Sure, we talk about 3D printed music boxes and bobbleheads — cute contrivances of the design-oriented millennials just getting acquainted with 3D printing — but for the industry veterans, the process is still thought of as rapid prototyping or additive manufacturing and it’s meant for true industrial purposes. The Additive Manufacturing Users Group (AMUG) has been in existence since the 1990s, when it was founded as the 3D Systems North American Stereolithography Users Group. Since then, it’s widened its scope to include all users of AM, but it maintains its keen understanding of the industrial applications of 3D printing. And, every year, AMUG gathers its members together to network, learn and celebrate their trade at the AMUG Conference and Expo. Each year, the group also makes sure to pay tribute to outstanding users of additive manufacturing through the Technical Competition Awards.
You don’t have to be a member of AMUG to compete in the Technical Competition, but you probably need some decent 3D printing skills. The contest is divided into two categories, Advanced Concepts and Advanced Finishing, with the former rewarding designs for innovative concepts and the latter focusing on the actual polishing of a prototype. Entrants into the Advanced Concepts category will be judged by their ability to “push the envelope” in regards to a particular technology or combination of technologies. Advanced Finishing, on the other hand, is meant to acknowledge those who put the ultimate polish on a prototype, such as part finishers, model makers and painters.
All entries will be displayed at the AMUGexpo in Tucson, Arizona this April, where they’ll be judged by five previous recipients of the organization’s Distinguished Innovator Operator award. Winners will be determined based on the design’s creative use of AM, the overall project quality, and, for the Advanced Concepts category, the benefit of AM to the project or, for the Advanced Finishing category, the use of an innovative finishing technique. For an idea of what the judges might be looking for, take a look at last year’s winner: a shifter assembly designed by Carl Dekker of Met-L-Flo, pictured to the right.
If you think you’ve got the 3D printing chops to design and execute a prototype or you’ve got a pretty good handle on finishing such prototypes, the link to the entry form is here. Remember, this ain’t no 3D printed ornament contest. This is the real deal!
