UMaine breaks Guinness World Document for largest polymer 3D printer
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UMaine has unveiled a next-generation printer that’s 4x bigger than its predecessor – surpassing its personal 2019 Guinness World Document for the most important polymer 3D printer. The brand new printer, dubbed Manufacturing facility of the Future 1.0 (FoF 1.0), was unveiled on April 23 on the Superior Buildings and Composites Middle (ASCC) to an viewers that included representatives from the US Division of Protection, the US Division of Vitality, the Maine State Housing Authority, trade companions, and different stakeholders who plan to make the most of this expertise.
The thermoplastic polymer printer is designed to print objects as massive as 96 ft lengthy by 32 ft huge by 18 ft excessive and might print as much as 500 kilos per hour. It presents new alternatives for eco-friendly and cost-effective manufacturing for quite a few industries, together with nationwide safety, reasonably priced housing, bridge building, ocean and wind vitality applied sciences, and maritime vessel fabrication. The design and fabrication of this printer and hybrid manufacturing system was made doable with assist from the Workplace of the Secretary of Protection by the US Military Corps of Engineers.
The FoF 1.0 dynamically switches between varied processes reminiscent of large-scale AM, subtractive manufacturing, steady tape layup, and robotic arm operations. Entry to it and MasterPrint, the ASCC’s first world-record-breaking 3D printer, will streamline manufacturing innovation analysis on the middle. The 2 massive printers can collaborate by sharing the identical end-effectors or by engaged on the identical half.
“UMaine and the Superior Buildings and Composites Middle possess the innovation, capability, and workforce to assist the long run wants of the Division of Protection in superior manufacturing,” mentioned Susan Collins, US Senate. “This can be a nice day for our College, our State, and our Nation. I congratulate President Joan Ferrini-Mundy and Dr. Habib Dagher on one other vital milestone and stay up for witnessing this Middle’s continued innovation that’s invaluable to our nationwide safety.”
Since fiscal yr 2022, Senator Collins, Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee and Subcommittee on Protection, has secured greater than $93 million in assist of this initiative and different protection initiatives on the ASCC.
“FoF 1.0 opens up new analysis frontiers to combine these collaborative robotics operations at a really massive scale with new sensors, high-performance computing, and synthetic intelligence to create born-certified programs that meet high-quality requirements,” mentioned Habib Dagher Govt Director of the ASCC. “We’re grateful for Senator Collins’ assist, for assist from Maine’s congressional delegation, and for collaborations with the Division of Protection, Division of Vitality, Oak Ridge Nationwide Labs, Maine Housing, and our trade companions right here in Maine and past.”
The Guinness World Document-holding 3D printer will advance varied initiatives, together with the event of biobased feedstocks from wooden residuals ample in Maine. This expertise will advance commercialization efforts reminiscent of BioHome3D and the creation of sustainable, reasonably priced housing, whereas additionally propelling essential technological developments for nationwide safety, notably in light-weight quickly deployable constructions and vessel applied sciences.
“The Division of Protection has been advancing composites and manufacturing applied sciences with the College of Maine ASCC for practically 20 years. The newest improvements in manufacturing, composite applied sciences, and supplies coming from our universities have and can proceed to be instrumental to the safety and financial vitality of the US and its allies and companions worldwide,” mentioned Heidi Shyu, Undersecretary of Protection for Analysis and Engineering and Chief Know-how Officer for the Division of Protection.
“I wish to congratulate the College of Maine on attaining yet one more main analysis and growth milestone and thank our state, federal, trade, and philanthropic companions for his or her steadfast assist that makes this progress for Maine doable. With this huge new 3D printer and the soon-to-be-built Inexperienced Engineering and Supplies Manufacturing facility of the Future, Maine’s R1 college will additional its world management in superior manufacturing and supplies science, guarantee our flagship is a vacation spot for training and analysis on the intersection of engineering and computing, and speed up options that strengthen the state’s financial system and communities,” mentioned Dannel Malloy, System Chancellor at UMaine.
“This new functionality not solely reinforces UMaine’s Carnegie R1 analysis designation but in addition reaffirms our standing as leaders in composite supplies analysis and superior manufacturing. With the participation of various departments, school, college students, and college companions, right this moment stands as a testomony to UMaine’s dedication to collaborative excellence. It not solely empowers us to nurture the leaders of tomorrow but in addition ignites development and prosperity inside Maine’s native industries and throughout the nationwide stage,” mentioned Joan Ferrini-Mundy, President of UMaine.
The FoF 1.0 unveiling comes forward of this summer time’s deliberate groundbreaking of a brand new 47,000-square-foot analysis laboratory referred to as the Inexperienced Engineering and Supplies (GEM) Manufacturing facility of the Future. Scheduled for a gap in August, the power is positioned to reinforce manufacturing innovation throughout a number of sectors. Its main goal is to facilitate and scale up extra sustainable manufacturing practices by introducing next-generation options and biomaterials, addressing challenges reminiscent of a diminishing workforce and strained provide chains with native options.
“Maine wants an estimated 80,000 extra properties by 2030, many particularly for households with incomes at or beneath the world median earnings. This new expertise permits UMaine-ASCC to scale up its analysis and manufacturing of its modern biobased 3D printed residence expertise,” mentioned Mark Wiesendanger, Director of MaineHousing’s Improvement. “This effort creates one other means of manufacturing high quality reasonably priced housing, whereas additional driving prices down, and utilizing ample wooden residuals from Maine’s sawmills. We stay up for persevering with our collaboration with Dr. Dagher, the employees, and college students at UMaine/ASCC in demonstrating how 3D printed properties and different next-generation housing applied sciences will rapidly and effectively contribute to enhancing Maine’s housing inventory.”
The analysis facility is not going to solely scale up superior manufacturing processes but in addition discover modern supplies programs by prioritizing recycled and biobased supplies. Maine, essentially the most forested state within the nation, yearly produces multiple million tons of wooden residuals in its sawmills, which can be utilized as feedstock for 3D printing. As well as, UMaine, with the GEM initiative, has prioritized manufacturing workforce growth by providing experiential studying and entrepreneurial coaching applications geared toward nurturing the following technology of leaders.
In tandem with analysis and growth, the GEM Manufacturing facility of the Future aligns with the formation of the Maine Faculty of Engineering and Computing (MCEC), a statewide initiative funded by the Harold Alfond Basis as a part of UMS TRANSFORMS that prioritizes growing a workforce ready for the more and more interconnected and digital world financial system.
“The Maine Faculty of Engineering and Computing is proud to be a robust companion in growing the Manufacturing facility of the Future 1.0. This partnership brings collectively engineering and materials applied sciences along with superior computing, creating unprecedented hands-on studying experiences in superior manufacturing for our college students and offering venues to develop new lessons, digital credentials, and new majors,” mentioned Giovanna Guidoboni, Inaugural Dean of MCEC.
