VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 13, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The simple philosophy that permeates Tinkerine Studios (TSXV:TTD) in Vancouver, British Columbia is if you can imagine it, you can build it.
For Tinkerine CEO, Eugene Suyu that means "everyone can be a designer".
Welcome to the world of 3D printing where dreams take shape in a blinding flash to fit your personal needs and wants.
"3D printing has the potential to change everything," said Suyu, whose company was recently listed as Canada's first pure-play 3D printing stock on the TSXV so that anyone can cash in on a technology that is revolutionizing the world.
So what is 3D printing? Simply put it is a practical and usable technology that can replicate or create virtually anything anywhere.
Also known as Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) or additive manufacturing, 3D printing is a process that creates three-dimensional solid objects of virtually any shape. 3D printers work similarly to inkjet printers, only instead of ink, the 3D printer deposits various types of material in successive layers to create a physical object from a computer file. The feedstock for 3D printers can include plastic resin, titanium, polymers, gold, silver and even chocolate.
If you still can't figure it out, look back at the Mission Impossible movies where a 3D printer makes a detailed silicone replica of the villain's face from the skin tone, freckles, and eyebrows, and puts them all on molded resin for the hero to use.
Advances made in the technology originally developed some 30 years ago are now being used to make a growing array of items including jewelry, chocolate selfies, dresses and shoes, medical implants, prototypes for the auto industry, and airplane parts.
At home, you can remake the broken oven knob or the pesky but well-crafted door handle.
In the U.S., scientists are attempting to build a human heart with a 3D printer after making splints, valves and a human ear. For them, the ultimate goal is to create a new heart for a patient with their own cells that could be transplanted.
"You can print intricate components, and then assemble them. You can add electronics, hardware, screws etc to make complex objects," said Todd Blatt, Tinkerine's vice-president of Market Direction.
"Architects use it for creating models, engineers use it to develop and test projects. Industrial designers use it to conceptualize and refine products. Jewelers use it to make casting moulds. Students use it for science class, art class, and homework assignments. Once you realize there are so many more things you can do with a printed part, the doors are really open wide," said Blatt, who was listed among the 100 most influential individuals for 2013 in the 3D printing industry.
Experts in this technology say that one of the key benefits of 3D printing is that it can dramatically lower the cost of building a prototype and enhance innovation, particularly for small and medium-sized manufacturers.
Wohlers Associates, a rapid product development consulting firm, predicts a strong double-digit growth in the 3D printing industry over the next several years.
http://wohlersassociates.com/3D-printing.html
In four years, Wohlers Associates believes that the sale of 3D printing products and services will approach $6 billion worldwide. By 2021, Wohlers Associates forecasts the industry to reach $10.8 billion. It took the 3D printing industry 20 years to reach $1 billion in size. In five additional years, the industry generated its second $1 billion. It is expected to double again, to $4 billion, in 2015.
Gartner Research predicts that by 2018, at least seven of the world's top 10 multichannel retailers will be using 3D printing technology to generate custom stock orders, at the same time as entirely new business models are built on the technology.
http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2600115
A Credit Suisse research team led by Jonathan Shaffer has revised the firm's 2016 projection for the 3D printing market up 357%, to $800 million from $175 million.
http://www.bullfax.com/?q=node-credit-suisse-3d-printing-going-be-way-bigger-what-3d-p
The numbers don't surprise Tinkerine CEO, Eugene Suyu, who had his first encounter with a 3D printer while studying at the Simon Fraser University.
"In the summer of 2011, I had my hands on an open source 3D printer kit. Being a user experience designer, this was really exciting for me. However, the process of setting up, assembling, and printing fell short of my expectations. That was really when the idea of Tinkerine sparked," said Suyu.
In less than two years, Tinkerine has already established itself as a leader in the Canadian 3D printer market. The company's Ditto+ 3D printer has been hailed by the influential Make magazine which recently awarded it "Surprise Hit" and runner up in "Best Value" in an issue dedicated to 3D printing.
This month Tinkerine announced the launch of DittoPro, the industry's first affordable prosumer (the market segment that offers professional-grade equipment at a consumer level price) 3D printer.
DittoPro offers professional-grade print speeds and resolution of 50 to 300 microns (0.05-0.3 mm) at a retail price of just $1,999 CAD ($1,899 USD) fully assembled and is expected to ship at the end of the month.
"The prosumer market is demanding a 3D printer that features quiet operation along with high speed, high resolution and massive build volume. DittoPro delivers on all of these, packaged in an elegant design that owners will be proud to have on display," said Suyu.
"With its simple, one-click operation and ease-of-use software, DittoPro can be used for creating everything from engineering prototypes to educational models."
"DittoPro is a superbly-crafted 3D printer that meets all the requirements of the prosumer user and education markets," said Blatt.
"It is a premium machine to the consumer market, which also includes prosumers such as educators, designers and engineers to architects.
"Its elegance blends nicely into a classroom or on a desk, and its reliability and higher performance set it apart from the other leading machines in the market. It allows me to spend my time tinkering with my project, and not with the machine."
The consumer market is the fastest growing segment of 3D printing today, and is expected to grow 80% per annum to 1,000,000 units in 2018 according to Juniper Research 2014.
But Tinkerine's multi-pronged business plan is not just about selling hardware.
"We are here to build an ecosystem around 3D printing to provide the unique interaction users share with their printer and how our design can conform to their individual lifestyle," said Suyu.
Tinkerine is heavily investing in an education initiative called Tinkerine U to provide a base line understanding for both the teachers and the students on how to utilize a 3D printer.
"By providing the teachers with a teaching curriculum for 3D printing, it helps guide the teachers to educate the students," said Suyu.
The education market for Tinkerine 3D printers is massive.
There are about 113,000 K to 12 schools in Canada and the US with about 60.7 million students and about 21 million students enrolled in over 4,600 post-secondary and higher-learning intuitions in North America.
They are taught by some eight million teachers.
"Once the students and teachers are exposed to 3D printing, they can be imaginative and explore the capabilities of 3D printing in depth ... Just imagine them having the ability to easily create whatever they want, whenever they want," added Suyu.
About Tinkerine
Tinkerine develops, manufactures, distributes and sells 3D printers, software and materials for the consumer and education markets – the fastest growing segments of 3D printing. Current products include the newly released DittoPro, and previously released award-winning Ditto+ and Litto 3D printers, all acclaimed for their high performance and affordability. Tinkerine's 3d printers work seamlessly with its integrated 3D software to make printing intuitive and accessible to anyone.