Category: News

LulzBot Announces All-New 3D Bioprinter

LOVELAND, COLORADO, USA October 9, 2019 – Aleph Objects, Inc., Colorado-based manufacturer of the award-winning line of LulzBot 3D Printers, has announced the launch of the LulzBot Bio, a new Open Source, FRESH-certified 3D bioprinter. The LulzBot Bio enables 3D printing with materials such as unmodified collagen, bioinks, and other soft materials, and has already been instrumental in 3D printing the first-ever fully functional human heart tissue.

 

“What we’ve shown is that we can print pieces of the heart out of cells and collagen into parts that truly function, like a heart valve or a small beating ventricle,” said Adam Feinberg, professor of biomedical engineering (BME) and materials science & engineering at Carnegie Mellon. “By using MRI data of a human heart, we were able to accurately reproduce patient-specific anatomical structure and 3D bioprint collagen and human heart cells.”

 

A Platform for Quality and Versatility

 

With a legacy of manufacturing high-quality 3D printers spanning nearly a decade, LulzBot brings its award-winning print quality to the bioprinting market with the LulzBot Bio, its first-ever Fluid Deposition Fabrication (FDF) 3D printer. Unlike its pneumatic counterparts, the Bio’s syringe pump system allows for precise stopping and retraction, preventing unintentional extrusion and stringing while printing intricate models like vasculature. Its easily-modified, Open Source design removes proprietary restrictions, providing a versatile platform for innovation that grows with ever-changing discoveries and advancements.

“For researchers, you don’t know what materials or processes you’ll be using in 6 months, let alone one year from now,” said Grant Flaharty, Aleph Objects CEO and President. “You need hardware that can be adjusted quickly and easily, without proprietary restrictions.”

The LulzBot Bio comes with nearly everything needed to start bioprinting, including extensively tested, preconfigured material profiles in Cura LulzBot Edition. See the full list of features, specifications, and what’s included here.

 

Collagen: The Human Body’s Major Structural Protein

Collagen is prominent in biological structures, making collagen bioinks one of the most promising materials for bioprinting applications. However, it has proven extremely difficult to print with in its unmodified form. The LulzBot Bio enables printing with unmodified collagen using the FRESH 2.0 method. Developed and refined by the Regenerative Biomaterials & Therapeutics Group at Carnegie Mellon University, FRESH bioprinting uses thermoreversible support gels to hold soft materials during printing. The temporary support gel is dissolved, leaving the print intact.

“Other bioprinting techniques often require materials to be chemically altered or mixed with other materials to make them 3D printable,” said Steven Abadie, Aleph Objects CTO. “Because of the excellent biocompatibility of collagen, being able to 3D print with it in its original form brings us that much closer to recreating models that mimic human physiology.”

 

Bioprinted Tissues for Faster, Safer Innovation

Bioprinting is revolutionizing pharmaceutical development, cosmetic testing, tissue engineering, and regenerative medicine. This technology can be used to recreate physiology to study disease, determine the effectiveness and potential side effects of new drugs in development, and provide skin tissue models for cosmetic testing.

 

Bringing a new drug to market with current methods costs around $ 2.5 billion USD and can take more than a decade from start to finish. The probability of success is less than 10-15% despite promising results in early stages with animal testing, as the absence of toxicity in animals is a poor predictor of efficacy in humans. The development  of 3D bioprinting provides a more human-relevant alternative in both pharmaceutical and cosmetic testing. To date, over 40 countries worldwide have banned or restricted animal testing on cosmetics and cosmetic ingredients, which has accelerated the development of bioprinted human tissue for cosmetic development.

 

The LulzBot Bio will soon be available for pre-order from Makerwiz, with units to begin shipping November 2019.

 

About Aleph Objects, Inc.

 

Aleph Objects, Inc. is the Colorado-based designer and manufacturer of the award-winning line of LulzBot® 3D Printers. LulzBot is a trusted brand in Automotive, Consumer Products, Aerospace/Defense, Medical, and Education industries around the globe. Aleph Object’s core company values of Free Software, Libre Innovation, and Open Source Hardware enable users to uniquely modify both software and hardware to bring their imagination to life. For more information, visit www.LulzBot.com.

About Makerwiz

Makerwiz is a pioneer maker company in Richmond Hill, Canada’s newest city located in York Region within the Greater Toronto Area. The company combines a 3D Tech Shop, a Digital Fabrication Lab and a STEAM Education Makerspace all under one roof. A leading provider of desktop 3D printing and scanning technology products across Canada, Makerwiz supplies products from over 20 premium 3D brands (including LulzBot, Prusa Research, CraftBot, MakerBot, BEEVERYCREATIVE, ZMorph, Filabot, 3Doodler, etc.) to K-12 schools, colleges and universities, public libraries, makerspaces, businesses and consumers across the country. In addition, the company also provides product design and rapid prototyping services, as well as maker education programs for kids and families.

Makerwiz Begins Supplying Canadian-Made 3D Printing Filaments from Materio 3D

RICHMOND HILL, ON March 23, 2017 — Makerwiz, Canada’s most comprehensive supplier of desktop 3D printing equipment, today announces its partnership with Materio 3D, the first Canadian manufacturer of premium 3D printing filaments to produce their entire product line domestically.

Based in Saint-Hubert, Quebec, Materio3D is a Canadian manufacturer of high-end 3D printing filaments with the mission to provide the 3D printing community with a complete collection of materials that can be used with confidence for prototyping, artistic creations, production of finished goods, or educational projects. The company was founded in 2016 with the association between two business owners engaged in complementary fields: Mr. Pierre Giguère, president of Felix Compounds, Canadian manufacturer of composite materials, and Mr. François Lahey, president of Voxel Factory, a 3D printers and 3D printing materials store in Montreal. Their state-of-the-art extrusion line and testing laboratory are located near Montreal in the South Shore. Production, quality control, testing and packaging all operate from there. Finished products are shipped from their Montreal warehouse nationwide. Materio3D relies on continuous research and development, meticulous quality control, and comprehensive documentation to meet the needs of its clientele. Their vision is to be a leading manufacturer of 3D printing materials globally known for the quality of its products and the excellence of its customer service by 2020.

Makerwiz is a pioneer maker company in Richmond Hill, Canada’s most populous town and part of York Region in the Greater Toronto Area. The company is a leading provider of desktop 3D printing and scanning technology, rapid prototyping service and maker education across Canada. Currently, Makerwiz supplies products from over 20 premium 3D brands (including MakerBot, LulzBot, Printrbot, CraftBot, BEEVERYCREATIVE, ZMorph, Filabot, 3Doodler, DJI and many others) to K-12 schools, colleges and universities, public libraries, makerspaces, businesses and consumers across the country. Becoming official reseller of high-quality 3D printing filaments from Materio3D will allow Makerwiz to provide domestically produced 3D printing materials to the rapidly expanding desktop 3D printing industry in Canada.

“Our new partnership with Materio3D will enable us to provide the highest quality, Made-in-Canada 3D printing materials to educators, makers and manufacturers across Canada, thereby further reducing the already green eco footprint of local manufacturing made possible by 3D printing.” said Dr. Peter Lau, Maker-in-Chief at Makerwiz and Mayor of the 3D Hubs community in Toronto (ranked #8 among cities worldwide in numbers of active 3D printers). “As the variety of materials and the range of applications for additive manufacturing continue to increase at a breakneck pace, locally-sourced innovative materials will help push mainstream adoption of 3D printing in the Canadian marketplace in 2017 and beyond.”

About Makerwiz
Makerwiz is a creative company dedicated to promoting the Maker Movement in Canada by fostering the knowledge and application of emerging creative technologies such as 3D printing, digital fabrication, drone robotics and wearable electronics. The motto of Makerwiz is “Inspiring Boundless Creativity”. Founded in 2014 and headquartered in Richmond Hill, Ontario, Makerwiz is an active sponsor of the 3D Hubs community in Toronto and a staunch supporter of public makerspaces in the Greater Toronto Area, and a strong supporter of STEAM curricula and maker education.

For more information, contact Makerwiz at 1-855-586-2949 or visit makerwiz.com.

Season’s Greetings from Makerwiz, age 2.0

Dear Friends,

It’s been a wonderful 2016 for Makerwiz, as we expanded from a portfolio of 5 brands to 20 brands, but we couldn’t have done it without you, our loyal patrons and supporters. As we enter into the Christmas season once again, keeping an eye toward all things maker and magical, our staff would like to extend warm wishes to you and yours. Please make the most of the holiday and look forward to enjoying new products, services and training from us in the new year.

Incidentally, on the occasion of Makerwiz’s 2.0 birthday, we have just launched our new web store on Shopify.  For a limited time until December 31, you can wish us a happy birthday while enjoying 5% discount using the coupon code: H2BDMAKRWZ when ordering from our store. Call it early Boxing Day!

Happy Christmas Holiday from the Makerwiz team!

Sincerely,

Dr. Makemake and the Maker Elves

Strong Groot

Spring Forward to New Store and New Brands!

Good news to all friends and fans of Makerwiz! As April approaches and the weather warms up, we are bring you a new online store based on amazing Shopify technology, plus loads of new products from notable 3D brands!

This Spring, we are introducing 3D printers from CraftUnique, FormLabs and PrintrBot. These leading manufacturers augment our already stellar lineups from 3D Systems, BEEVERYCREATIVE and MakerBot. In terms of 3D printing supplies, we are introducing filaments from BotFeeder, ColorFabb, NinjaTek and Taulman. Again, these quality suppliers expand our existing offerings from BVC, MakerBot and Proto-Pasta. Last but not least, we are introducing the Filabot Industrial Reclaimer for the sake of environmental stewardship. Now this is gearing up to be one exciting season!

On another note, 3D Hubs Toronto monthly pub nites have been switched to the third Wednesday of each month, starting in March. On April 20, however, there will be no pub nite as we will be hosting a ColorFabb/3D Hubs “Co-polyester for 3D Printing” Workshop at the fantastic new makerspace NewMakeIt north of Toronto. Come join us and share your joy of 3D printing with fellow enthusiasts, get great filament samples, and tour this provincially-funded one-of-a-kind facility combining a training centre, a co-working space and a comprehensive makerspace. Talking about killing three birds with one stone!

Here’s to a strong and healthy Spring!

Canadian Makerspaces

The Maker Movement as we know it began in 2005 with the publication of MAKE: Magazine by Dale Dougherty. Modern makers typically enjoy technological pursuits such as 3D printing, electronics, robotics, laser cutting, CNC milling, woodworking, metalworking, in addition to conventional fashion design and arts and crafts. Despite having an initial lag behind the Americans and the Europeans, Canadians are now diving into the Maker Movement at an accelerating pace. As a result, Canadian makerspaces have been sprouting up across the country at great speed.

Makerspaces are community-based organizations with shared tools and equipment for members to create new things or to fix existing things. In some instances, they also serve as co-working spaces, training venues and collaborative “playgrounds”. Currently, Canada has 36 public (non-commercial and non-academic) makerspaces. For your interest, Makerwiz has created a graph indicating their numbers and distribution across the country at the top of this post.

For a comprehensive list of Canadian makerspaces with hyperlinks and their distribution across the country, visit our Makerspaces page for more information. If you are interested in making things but don’t know where to start, now is the perfect time to join a local makerspace!

Black Friday SALE Event

Makerwiz Black Friday SALE Event

November 27, 2015

 

In-Store:

Item Regular Price Special Price
3Doodler 2.0 Pen Set $169.97 $144.99
Arduino Uno, Rev 3 $34.99 $27.49
Canon PowerShot ELPH 160 $149.99 $99.99
ColorFabb Sample Filament Box $29.99 $19.99
Google Chromecast $39.99 $29.99
iHome Portable Speakers $49.99 $24.99
Poly/Cotton Lab Coat (M, L, XL) $24.99 $14.99
Proto-Pasta Aromatic Coffee PLA Filament, 500 g $47.99 $42.99
Raspberry Pi 2, Model B $56.99 $49.99
Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 10.1” Tablet $469.99 $399.99

 

 

 

Online:

Item Regular Price Special Price
3D Systems Cube 3D Printer $1,299.00 $1,189.00
3D Systems iSense Handheld 3D Scanner $639.00 $383.40
BEETHEFIRST Portable 3D Printer $1,999.00 $1,849.00
Filabot Extruder Original $1,279.00 $1,179.00
MakerBot Digitizer Desktop 3D Scanner $1,089.00 $999.00
MakerBot Replicator Mini Compact 3D Printer $1,849.00 $1,699.00

 

 

 

 

Top Ten Trends in Consumer 3D Printing

During my seminar at the recent TAVES Consumer Electronics Show north of Toronto, I shared my thoughts on the top ten trends in consumer 3D printing in the next 12 months. Here are the countdown to my top ten predictions:

10. Explosive Growth of 3D Innovations
– new technologies, including faster chemistry-based methods
– more brands, more models per brand, like the “Cambrian Explosion” in Earth’s natural history 542 million years ago!
– more crowdfunded projects, especially look for Kickstarter campaigns for products and Indiegogo campaigns for related services

9. Rise of 3D Service Industry
– office manufacturing and service bureaus become commonplace
– printing networks will expand and consolidate
– rise of in-house 3D printing, 3D printing cafes, 3D printing farms, makerspaces and makerspace networks/associations and distributed 3D printing

8. 3D Design Goes Mainstream
– everyone can design in 3D with a new generation of user-friendly tools
– current top 10 most popular 3D design tools are: Blender, Sketchup, SolidWorks, AutoCAD, Maya, 3DS Max, Inventor, Tinkercad, ZBrush, Cinema 4D; others include 123D Design, OpenSCAD, Rhinoceros, Modo, Fusion 360, Meshmixer, Lightwave, Sculptris, Grasshopper and FreeCAD
– post-millennial students will be required to learn 3D design programs just like word processors, spreadsheets and photo-editing software.

7. 3D Scanning is the New Photography
– rise of 3D scanners allows us to capture people and things everywhere
– high-end digital cameras and smart phones will incorporate 3D scanning technologies
– historical archives and personal records in 3D, including cultural heritage sites and objects, people (before birth with ultrasound and after death in crime scene analysis), pets; specialized 3D repositories, analytics and big data of 3D files

6. New Composite Materials for 3D Printing
– hybrid filaments and resins revolutionize consumer 3D printing for more realistic prototypes and decorative objects
– new materials include composite PLA (containing copper, bronze, brass, wood, bamboo, carbon fibre, stainless steel, magnetic iron, conductive metal, coffee grinds, limestone), nylons and flexible materials, among others, from progressive suppliers like ColorFabb, Proto-Pasta and MakerBot
– composite materials will help extend the lifetime and usefulness of fused deposition modelling (FDM) or fused filament fabrication (FFF) printing

5. Industrial 3D Printing Technologies Trickle Down
– affordable stereolithography (SLA) and inkjet 3D printers coming soon to your desktop
– SLA printers from FormLabs and 3D Systems and inkjet printers from Canon and HP start competing for the consumer market
– higher quality of SLA and jetting printers will put high-end FDM/FFF systems under pressure

4. Wearables and Drones Drive Adoption of Consumer 3D Printing
– customized accessories and replacement parts for fashion, electronics and robotics have increasing demand
– made-to-order smart watch and other wearable accessories
– DIY quadcopter spare parts and other drone casings

3. Direct Digital Manufacturing Complements Global Supply Chains
– many products will be partially or completely manufactured locally, affecting almost all industries
– in the short term: dentistry and jewellery design; in the medium term: food and fashion industries
– in the longer term: architecture (building and bridges) and transportation (automobiles, boats, aircrafts, aerospace)

2. Consumer Recycling Machines Become Ubiquitous
– household grinders, desktop filament makers, new safety labels for plastic recycling
– local household recycling will redefine our lifestyle
– safety concerns: grinders and extruders should be child-proof; plastics with chlorine and other toxic content are not recyclable at home

1. Proliferation of Consumer 3D Printing in Educational Spaces
– schools embrace 3D equipment as educational tools integrated with the STEM curriculum
– libraries adopt 3D technology for constructing digital archives
– science and natural history museums use 3D printing to enhance visitors’ experience and to build digital catalogs

Forecasting technology is always challenging. Check back this time next year to see how my predictions panned out!

Makerwiz to Represent ColorFabb and Proto-Pasta

MARKHAM, ON October 14, 2015 — Makerwiz, a pioneer in desktop 3D printing education, service and equipment delivery in the Greater Toronto Area, today announces its decision to represent two important brands in the 3D printing industry: ColorFabb (from Helian Polymers) and Proto-Pasta (from ProtoPlant).

Helian Polymers is a young and dynamic plastic company located in Venlo, in the south of the Netherlands. Founded by Ruud Rouleaux in 2011, Helian has a nimble team of plastics experts with years of experience in the masterbatch and biopolymer industry. The goal of Helian Polymers is to provide the plastic processing market with the best possible solutions with respect to their customers’ needs. To achieve these goals and generate maximum added value, Helian cooperates with a few selected international partners. In 2013, Helian created ColorFabb, a world famous brand of high quality filaments composed of innovative materials for 3D printing, including Eastman Amphora™ 3D polymer, PLA/PHA, XT-Copolyester, and Special composites such as copper, bronze, brass, wood, bamboo, and cork. As the 3D printing industry continues to expand, ColorFabb will continue to extend their wide range of colours and new materials available.

ProtoPlant is a professional engineering firm in Vancouver, Washington, USA founded by Dustin Cramer. Founded on a vision of advancing science and technology by providing the best possible engineering and manufacturing services, the engineers at ProtoPlant are dedicated to creativity, affordability and quality. Recognizing the need for high-performing and widely accessible materials for personal 3D printers, in 2013 ProtoPlant created Proto-pasta, a line of exotic 3D printer filaments specially engineered for performance and printability on small, FFF-style 3D printers. In particular, the engineers at ProtoPlant developed and produced six revolutionary materials: Conductive PLA, Stainless Steel PLA, Magnetic Iron PLA, Carbon Fiber Reinforced PLA, High Temperature PLA, and PC-ABS Alloy. Each material was rigorously tested and developed over the course of many months, with testing data and results published for customer review and comments. The end product was a line of high performing, high quality, exotic 3D printer filament unlike any other. Meanwhile, new ground-breaking materials are continuously in development.

Makerwiz is a leading provider of desktop 3D printing and scanning technology, rapid prototyping service and maker education in York Region, an area with over 1.1 million inhabitants immediately north of Toronto. Becoming authorized dealer of quality 3D printing filaments from both ColorFabb and Proto-Pasta will allow Makerwiz to immediately provide unique materials for desktop 3D printing in the Canadian marketplace.

“Our new partnerships with ColorFabb and Proto-Pasta will allow us to expand the existing product range to include highly demanded composite and exotic materials for fused deposition modelling (aka fused filament fabrication), the most popular technology in desktop 3D printing today.” said Dr. Peter Lau, Maker-in-Chief at Makerwiz and Mayor of 3D Hubs Toronto. “A wide range of materials are now 3D printable, including copper, bronze, brass, steel, iron, wood, bamboo, carbon fibre, and even coffee! By making these innovative products more easily accessible to Canadian consumers, Makerwiz continues its quest to enhance service and offerings to maker communities across the country, from sea to sea.”

About Makerwiz

Makerwiz is a creative company dedicated to promoting the Maker Movement in Canada by fostering the knowledge and application of emerging creative technologies such as 3D printing, drone robotics and wearable electronics. The motto of Makerwiz is “Inspiring Boundless Creativity”. Founded in 2014, Makerwiz is an active organizer for the 3D Hubs community in Toronto. Headquartered in Markham (also known as the “High Tech Capital of Canada”), the company is also a staunch supporter of York Region Makers, a not-for-profit organization aiming to create new public makerspaces in York Region.

For more information, contact Makerwiz at 1-800-586-2949 or visit makerwiz.com.