The year ends tonight, and what a year it was. While the world got a little crazy in 2016, the Shapeways community grew and thrived. Here’s a look back on some of the ways you, our community, made 2016 our best year yet.
We made amazing projects!
Lumecluster created the Dreamer Regalia Armor for Felicia Day and showed what it takes to use Blender to create custom-fitting cosplay gear.
Our community grew closer, and through members who love 3D printing scale models, we made new friends around the world. The Kogashima Streetcar is a testament to how 3D printing can bring people together across borders.
Winter finally came, and along the way we got to see some incredible props printed by Shapeways for (my personal favorite) HBO series Game of Thrones!
We launched new materials and tools!
We introduced the strongest and lightest ever material at Shapeways, DMLS Aluminum! We saw it used to create working mountain bike prototypes and an amazing FPV drone!
For those who are prototyping and iterating on their designs, Shapeways started offering PLA to provide a quick turnaround. Shop Owner Bhold showed us how she uses her own printer to iterate on her concepts and come up with the final product she sells on Shapeways.
One of the best parts of printing with Shapeways is being able to create products that couldn’t be made without 3D printing. Building on these remarkable products, we launched innovative Interlocking Metals. For the first time ever, we can print complex geometries in precious and semi-precious materials.
At Shapeways we’re all about being responsive to our community. One feature designers have asked for was the ability to determine the orientation of of how the machine prints their model. So, we released the print orientation tool so makers can better control aesthetics and accuracy when printing with Selective Laser Sintering.
Above all, we had fun together
The best part of Shapeways is being part of an amazing community. This year we got to meet so many of our designers and Shop Owners in their own element.
We talked to Model Railroad enthusiasts about the best way to design a 3D printed N Scale train.
We played games together at Gen Con using the amazingly artistic dice created by Shapeways designers.
We teamed up with DJI to challenge the Shapeways community to help first responders save lives with augmented drones.
We saw old friends and enjoyed great math puns like the Klein Bottle opener created by Bathsheba.
Finally, we joined forces with Fat Cat Fab Lab to sell designers’ unique jewelry and home decor as last-minute gifts for the holidays.
We had an incredible time in 2016, and we’re looking forward to seeing you all in 2017!