3D Printing
The National Computer Board (NCB) has set up two 3D Printing Centres for the benefit of a wide range of industries, professions and academia, including SMEs, start-ups, designers and university students. The first centre is located at NCB, Port Louis and the second at SME Mauritius, Coromandel.
Objectives
The objectives of the 3D Printing Centers are:
- Provide venue and logistics for Primary and Secondary school children and University students for building prototypes;
- Support local entrepreneurship by offering 3D print services;
- Encourage SMEs to adopt new production lines;
- Produce reduced scale models for designers of various industries;
- Accelerate process of creation of moulds and dyes;
- Guide startups to build their own open source, low-cost 3D printing machines;
- Subsidised and cost effective services, otherwise unaffordable to users; and
- Provide Initiation and Training sessions to targeted users (students, start-ups, SMEs).
Services offered (FREE)
3D Printing & 3D Scanning that includes the following:
- standard PLA filaments and ABS filaments of various colours of diameter 1.75mm
- Convert 3D files to STL format if needed
- Check STL file for design flaws
- Adjust print sizes for object/ bed sizes
- Run slicing or layering
- Adjust filaments, adjust temperature etc...
- Add props for complex objects if needed
- Launch and watch prints
As at January 2020, 295 students and SME’s visited both 3D Printing Centres. University students, mainly in the engineering field used the facilities provided to produce their Projects. More than 1,535 3D projects have been printed, comprising of some 3260 parts.
Besides 3D Printing facility, 190 people, students and SMEs, have followed training on 3D Printing & Design technologies.
Collaboration with Other Institutions
The NCB collaborated with Sun Resorts and the University of Mauritius for 3D printing of artificial reefs and bases for coral breed. In view to demonstrate the adoption of 3D Printing Technology towards visually impaired people, the NCB partnered with NGOs (Lois Lagesse School for the blind, Lizie Dans la Main and Global Rainbow Foundation) to print 3D braille and education puzzles as well as training for the benefit of the visually impaired persons. The 3D Printing team of the NCB collaborated with the Ministry of Environment, CIB and the University of Mauritius to produce 3D casings for IoT atmospheric sensors.
NCB 3D Printing team took part in various technology related events such as:
- Science Fair at Rajiv Gandhi Science Centre
- Infotech Mauritius and Rodrigues 2018
- InnovTech 2019
- Inter Village Innovation Competition at Providence
- Expo Mauritius 2018
- Awareness sessions at Institut Francais de Maurice
- Royal College Port Louis and DAV College Rose Belle.
Printing an object
1. Create your 3D model(s) in any 3D CAD (Computer-aided design) software.
- File format: STL,SVG,OBJ,GSD
- File Size: less than 25 Mb
2. You may visit the centre to deposit your files. The centres are open on weekdays from 09h00 to 16h00 OR you may also send your files by email on 3d@ncb.mu
3. Pick up your objects when the NCB officer notifies you via e-mail or phone
- Pick up time may vary depending on the queue and complexity of the model
- Maximum dimensions the 3D printers can print is 25cm (w) x 30 cm (L) x 30 cm (H)
Future developments
A next phase for helping SMEs for small production runs would be the setting up of a Digital Fabrication Lab equipped with more robust and complex 3D printing and cutting tools along with associated equipments.
The objective of setting up such a lab is in line with encouraging SMEs to adopt small agile production runs and to reduce their testing/prototyping process through adoption of digital or Computer Aided Design (CAD) and Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM). With advances in technology, this will be logical stepping stone for SMEs.