3D Printing: The Stories We Missed This Week — December 31, 2016

With the New Year right around the corner, it’s time for the 3D printing industry to start building on this last solid year towards an even bigger and brighter 2017. On this year’s final edition of “The Stories We Missed This Week,” we’ve got a heartwarming family Christmas story, new upper management appointments, a functional 3D printed Chevy Camaro engine, and more. For starters, doctors from Stony Brook Medicine used 3D printing technology to help repair the skull of 7-month-year-old infant Vincent Bono, allowing him to celebrate his first-ever Christmas. The 3D printing titan Stratasys is starting 2017 off with some major upper management moves, promoting Senior Vice President of Corporate Finance Lilach Payorski to Chief Financial Officer, effectively replacing Erez Simha at the year’s end. The US-based startup Cazza Construction Technologies will collaborate with the Dubai Government to utilize their construction automation technologies for the Dubai 3D Printing Strategy. Mechanical engineer Eric Harrell created a fully working 3D printed model of the Chevy Camaro V8 LS3 engine. Lastly, up until January 1, the 3D model marketplace CGTrader is offering a discounted price on over 24,000 3D models.

3D Printing Used to Help Doctors Perform Skull Reconstruction on 7-Month-Old

In a truly heartwarming holiday story out of New York, 7-month-old Vincent Bono got to celebrate his first-ever Christmas after successfully undergoing skull reconstruction surgery from doctors at Stony Brook Medicine. The medical team utilized CAT scans to create 3D models of the infant’s head, allowing them to explore the optimal route for operation. Vincent was born with a rare birth defect classified as craniosynostosis, causing a ridge to form on the forehead that can often stunt brain development. But with these patient-specific 3D models, doctors were also able to practice taking the skull apart, repairing it, and putting it back together again. This ensured that the actual procedure would be performed in a faster and more accurate way. The five-hour procedure was ultimately a success, allowing Vincent to celebrate Christmas at home with his incredibly thankful parents.

Stratasys Appoints SVP of Corporate Finance Lilach Payorski to CFO

The 3D printing titan Stratasys has seen steady improvement in their financial numbers throughout 2016, and the company seems determined to maintain that growth well into the new year as well. This past week, Stratasys announced the appointment of Lilach Payorski, the company’s current Senior Vice President of Corporate Finance, as their new Chief Financial Officer. Before joining the 3D printing giant back in 2012, Payorski had a wide range of financial experience in various leadership positions with PMC-Sierra (now Microsemi), CheckPoint Software Technologies, and Wind River Systems. The move, effective January 1, 2017, will follow current CFO Erez Simha’s decision to step down from his position after five years with Stratasys. Though he is resigning from his position, Simha will continue to advise the company and provide operational and financial support.

“I am very pleased that we have a strong internal successor in Lilach Payorski,” said Ilan Levin, Chief Executive Officer of Stratasys. “As SVP of Corporate Finance, she has proven to be a key leader within Stratasys and has the full confidence of me and the board of directors in assuming the role of CFO. I am confident in the finance organization’s ability to smoothly manage through this leadership transition.”

US Startup to Aid Dubai’s 3D Printing Strategy with Construction Automation Technologies

While 3D printing has emerged on an international scale, no region has committed to the technology quite like the city-state of Dubai. Following the path set by the Dubai 3D Printing Strategy, the United Arab Emirates city is aiming to 3D print 25% of their new buildings by 2030. The Dubai government has already set forth plans for printing residential buildings, and recently began developing regulations and standards for their imminent venture into 3D printed construction. Now the city-state has announced a collaboration with the US-based startup Cazza Construction Technologies. The startup will provide the Dubai Government with their construction automation technologies, which will be used to aid 3D printed construction throughout the region. According to Cazza, they will start sending engineers overseas for various construction projects in Dubai and surrounding areas. Although the specifics of the startup’s technologies are being kept under wraps, Cazza CEO Chris Kelsey claims that their machines will allow the Dubai Government to rapidly construct houses while reducing labor costs by 90%.

“We were one of many groups invited to showcase our technologies in Dubai. The government has been looking around the world, whether it was companies from the Netherlands, China, Russia, or the USA to see the upcoming technologies involving construction automation and 3D printing,” said Kelsey. “Out of all of the groups they’d seen online or spoken with, they were most fascinated with the capabilities of our unique machines.”

Mechanical Engineer Designs and 3D Prints Working Chevy Camaro V8 Engine

Mechanical engineer Eric Harrell recently uploaded a video onto YouTube showcasing a fully working 3D printed Chevy Camaro V8 LS3 engine. Aside from the bearings and fasteners, the entire model was printed in PLA plastic. Harrell used a homebuilt Chinese RepRap Prusa i3s 3D printer and over 2kg of filament to print the parts for the engine prototype. The project took over 200 hours to 3D print, including 72 hours for the engine block alone. The 3D model, which can be found on Thingiverse, was created from various CAD files, specs, pictures, and service diagrams. While this PLA-printed engine obviously can’t be used under the hood of a Chevy Camaro, it does assemble and function like the real thing. The project also required a $52 hardware kit that provided all of the necessary fasteners, bearings, rods, and springs, as well as the belt. The mechanical engineer is offering to sell this kit, along with 500rpm motors, speed controller, and a 12v power supply on Thingiverse via email.

Check out how this amazing project is put together in the video below!

CGTrader Offers Holiday Discount On Over 24,000 3D Models Until January 1

Officially recognized as the largest 3D model marketplace on the entire internet, CGTrader has emerged as the go-to place for high-quality and kickass 3D printables. To celebrate the recent holiday season, the 3D marketplace is offering over 24,000 of their purchasable 3D models at a discounted price until January 1, 2017. Top picks include a biker-style skull ring that comes in three size variations, an origami-style low poly bull, a skulled-out iPhone case, highly detailed monuments like the Big Ben clock tower, and even fire-breathing dragons for diehard fans of Game of Thrones. Aside from 3D printable models, CGTrader also offers models that can be used for VR/AR applications. Check out some of the discounted models below! Discuss in the Stories We Missed forum at 3DPB.com.