The challenge [for 3D printing] is to think beyond current materials and designs. To that end, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in Tennessee is placing thousands of 3-D printers in U.S. schools to give future designers and engineers experience with the technology. Already the lab has helped local high schools in the First Robotics competition—including building the first all-additive robot. Beginning this year with 250 machines, the lab plans to place 3,000 printers next year, then 4,000 and finally 28,000 so every high school in First Robotics has one.
Available desktop 3-D printers are being tested at ORNL to assess their capabilities. The lab’s goal is to move from prototyping to production and enable distributed, “democratized” manufacturing where 3-D printers are a source of revenue for everybody, says Lonnie Love, group leader for automation, robotics and manufacturing—a high-tech return to the cottage industries that predated the Industrial Revolution.
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