Those solar lights were developed by Simusolar, a company that provides affordable solar energy for rural, off-the-grid communities in sub-Saharan Africa. With headquarters in both Tanzania and California, Simusolar aims to help remote communities become self-sustainable so that their people aren’t forced to relocate to more populated, connected areas to find work, and it aims to do it in a manner that causes no harm to the environment.
Simulsolar provides not only solar lights but other solar-powered equipment, including water pumps, small business equipment, etc. Each piece of equipment has a custom circuit board integrated into it, so that it can be controlled and monitored remotely using GSM technology.
Like so many providers of energy technology, Simusolar has relied on 3D printing for parts of its manufacturing processes. Recently, the company needed a small, complex part made from electrically insulating material for its circuit board installation. The Simusolar team looked into injection molding, but the cost of tooling was too high, so they turned to 3D printing for the product’s alpha run, which would require only 100 parts.
After trying to 3D print the part with a small subcontractor, Simusolar realized that the complexity of the part required more high-end equipment than the subcontractor had available, so the company turned to Sculpteo and its SLS 3D printing technology.
“The Sculpteo SLS process has much higher 3D printing resolution and makes more robust parts at a reasonable price. It is our go-to 3D method of choice for most projects,” Simusolar explained.
The Simusolar team was also a fan of Sculpteo’s pricing.
“Most vendors charge a base fee plus to start a 3D print then add one for material and machine time,” the company continued. “Sculpteo broke this model. This means they can provide small complex parts for as little as $7 each.”
Simulsolar has only been around since 2014, but has already made tremendous impact on the lives of people in remote areas of Africa, without having any negative impact on the environment. You can learn more about some of the impact the company has made below:
Let us know your thoughts about 3D printing and solar energy in projects like this one made possible in rural Africa. Discuss in the Solar Energy forum at 3DPB.com.
[Source/Images: Sculpteo]