3D Printing in Space Has Arrived

Commander Barry Wilmore in the International Space Station with the 3D-printed wrench

Earlier in this blog we had mentioned how preparations were being made to enable 3D printing in space. 3D printing in space is now been there, done that. A small ratchet wrench has been successfully 3D printed at the International Space Station (ISS) during its Expedition #42.

The wrench was designed on earth at Marshall Space Flight Center  , NASA approved the design, the design data file was uploaded to the ISS and the wrench printed on a 3D printer on the ISS in less than four hours. Total time, start to finish: less than a week.

This is without a doubt faster and cheaper than making the wrench on earth and sending it up to the ISS by space shuttle!

As mentioned in other posts, TMG creates the files 3D printers need to create their objects, so if you need to 3D print something, TMG is one of the places that will create your printer files. Message us here to email our engineers to discuss your requirement.

Have a great 2015!