1st hybrid and modular bio 3D printer. It is the most innovative and up to date bio 3D printer that allows users to create versatile 3D cellular structure with multi material and extensive designs,” states iMakr on the website.

Meant for biomedical research, the Invivo will grow cells that can then be transformed into tissue with potential for transplantation. The South Korean 3D printer manufacturer worked to create a machine that offers features researchers want, but also with affordability. The bioprinter is accompanied by Invivo Gel (£249), responsible for helping to create 3D tissue constructs that are able to stay alive for longer periods in vitro.

The 3D printer offers three nozzles:

• Extruder
• Mechanical Dispenser
• Hot melt pneumatic dispenser

Medical-grade filament, including PLGA, PLLA, and PCL materials, can be used to print complex scaffolds, while 3D printed cellular structures can be produced with bio-inks including collagen, gelatin, silk fiber, hyaluronic acid and the gelatin-based, photo-curable INVIVO@GEL.

Other features are as follows:

• Clean Bench System: provides an uncontaminated internal environment thanks to a high efficiency HEPA Filter (H14) and a sterilizing UV Lamp.
• UV LED: allows for photo curable materials (Wavelength: 365nm)
• Bio Ink Warmer: offers a preheating function for the next print (up to 80°C)
• Thermometer
• Emergency Switch
• Temperature Control Bed (Premium): allows temperature control system (-4°C to 80°C)
• Pneumatic Dispenser: offers high viscosity material printing and high temperature melting system for synthetic polymers (up to 350°C)
• LCD Touch Screen: supported by Android OS System, it allows the user to upload, download and print the 3D file over the WiFi network, and also monitor the printing status on their smartphone.

If this new bioprinter is something you’d like to see soon, iMakr announces that it will be on display at the Digical Show at Parsons Green in London, from September 30th to October 1st. Registration is open now. Discuss this new platform further in the iMakr Med forum over at 3DPB.com.