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Considering that 3D printing can completely transform the medical industry, the future of organ transplants appears to be bright. The fabrication of 3D human heart mimics has recently seen a substantial advancement thanks to MIT researchers. They've created a robotic device that can create soft, 3D-printed copies of a patient's heart that can be activated to simulate the patient's capacity to pump blood. In this method, a patient's heart's medical scans are transformed into a three-dimensional computer model that the researchers can then 3D print with a soft, polymer ink. The outcome is an elastic, squishy shell that precisely mimics the patient's heart.

Awais Ashfaq, MBBS, looks at the patient’s CT scans and MRI and realizes they aren’t enough. He needs more information. He needs to see her heart more clearly. He needs something tangible.

Back in December 2022, chemists at the University of Oldenburg in Germany - like chemist Liaisan Khasanova - were talking about how they were exploring 3D printing at the nanoscale: something that can potentially help the human race in the future by creating new nanoscopic items cheaply using 3d printing technology. As Khasanova herself said "A laser beam inside the device heats up the tube and pulls it apart. Then we suddenly increase the tensile force so that the glass breaks in the middle and a very sharp tip forms." Obviously, this is a very advanced version of 3D printing, but it can potentially allow people in the future to easily create items on a small scale and help advance nanotech as an industry.

The University of Maine has partnered with community action agency, Penquis, to build the first bio-based 3D printed neighborhood, and this project has the potential to greatly improve the lives of low-income individuals. The $3.3 million project, in association with UMaine, MaineHousing, Maine’s congressional delegation, and the Key Bank Foundation, aims to provide affordable and innovative housing solutions to the housing crisis in Maine.

The University of Maine is using 3D printing technology to help return culturally sensitive artifacts to the Tlingit tribe in southern Alaska. The project, which is being led by the Hudson Museum, began after the Tlingit tribe's central council requested the repatriation of several artifacts currently in the museum's collection. Under a 1990 federal law, Native American communities can request the return of certain artifacts taken from their ancestral lands or owners.

Artist representation of 3D printing technologyPhoto bymohamed-hassan on Pixabay. The world's first 3D-printed school opened its doors in 2021. It took approximately 18 hours. The affordable housing group 14Trees built an entire school in Malawi— at the Mcheza village — July, 2021, using 3D printing technology. The night before, men were setting up the equipment and the next morning, the school building was finished — literally overnight.

According to the St. Louis Federal Reserve, the median sales price for American homes in the second quarter of 2022 was slightly over 440 thousand dollars. This means that half of all houses sold during this period had a price above this value and half were below. The median sales price is even higher in high-cost states such as California.

As the 3D-printed age of products begins, San Juan Pools is prepared. The first-ever 3D printed fiberglass swimming pool was shown on Fox & Friends by the pool manufacturer yesterday.

More and more Hoosier manufacturing operations are going all in on new tech, a clear sign that Industry 4.0 is really taking off in Indiana. Over the last few years, the need to become more efficient and proficient has become more apparent than ever for companies that make things. New funding pathways and innovations in technology have enabled many Hoosier firms to dynamically change the way they do business.

The technology of 3-D printing has gained popularity over the last couple of years. Though the first 3-D printer was invented in 1984, this technology has gained traction with companies in the recent years. Universities aren't an exception to this. In fact, according to Iowa State University, 3-D printing will be on the forefront of their next project. They will employ this technology to build houses in a more economical and efficient way, which will in turn create a more affordable and sustainable way to make houses.