RIT’s AMPrint Center to collaborate on 3D printing research

Rochester Institute of Technology’s AMPrint Center will collaborate with Hudson Valley’s Defense Innovation Lab and R3 Printing to conduct advanced research and technology in the field of 3D printing.

The Defense Innovation Lab supports entrepreneurs working on defense and government focused technology. Aimed at taking commercial technologies from concept to prototype and low-rate production, DiLab brings together startups, laboratories, academia, and industry to deliver innovations to the warfighter — faster.

R3 Printing is bringing to market the R3 Printer, an enterprise-grade 3D printer optimized for both commercial manufacturing and defense logistics applications. The R3 Printer rapidly produces both plastic and composite 3D prints at speeds “90 percent faster than competitor 3D printers,” according to the company.

“Faster 3D prints, increased printer bandwidth, monitored 3D printers mean more money made each day by on-demand manufacturers – the companies that produce 3D printed goods,” said Dan Downs, R3 Printing’s co-founder and president. “For the U.S. military, these features mean the R3 Printer is a tool that helps our servicemen respond  to equipment failure immediately and at the source with new operational components that otherwise may take months to arrive via traditional supply chains.”

As part of a state grant, DiLab will work with R3 Printing to leverage the expertise and equipment at the AMPrint Center to support the design, prototyping, and testing efforts of R3 Printing’s proprietary 3D printing technology.

“We are incredibly excited to work with the AMPrint Center for the development of the R3 Printer. As an organization, DiLab’s true north is providing support to early stage technology companies who are developing technology with a strong defense industry use case,” said Tommy Hendrix of the DiLab.