Aleph Objects and IC3D Offer Open Source Hardware Filament

 Aleph Objects, Inc., makers of LulzBot 3D Printers, and IC3D Industries, a producer of 3D print materials, jointly announced availability of Certified Open Source Hardware 3D Printing Filament at the RAPID + TCT 2017 conference.

IC3D has released a 16-page white paper documenting its manufacturing process, parameters, material grades and more.

“Proprietary materials should not be an impediment to advancing the use of 3D printed objects for certified parts and other industrial applications,” says IC3D Founder and CEO Michael Cao. “IC3D is committed to open source 3D printing consumables. LulzBot and Aleph Objects’ focus on open source has been an inspiration to IC3D and we’re pleased that they will be reselling IC3D consumables.”

IC3D, founded in 2012 as a RepRap 3D printer manufacturer, now operates a large format 3D printing service bureau alongside their filament production business.

IC3D’s filament white paper and other documentation is hosted on GitHub, a popular file sharing and collaboration website. Using GitHub will allow IC3D to easily update documentation as their processes evolve. Aleph Objects worked closely with IC3D, imparting best practices in file and process sharing.

When printing IC3D filament with LulzBot 3D printers, it will be possible to have a 100% Open Source tool chain for additive manufacturing, from software to hardware to end product, according to the companies.

According to the companies, Open Source Hardware Certified 3D printing filament promises to allow more individuals to participate in process improvement and more producers to entering the space to focus on innovative materials rather than elementary process development. Further, the companies say that Open Source filament may lead to certification of 3D printed parts, since the materials and processes by which they are produced are entirely transparent.

Visit Aleph Objects and IC3D.

Sources: Press materials received from the company.