3-in-1 is the name of the game for Febtop Tech with the introduction of their Optimus Transformable 3D printer, which boasts a multiple configuration design that includes a 3D printer, laser cutter and CNC mill. Considering this is the Swedish-based company’s first foray into the world of 3D printing it’s certainly impressive, but not the first design to integrate several machine tools into one. Some of you may remember ZMorph’s Multitool, introduced early last year and also featured a laser cutter and CNC mill along with its 3D printing capabilities. The Optimus gets its name from the machine’s two primary configurations — an vertical Delta 3D printer and a horizontal…

The isolated stare of the bulging eyes shifted around the bottle glass. Tiny though it was, the suit it wore weighed more. Jets on each appendage, fueled by a small nuclear core, explained the hum, the crack, and the flash as it launched to pursue these links. Jordan Grimmer – Floating ruins, crashed ships, and worlds you just want to hop into complete the handful of work from this Leading Light Design concept artist. Jedha – How were the planets and scenes of Jedha and Scarif created for Star Wars: Rogue One? This ‘Behind the Magic’ from ILM shows you how. Lagonda – Remember the Aston Martin Lagonda? Only 645…

In a big surprise, at least for me, German RepRap showed off a demonstrator 3D printer able to produce very strong silicone prints. There are few 3D printers able to print in silicone. The sloppy material requires extrusion mechanics far different from typical hard plastic filaments, but some companies have developed syringe-based systems that can do so. However, German RepRap’s system is a bit different. They’ve partnered with Dow Corning, a subsidiary of Dow Chemical Company, who has developed a new silicone material specifically for this purpose. It is an “A/B” material, meaning 1) it can be stored continuously in two separate formulations and 2) only becomes the final silicone…

Welcome to our new ‘Ask An Engineer’ series, where Dan Slaski addresses questions that have you losing sleep or staring off into space during important meetings. Have a question for Dan? Send it in. Question: Should I work for a big company or a small company? Dear Consciously Corporately Constrained, Recently my girlfriend and I were trying to decide where to go out to dinner. A new Italian restaurant opened up just around the corner. The location has seemed cursed. Over the past 5 years, the same location has been a Greek restaurant, Thai restaurant, cell phone store, and a Mexican restaurant. But I knew that this time, THIS TIME, things would…

Presented by I know, I know. I sealed off simulation with the 5 reasons I would use Simulation in Fusion 360 months ago. You thought we were all done with that. Well, you were wrong, Mwahaha! After that article, Autodesk released an update to Fusion 360 with so many Simulation features it could make a steel I-beam pucker. To get to the heart of this massive update, and go beyond my simple understanding of Fusion 360 Simulation in general, I talked with Vikram (Vik) Vedantham, who I’m certain can calculate the deformation of an unladen swallow’s wing in flight within an instance of a giggle and a sip of fine…

Anyone familiar with SOLIDWORKS, or 3D CAD in general, knows you can’t easily markup a 3D model or drawing within the software. You still need to print the drawing or model, hand-deliver it to the conference room, shop floor or the friendly checker grinning at you expectantly over the edge of the cubicle. The. Joy. The new RedLine add-in for SOLIDWORKS from InfinityDRAW changes this, allowing you to digitally redline your parts, assemblies and drawings right inside SOLIDWORKS. The potential time and money this saves alone is huge, not to mention the paper, ink, trips to the pen cabinet and energy of sorting through different redline stacks. It also addresses…