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5 Amazing Uses of 3D Printing to Further Medical Advancements

Now that 3D printing is a more developed technology, the advantages it offers in the mechanical world are vast. But the power of 3D printing isn’t limited to building car parts and iPhone cases. When its vast capabilities of personalization and customization are applied to the medical field, the results are continuously pushing boundaries. From […]

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4 Considerations to Help You Choose Between Additive and Subtractive Manufacturing Methods

Methods Overview There’s a telling quote attributed to the great Renaissance artist, poet, and subtractive manufacturer, Michelangelo. When asked how he created his masterpiece David from a large chunk of marble, he remarked that he simply “chipped away at all of the stone that doesn’t look like David.” As engineers and artists, before we can […]

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This is How an Aerospace Engineer Designs Hardware Products

For almost 5 years, James Olander worked as Senior Systems Engineer for Lockheed Martin, a large aerospace company, leveraging his degrees in Aerospace and Space Systems Engineering to develop innovative satellite technology and launch vehicles. But to be a small piece of a massive organization like Lockheed Martin, no matter how great the company or […]

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Tips for Prototyping Food-Safe Products

So you’re thinking of making a food-related product that needs to be food-safe — great! This article will help guide you toward the right materials, necessary regulations and approvals, best production processes, and design considerations. Which Products and Components Need to be Food-Safe? It’s easy to remember that packaging and tableware need to be food-safe, but […]

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CAD Design Terms

When learning CAD, some words may seem foreign–extrusion, chamfer, radius, and fillets aren’t exactly intutive. No worries, read up on the terms below as a refresher or an introduction to the most common CAD terms and operations. Main CAD Operations Extrude / Extrusion: An extruded face of an object expands or contracts (or cuts through/against) empty […]

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Industrial Design vs Mechanical Engineering — How Endless Manages the Give and Take

Beauty and function encompass two critical elements of a hardware product: one tangible and the other intangible. For Endless Mobile, these two elements encapsulate the overarching vision for the product they sought to create: an affordable, yet delightful and luxurious computer for the developing world. For hardware companies, mechanical engineering and industrial design can sometimes appear […]

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How to Reduce 3D Printing Costs by Cutting Your 3D Model

We receive a lot of questions about how to reduce the cost of 3D printing. One of the best ways to do this is to ensure your model fits on a smaller build bed to ensure the fastest build time on the cheapest machine available to produce your part. In this article we’ll show you […]

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Financing Hardware Products: Kickstarter vs Indiegogo vs Pre-Orders

You’ve ran your tests and iterated until you can iterate no more (well, you could but you won’t). Now finally, (finally!) you’re ready to bring your product to the masses. But what’s the best way to get it out there? Kickstarter and Indiegogo have brought some real success stories to market over the past few years and […]

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Why Process Trumps Relationships in China

When it comes to manufacturing in China, there’s one idea that seems to dominate the conversation: relationships are everything. Success seems to revolve around your ability to build strong relationships with the right people who will introduce you to the right factories. Moreover, continued success depends on maintaining a strong relationship with that factory so […]

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An Overview of RTV Molds

Injection molding has long been the best method of bulk production, while 3D printing has recently become the best choice for early stage prototyping. But when and how should you make the switch from single volume production with 3D prints to high volume production? With small run production it can be hard to find the […]