Turn to Your Creative Inner Child for CGTrader’s 3D Printed Kids’ Toys Challenge

3D printing is already a lot of fun, but there’s nothing like cutting loose to play. CGTrader, the online community and marketplace for 3D graphics and 3D printing specialists, is calling on you to harness the inner child and that playful spirit for the 3D Printed Kids’ Toys Challenge, with a deadline of January 20, 2015.

While the toy market has traditionally been a difficult one and has in recent years been eclipsed by video game sales, 3D printing is changing things up, shaking up so many sectors, that it is expected it will begin to affect the toy market as well. CGTrader wants to know if that is true, and they invite you to participate in this creative experiment to explore another possible ‘emerging niche’ for 3D printing.

Affordability in prototyping and production is what makes 3D printing attractive for the toy market, with a report by McKinsey&Company stating that ‘many benefits of 3-D printing could cut the cost of market entry for new players,’ and that’s a prime consideration in the toy market. They go further to state that overall 3D printing could have ‘an impact of up to $550 billion a year by 2025.’ Those are some impressive figures to contemplate, and obviously CGTrader has been doing just so.

While it seems that 3D printing is a logical choice to change the face of toy making, prototyping, and manufacturing, there is no crystal ball. But there is always the option of taking the reins and doing to see what happens, and how it can affect the marketplace.

“3D printing technology is developing at an explosive rate and many industries, including the toy industry, will feel the ripples of the impact it makes on the manufacturing process and product design. We believe that 3D printing can help democratize the toy sector and give every child a unique educational experience. The design competition is intended to make the research and discovery process more exciting for those who hold the creative power in their hands,” said Marius Kalytis, the founder and CEO of CGTrader.com.

What 3D printing magic have you got in your queue? The challenge will offer prizes in the categories of Best Model and Best Portfolio. The winners will receive:

• Two color printed models from The Object Shop
• NinjaFlex filaments from Fenner Drives
• Subscriptions from Digital Tutors
• CGTrader credits
• CGTrader promotional features

Judging will be based on quality and innovation, as well as (very important!) descriptions and instructions for use — with extra brownie points if you include high quality images of designs that are 3D printed. Encouraging you to think of previous unlikely toys that became bestsellers (think jigsaw puzzles, Legos, Rubik’s Cube, etc.), CGTrader suggests ideas like:

• Puzzles
• Action figures
• Board and desk games
• Playsets
• Educational toys

CGTrader is calling on designers to use this innovative technology to blow the toy market out of the water. They are depending on today’s creative talent to provide truly innovative designs — something that might have parents waiting in lines around the block and scrambling online like the dickens to order for their kids for Christmas.

Got any ideas? Let us know in the CGTrader’s  3D Printed Kids’ Toys Challenge forum over at 3DPB.com.