Engineering Design

3D Printing Filaments

MakerBot Industries, LLC

2011-2013

MakerBot Industries was a young company in 2011, but they were growing fast. In my role as the lead Materials and Processes R&D Engineer, I created new material products that met MakerBot’s design goals and ensured their availability to a rapidly growing customer base. Establishing product development guidelines resulted in a 60% improvement in delivery time from concept to on-the-shelf 3D printing filaments, which was great for the huge expansion of custom MakerBot colors that I designed. Additionally, we added a new product line in sustainable PLA, going from plain PLA filaments, to an entire color spectrum. We improved the consistency of 3D printing on MakerBot Replicators by developing manufacturing techniques in a melt extrusion lab, which led to higher resolution and more reliable printing.

Then CEO, Bre Pettis, showing off a giant mechanical heart printed in new vibrant red MakerBot filament at the first MakerBot brick and mortar store, 2012.

Print series made by artist Tom Burtonwood in saturated MakerBot colors, titled "Fountain 2.0," after the famous readymade work by conceptual artist Marcel Duchamp in 1917, courtesy of the artist.