Mimaki USA Installs 3D Printer on Clemson U. Campus
Mimaki has several printers that Clemson University students use to learn on, but this is the first 3D printer.
Suwanee, Georgia-based Mimaki USA, makers of wide-format inkjet printers and cutters, announces that it has placed a full-color commercial 3D printer at Clemson University’s Sonoco Institute of Packing Design and Graphics.
The company says the printer will be used to help students learn about 3D printing workflow and to create detailed product and package samples.
The company says the printer produces photorealistic prototypes using inkjet technology and water-soluble support materials for quick and simple model-finishing. In addition, the printer can achieve more than 10 million colors using CMYK, white and clear inks, Mimaki says.
“The Sonoco Institute is a leader in package design and graphics and Mimaki is proud to partner with them to provide hands-on experience with our full-color 3D technology,” says Josh Hope, senior manager of 3D printing and engineering projects at Mimaki USA. “Our 3DUJ-553 printer will allow students to create color-accurate prototypes that complement their current curriculum as well as give them the opportunity to develop industry skills they can use outside the classroom.”
Initially, the new printer will be utilized in two courses at the institute: 3D Printing Workflow and Product/Package Design and Prototyping.
“We are all very excited at Clemson to continue our partnership with Mimaki, especially in such a rapidly evolving area as 3D printing,” says Sonoco Institute director and chair of Clemson Graphic Communications, Chip Tonkin. “We have a great group of faculty with wide-ranging expertise in printing and packaging who are ready to make use of the new equipment.”
“What I love about my class is that students design a perfume or cologne bottle, and after we 3D-print it, they can test its functionality,” says Haley Appleby, who will teach one of the two course. “Does the threading around the neck perform as it should? Does the cap fit around the spray head? Are the walls of the bottle too thick or thin? How far off are the design tolerances?”
She adds that when students have tangible, printed products in their hands, they are able to understand more about the technical and functional aspects of design.
Other models of Mimaki printers are used elsewhere within the university’s graphic communications school.
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