Digital Media Lab

3D Printing Overview

3D printing allows you to create physical, three-dimensional objects from digital files. This service is available in Rettner 201 on River Campus. Prints are charged at a per-gram rate to a URos (Flex) account.

  • Tutorial—How to create and submit 3D models for printing
  • FAQ—Answers to common questions and issues

The following 3D printers are available in Rettner Hall.

3D Printing Service

The Digital Media Studies program has launched a public 3D print service in Rettner 201 (the Digital Media Lab). Faculty, staff, and students with the ability to pay using URos/declining can ask the Rettner Help Desk staff to print a 3D file at a reasonable cost, whether it's related to coursework or not.

Stratsys UPrint SE Plus

This machine is also a Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) unit, this time printing ABS plastic. Resolution is comparable to the MakerBot (layers about twice as thick). This machine can print print more complex geometries using a soluble support material. This is then removed by soaking in a high-pH solution using the WasWash unit. Printing cost is approximately $5 per cu. in.

To schedule jobs on this printer, prepare your model as an STL file and contact Jim Alkins in the Rettner Shop office to make arrangements for printing and washing.

For more information visit the Stratsys UPrint website.

Stratsys UPrint Quick Facts 

Stratsys UPrint SE Plus

Location: Rettner 106 (Fabrication Studio)
Material: ABS plastic in expensive proprietary spools
Support: Yes, remove in high-pH WaveWash unit
Build size: 203 x 203 x 152 mm (8 x 8 x 6 in)
Layer thickness: 245 microns (.254 mm, .010 in)
Precision: N/A
Software: Proprietary Dimension Catalyst EX software does slicing and toolpathing; very few user-configurable parameters (discuss when submitting job)
Cost: Approx. $5 cu in
Speed: Not fast - overnight for anything reasonably large or complex, plus time to wash (depends on geometry)

Stratasys Objet 30 Pro

This is our highest-quality but also most expensive and least accessible printer.

It prints a photopolymer gel that is cured with a laser. Printing cost is $1 per gram of liquid material. Layer resolution is usually 28 microns (a thousandth of an inch). It can print rigid opaque as well as a transparent material and a simulated polypropylene material. It can print a “glossy” finish on top surfaces. We do not stock all materials, and changing materials is very expensive.

To schedule jobs on this printer, prepare your model as an STL file and contact Jim Alkins in the Rettner Shop office. Jobs for the Objet must have both a suitable application context and a demonstrated need for the material properties of the printer. In-person interaction with the operator will likely be necessary when printing on the Objet.

For more information visit the Stratasys Objet website.

Stratasys Objet Quick Facts

Stratasys Objet 30 Pro

Location: Rettner Machine Shop (no public access)
Material: PolyJet photopolymers
Support: Yes, remove with pressure washer glove box
Build size: 294 x 192 x 148.6 mm (11.57 x 7.55 x 5.85 in.)
Layer thickness: 28 microns (0.0011 in.); 16 microns for VeroClear material (0.0006 in.)
Build resolution: X-axis: 600 dpi; Y-axis: 600 dpi; Z-axis: 900 dpi
Accuracy: 0.1 mm (0.0039 in.) may vary depending on part geometry, size, orientation, material and post-processing method
Software: Proprietary software on the printer itself and on its dedicated computer; no public access
Cost: $1/g (liquid)
Speed: Varies