3DPOD: Insight from 3D Printing Pros 3DPrint.com

Bob Willig is an experienced executive who, after years of roles with GKN, the Gates Corporation, and others, became the Executive Director of SME (the Society of Manufacturing Engineers). In this episode of the 3DPOD, we talk to him about what SME is, what it does, and how it aims to grow 3D printing. In addition to Bob, we are also joined by Angie Szerlong, who has been a key leader of the RAPID + TCT event since 2001. She talks to us about this year's RAPID + TCT and gives advice on what to do if you're a new visitor or an exhibitor. We talk to both Angie and Bob about the future of additive manufacturing, important developments, and the future of events.

Oluseun Taiwo began working with Optomec's take on directed energy deposition (DED), LENS, as a student and later gained experience at Argonne National Laboratory, Rocket Lab, Arconic, Virgin Orbit, and 3D Systems. We discuss DED and the utility of this often-overlooked technology. Additionally, we examine the new space industry, application development, and the future of 3D printing. We also explore Taiwo's startup, Solideon, which merges his expertise in application development, DED, and rockets into a 3D printing solution for space.



 

So, it has been 200 episodes of the 3DPOD! That is incredible! We really didn't think it would be this much fun and last this long. We've had incredible guests and still love doing this for you! We would like to thank you so much for your support over the last five years. Five years is a long time, and we really appreciate our loyal listeners and the time you have given us. We hope that you've laughed and learned, and we hope to have 200 more episodes!

About a decade ago, entrepreneur Graham Bredemeyer started Collider, a company that combined the best of 3D printing with injection molding. Now he runs CADChat, which hopes to make sharing and discussing CAD files more social. The young entrepreneur also talks about his time at Zverse, Shapeways, Adaxis, and Essentium. This episode of the 3DPOD provides a look into entrepreneurship and a new generation that is more "3D printing native" than the engineers from before.

Neil Hopkinson, a pioneering 3D printing researcher, played a pivotal role in developing a body of research that is widely utilized today. He also invented High Speed Sintering (HSS), also known as Selective Absorption Fusion (SAF), and successfully commercialized this technology. This journey, of course, was a lengthy process, which he is now completing at Stratasys (Nasdaq: SSYS). We discuss powder bed fusion, the current state of research, and what it takes to bring a new technology to fruition.

Lithoz is a pioneer in the 3D printing of technical ceramics, initially using a ceramic-loaded stereolithography process and later adopting multiple technologies. Johannes Homa, a researcher turned entrepreneur, discusses his transition from academia to business. In this episode of the 3DPOD, our conversation covers ceramics, the development of technologies, and business growth. Johannes provides insight into Lithoz and shares how the company is advancing the use of a new class of materials.