Formlabs Ambassadors Inspire

Valencia, Spain: Marco is an industrial designer and researcher specializing in digital fabrication  at the Universitat Politècnica de València in Spain. His everyday work involves quickly developing prototypes for lab tests and experimental equipment for research projects at the university. In addition, lots of people from many industries reach out to Marco in search of advice to solve design and manufacturing problems. Because of this, he has had the opportunity to implement 3D printing for many types of clients, from toy and chocolate manufacturers to hospitals.

Chicago, IL: I'm a scientist and artist, in both cases deeply fascinated and motivated by the phenomenon of life. My sculptural work uses 3D printing and casting to create highly detailed metal realizations of living things, extant or extinct or in some cases imagined. To my surprise and delight as a researcher, these works of art have turned out to be my most effective acts of scientific communication.

Cape Town, South Africa: Dr. Cherise Dunn is the co-founder and Chief Operations Officer for SOUTH AFRICA MAKES. SOUTH AFRICA MAKES is an award-winning and internationally recognised startup providing digital manufacturing services for the medical, and research and development industries in Africa. Dr Dunn was recognized by the United States Department of State as one of the leaders in her field in Africa and was nominated for the International Visitor Leadership Program for Women in Entrepreneurship. Most recently Dr Dunn was selected as one of the 50 most inspiring women in STEM in South Africa as awarded by Inspiring Fifty SA; and was one of the Mail & Guardian Top 200 Young South Africans. As a global thought-leader on 3D Printing for Development (3D4D), she has been featured on TEDx and believes that 3D printing is the 4IR technology that will drive the future of emerging economies.

Springfield, MA: Greg Gagnon is a Clinical Engineering and 3D Printing Specialist at Baystate Health. One of his daily responsibilities is 3D printing anatomy for patient education and pre-surgical planning. He uses these models to communicate with staff on novel surgical approaches which reduce OR times for staff and patients, improve accuracy, and increase patient confidence. Beyond replicating anatomy, Greg also helps to design and create custom surgical tools and guides for intraoperative use with members of Baystate’s surgical team. Depending on the project, Greg chooses from among Formlabs’ large library of resins and the Form 2 is his go-to printer.

Scotts Valley, CA: Will works as a mechanical engineer in the cycling industry and started his own framebuilding company, Albatross Bikes. He got his start in 3D printing when looking for a way to quickly and easily prototype products before sending them into production. Formlabs printers are used in Will’s workflow to provide form and fit prototypes of segments of his bike frames, as well as accessories. This changed the way Albatross Bikes works in that they are now able to quickly and cheaply iterate on their designs and prove out our ideas in the physical world before committing to expensive tooling.

North Grafton, MA: Dr. Karlin is a member of the Department of Clinical Sciences and is an Assistant Professor in Small Animal Orthopedic Surgery at Tufts. Dr. Karlin splits his time between the orthopedic service in Foster Hospital for Small Animals and instructing clinical year students, interns, and residents. He uses his Formlabs printer clinically as well as for teaching, and a major benefit of his Formlabs printers is the ability to hit print and walk away! In his field, reliability is also key. When printing a bone for surgical planning, it needs to come out perfectly the first time, and his Form 2 hasn’t let him down. 

Edmonton, Canada: Carolyn completed her Dental Technology Diploma from NAIT in 2007 and worked in privately owned dental laboratories where she focused on dental device construction with a high need for aesthetics. Carolyn joined iRSM in 2013 and is interested in using digital technology to replace conventional dental processes. She went on to further her post-secondary education and obtained a Bachelor of Technology in Technology Management in 2017. She uses conventional training, an interest in digital technology, additive manufacturing, and aesthetic skills to help patientsneeding intraoral prosthetics at iRSM. Carolyn is very involved with the College of Dental Technologists of Alberta, sitting on two committees–the Finance Committee and the Competency Sub-Committee. She was also a member then chair of the NAIT Dental Technology Advisory Committee from 2007-2017. She is now a board member for the Bachelor of Technology Advisory Committee and the Alumni Association Advisory Committee at NAIT.

Oslo, Norway: Michael Kononsky is an industrial designer with extensive experience in design for manufacturing. As eager hobbyist beer brewers, Michael and his business partner Pål Ingebrigtsen saw an opportunity in the worldwide popularity of craft breweries and  homebrewing - today in the US alone there are already over 1 million homebrewers! Together they developed the Plaato airlock, a device that measures fermentation activity in a brew without needing contact with the liquid itself. For Michael, 3D printing is a critical tool for developing both early stage ideas and advanced details of end-use designs. After creating more than 1,000 prototypes, the Plaato team created a design that won the prestigious Red Dot Award.

Pittsburgh, PA: April is a Biomedical Engineer at UPMC. April uses her Formlabs printer to 3D print anatomic models that physicians use for surgical planning, training of residents and fellows, and patient education. She also utilizes 3D printing to iterate on designs of patient-specific surgical instrumentation, while working with physicians to develop novel medical applications. April loves her Formlabs printer because it allows her to produce high-quality deliverables at a fraction of the cost of other commercially available printers, and it allows her to print delicate structures that would not be feasible on other printers.

Paris, France: Christophe Lambrecq worked in the mold and tool industry for 20 years as a sales technician in the field of Electrical Discharge Machining. For the past 4 years, he has been managing the biggest Makerspace in France, Techshop Ateliers Leroy Merlin, a 600 square meter facility in the center of Paris dedicated to training and helping professionals, students, entrepreneurs with project analysis, prototyping, and manufacturing through classes, workshops and personalized help.

Brooklyn, NY: Janet Lieberman, the co-founder of Dame Products, knows how to get things made. After graduating from MIT in 2007, Janet honed her mechanical engineering and management skills at an impressive roster of companies, including Z Corporation, Makerbot, Quirky, and multinational soft-goods brand Microdry. Intimately familiar with the consumer electronics industry, Janet had an epiphany: vibrators weren’t being developed, manufactured, or marketed the way a quality consumer good should be. So Janet founded Dame Products to try to catalyze that shift. SLA 3D printing plays a critical role in Dame engineers’ development of new ergonomic product geometries, as well as in small batch silicone overmolding for customer beta prototypes.

Providence, RI: Jay is working on a PhD in ethno/musicology at Brown University. He plays and constructs a variety of wind instruments made from wood, ceramics, and 3D printed materials. He also composes and records his own works, often in parks and outdoor areas, where he can combine the sound of flutes with the sonic environment that surrounds him, from cityscapes to mountain streams. The high resolution 3D printing that he achieves with Formlabs technology is an essential part of the flute making process because it allows exploration of small details in a wind instrument's design, which makes a big difference in the sound that the flute will make.