3D Printing: Revolutionizing Surgery and Improving Outcomes If 3D Printing has only one advantage it is the ability to produce complex, organic shapes. However usually one material is used and as you may have noticed, we don't exactly feel like Lego's, the stuff of most printers. Imagine being able to replicate the exact procedure of transplanting a Kidney or of knowing EXACTLY how a face transplant will be connected because you already tried it out before you even got in the operating room. This has simply been impossible up until now. Traditional Medical Models are one size fits all. Humans are not. The breakthrough is in being able to print and test patient specific anatomy. The absolute cutting edge of 3d Printing is in producing any shape, and now, in mimicking material properties, including those of tissue and bone. In this video Scott Rader of Stratasys walks us through just a few ways Stratasys Connex printers have been able to cut time in surgery and improve outcomes. For more information on our Stratasys line of 3D printers, please click the button below. More Info

Aurora Flight Sciences, a Virginia-based manufacturer specializing in advanced unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) systems, is pushing the envelope of UAV design by teaming up with Stratasys to create the world’s first jet-powered, 3D printed aircraft. Using 80% 3D printed parts, the UAV is composed of Stratasys’ ULTEM™ 9085 lightweight material to achieve flight speeds of over 150 mph. The high-speed system boasts an impressive 9-foot wingspan and weighs in at only 33 lbs. Dan Campbell, Aerospace Research Engineer at Aurora Flight Sciences, explains how the UAV project met a number of goals using Stratasys 3D printing solutions. Aurora’s UAV demonstrates Stratasys' FDM-based 3D printing solutions ability to build a completely enclosed, hollow structure which, unlike other manufacturing methods, allows large – yet less dense – objects to be produced. “A primary goal for us was to show the aerospace industry just how quickly you can go from designing and building to flying a 3D printed jet-powered aircraft. To the best of our knowledge, this is the largest, fastest, and most complex 3D printed UAV ever produced.” Stratasys 3D printing solutions provided Aurora with unlimited design freedom and the capability to improve upon the design without the constraints of traditional manufacturing. Aurora [...]

Normal is a company in New York City that is using 3D printing to develop a gadget that many of us rely on every day - earphones. Earphones are a cherished component of smartphones, mp3 players, tablets, and computers. In the earphones industry, there are a wide variety of options available, ranging in size, shape, material, and sound quality. But even with this abundance of choices, it can be difficult to find a comfortable pair that fits perfectly in your ear and remains tight in place through basic activities. At Normal, CEO Nikki Kaufman’s frustration with ill-fitting headphones fueled her desire to find a design solution. She discovered that the only application currently used for customization was silicone molding, a process which can cost up to several thousand dollars per unit. But her knowledge of additive manufacturing lead her to come up with the idea to use 3D printing as a primary method of production. By using Normal’s mobile app, or visiting Normal’s retail headquarters in Chelsea New York, consumers simply get photos taken of their ears. Normal processes the photos, and then 3D prints the lobe attachment with ABS thermoplastic, using a Fortus 250. The earphones can be printed in a variety of [...]