Strategy: Using 3D Printer Hardware Extensions

Our lab relies heavily on 3D printers to print models. While the technology offers a wealth of benefits, it also presents several challenges. For example, one dedicated technician is needed to scrape off the models and clean the build plates of our 13 Formlabs printers. When we were printing 100-plus models a day, this wasn’t sustainable and was causing a lag in our workflow.

Then Formlabs came out with the Form Auto, a hardware extension to our Form 3 printers, and we were lucky enough to be one of the beta testers. Here’s how it works: we have a dedicated technician who uploads print jobs and sends them to the printer. The printer then prints the models and the models are automatically removed using a mechanized arm and released into a UV-resistant collection bin. Once the models are collected, the printer automatically starts the next print job in the queue.

The machines can run overnight and, in the morning, our technician simply collects...