Anybody who knows anything knows that Istanbul, once Constantinople, lays at the critical junction between Europe and Asia. For years the city hosted a vibrant marketplace for traders passing between the two continents, housing the Grand Bazaar, the oldest and largest covered market in the world, still in operation today. As the city continues the trend into the 21st Century, it has updated trading habits and goods by joining the world of 3D printing. On January 11, 2014, online 3D printer network 3D Hubs moved to become a central player in Istanbul’s 21st Century Bazaar.
As 3D Hubs traverses the planet, it has spread outward from Europe, making its way into a number of European nations, Brazil, and out into the United States. Just recently, the company started its journey across the Bosphorous and into Asia, by unlocking its first 3D Hub in Istanbul, Turkey. The company held its unlocking event at 3Dörtgen, a beautifully designed fab cafe in the city. 3Dörtgen has already established itself as a retailer of a wide range of 3D printing goods and services, selling everything from Up! to Ultimaker, Replicator to Cube machines. They’ve even got 3Doodler rival Swiss Pen on their inventory. The unlocking event saw members of Istanbul’s already vibrant hacker and CAMCAD communities gather at the fab cafe, to connect and learn what it means to become a part of 3D Hubs’ expanding empire. You can see a bit of video footage from the event here and you can get a sense for 3Dörtgen by scrolling through the pics below.
The Istanbul unlocking marks the company’s first steps into the Eastern Hemisphere, reflecting its belief that “the rise of 3D printing is a movement, which should not limit itself to the West.” 3Dörtgen will serve as 3D Hubs’ “base camp”, to use their words, as they move Eastward. I’m always happy with the joining together of people globally around a common cause, as long as that cause isn’t a scary one, but the network’s expansion is happening so quickly and with such breadth that I am a little bit wary. My only hope is that we don’t look back on history regrettably timelining the decline of humanity with entries like, “January 11, 2014: the Istanbul Unlocking.”
Source: 3D Hubs
