Winners Announced For 14th Annual Stratasys and GrabCAD Extreme Redesign 3D Printing Challenge

One of my favorite industry challenges is the global Extreme Redesign 3D Printing Challenge by Stratasys, because it charges students to use advanced 3D printing technology to either redesign a product that’s already in existence, design an original work of art or architecture, or create an entirely new product that improves how tasks are accomplished.

We’ve seen some pretty amazing entries over the years, like a 3D printed Zero Gravity Scale that helps astronauts take measurements in outer space. The contest challenges and empowers students to explore and demonstrate 3D printing innovation.

This year’s 14th Annual Extreme Redesign 3D Printing Challenge opened in October, and is co-hosted by the GrabCAD platform and the GrabCAD community. Students from all over the world were invited to submit entries through February in the Engineering and Art, Jewelry & Architecture categories for a chance to win scholarships; there is an additional category for the National Coalition of Advanced Technology Centers (NCATC) network.

Hundreds of student artists, engineers, entrepreneurs, and inventors submitted entries for the challenge, and now Stratasys has announced the winners.

Gina Scala, Director of Marketing, Global Education, Stratasys, said, “For 14 years, our Extreme Redesign 3D Printing Challenge has highlighted the best of the best in student 3D printing innovation. Our contest empowers students to tap into 3D printing to design and create in ways previously not possible. Each year, we welcome submissions from both new and familiar faces – always innovating and always improving designs year-upon-year. And while judges were impressed by all entries, these winners truly reflect an elite level of student creativity and design.”

Submissions were judged by a panel of industry authorities on a number of criteria, such as aesthetics, product usefulness, and the ability to be realistic, creative, and mechanically sound. Judges included Todd Grimm, the president of T.A. Grimm and Associates; Diana Foster, Manufacturing Engineer II with Harris Corporation; Michael Block, the CEO of Elite Additive; and Ryan Erickson with the Cedar Park STEM School in District 196, Apple Valley, Minnesota.

The first place winners in the Engineering – Secondary Education category are Brenner Kar and Jake Klahorst from Grand Haven High School in Michigan, for their innovative Nail Shield design.

“The nail shield is a circular add-on device designed to fit on almost any nail clipper, protecting the user from flying clippings and encasing them in a removable vessel that would allow for easy disposal of the clippings when finished,” the contest page reads. “Brenner first came up with the idea after clipping his own nails and wondering why the irritations of the task had never been addressed.”

Paul Sperling, of Newberg Senior High School in Oregon, took second place in this category with his Circular Centerpiece 3×3. Sperling, a competitive speedcuber, wanted to develop a better Rubik’s Cube that solved common problems, like spring noise, that slow the speed of solving the cube.

Sperling explained, “In a normal Rubik’s cube there is this interface between a screw and a spring that has to spin, and every once in a while the spring will get caught on the screw and move, and ping back, making a distracting sound when you are solving.”

In the Post-Secondary Engineering category, University of Alabama student Thomas Salverson won for the second year in a row. His Adjustable Ratchet Wrench (ARW), a redesign and combination of an adjustable wrench and a ratchet, was inspired by his interest in the aerospace industry.

“The ARW combines the advantages of the ratchet and adjustable wrench and solves each of the respective disadvantages,” Salverson explained. “The ARW features a ratchet with an adjustable ‘aperture’ that can be sized to fit any size of bolt within the range of 17 to 49 mm (~5/8″ to 1-7/8″). Therefore, the ARW can be used to quickly tighten/loosen any size of bolt without the addition of unique sockets or the risk of slipping off the bolt.”

Jacob Koch, a student at Iowa State University, won second place in the Engineering – Post-Secondary Education category with his Modular Hydroelectric Generator, which could provide small amounts of electricity to people living in rural areas that are off the grid.

“My project is more for a rural area, providing an easy and portable solution to electrical needs,” Koch said. “We have tested this device, and the initial estimates are that this solution could generate about 5 watts of electricity continuously, enough to charge a battery as a power source for the community needs.”

Architecture student Paride Stella, a longtime GrabCAD member who’s attending Gabriele d’Annunzio University in Pescara, Italy, won first place in the Art, Architecture, Jewelry and Design category of the challenge for his stunning Corallo Jewelry design, which was inspired by coral.

Stratasys wrote, “Paride had the idea to fuse his experience with algorithmic design, which applies techniques that encompass the discipline of generating ideas and solutions for computational problems which arise in practical applications, such as sorting and searching, with his 3D design and printing experiences.”

Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design student Jade Akim won second place in this category with her unique Table Lamp design.

“I had played around with the idea of creating a lamp that incorporated stars or constellations but liked the idea of using a shade that used a transparent material with lines and waves to create a softer, less harsh light, perfect for relaxing,” Akim said.

Finally, in the NCATC category, Kaylee Spears, Myles Archambeau, and Chase Brokaw from Mott Community College in Michigan won for their Multipurpose Cooking Utensil design.

“The idea for the tool was borne out of Kaylee’s practical desire for a cooking utensil solution that didn’t take up so much space in her kitchen and provided ergonomic comfort to even the most mundane of kitchen tasks,” Stratasys wrote.

First place winners will receive a $2,500 scholarship and the use of a 3D printer for their school for one year, while $1,000 scholarships will be awarded to second place winners and the NCATC winners. The instructors of first place winners will receive a demo 3D printer to use in the classroom for a limited time. Entries will be accepted for the 2019 challenge starting in October.

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