My journey with 3D Printing

I was in the college for engineering. I was too much into robotics. We had limited resources yet we used to build bots and go to inter college competitions.

Once I remember in 2017, I went to SGGS College, Nanded in Maharashtra. There was the first time I saw 2 machines. There were two people near it. They had a statue of a bird in it.

Curious, I asked about it and they told me it was a 3D Printer. It was a shock for me to see such a small machine because in my thoughts I've imagined something else. A machine but at least not small enough to fit on a 2 ft table. 

They told me the bird was created using the 3D Printer. It was a white filament surely PLA. The bird felt handcrafted.

They started printing another bird in front of me and told me it will take 3 hrs. 3hrs not at all practical for a 5-10cm object. But it was fascinating.

Second instance was two 3D printers one owned by my college but no one saw it working. The other was with 3 arms and was bought to be repaired by my teacher.

In 2019, I submitted a project regarding making a 3D Printed Robotic Fish. My HOD liked it and invested into it. She and my project guide gave me ₹15000. In that I purchased a 1KG filament roll. I then went to ask permission for the college 3D Printer. They said it was broken.

Now I had no other option. I searched online for 3D Printing services. Those were the times when 3D Printing was costly.

After a few weeks, I discovered a student of another branch with his guide has got a 3D Printer setup in the college. I rushed to him and asked for it. They gave me a rate of ₹22 per gram. Luckily this was a college sponsored project so I got it for free. They asked me to use my roll of filament.

That's how my first 3D Printed project was built. The fish was later patented and we are currently working on different applications of it.

Today, I am exposed to various types of printers. 3D Printers today are not limited to rapid prototyping but also used in medical, civil and construction, fashion, jewellery and other areas. 

I also realised that when it comes to 3D Printing as a service there are currently companies who are doing good in India, the market is still in a growing phase. This is the right moment to educate people about 3D Printing so that more and more people become aware.

This is also a time when 3D Printing as a Service is still not economical for many people. Hence we started Latencot, a company that has a vision related not only to 3D Printing, but also AI and it's use in designing. We are also taking baby steps towards concrete 3D Printing solutions as we truly believe, 3D Printing can bring a rapid change in modern trends for design.