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re:3D Makes Top 16 of Inaugural MassChallenge Texas!

It’s with a huge amount of excitement, humility, and gratitude to announce that we have made it as one of the top 16 startups of the inaugural MassChallenge Texas! It’s been an incredible journey for our team to date to now be one of the top 16 startups from the 84 participating companies that hailed from 11 different countries across industries of high-tech, social impact, health, life sciences, general consumer products, and clean technology. We’ve been so inspired by the amazing entrepreneurs who make the magic happen of these 84 companies including companies like our fellow #HurricaneStrong Parallel 18 accelerator participants in Puerto Rico, Brands Of.

Other highlights from MassChallenge Texas to date have been receiving one of the People’s Choice Awards at the MassChallenge Texas Startup Showcase. Also, getting the ongoing mentorship and support from the MassChallenge team including getting to hire an amazing intern thanks to MassChallenge as well as receive incredible expertise and connections. These MassChallenge resources of knowledge and talent, exposure, and the inspiring fellow entrepreneurs part of this cohort make us so proud to be part of this community and are integral to where we are today.

During our time at MassChallenge Texas since the program was announced in February, we’ve made huge strides including launching Gigabot X securing beta users around the world with a successful Kickstarter. Gigabot X is a large-scale 3D printer that can print from reclaimed plastic, and as of now is actively printing from FOUR different types of plastic waste. Also, we are geared up to launch the largest 3D printer to date in the re:3D family this fall – Terabot – that boasts a 36″ inch cubed build volume. We’ve also launched a full enclosure called the Gigabox Enclosure for our 3D printers as well as acquired PRINTinZ, one of the first 3rd party accessories that became commercially successful in the build surface market. We’ve invested in building our applied R&D hub in Puerto Rico where we’ll continue to evolve the use of 3D printing technology in pursuit of a circular economy, decrease dependence on imports, and build a vibrant community of fellow problem solvers reimagining the ways in which we use technology to build a collective future, such as 3D printing hurricane relief and recovery efforts in Puerto Rico. We’ve continued to collect stories of impact from our customers in 50+ countries and across industries such as education, manufacturing, research, health science and beyond. And we’ve hired 6 new teammates and are still looking for 20+ more 3D printing enthusiasts to join the re:3D team (check out these positions…and tell your friends!).

All this is to say that since we joined MassChallenge Texas – thanks to the support of this global community and experienced mentorship– we’ve taken flight even faster on the trajectory of our vision.

So after giving a 10-minute pitch and 10-minute Q&A session to a panel of mentors and judges the other week, we have landed where we are humbly today as one of the top 16 startups of this MassChallenge Texas. As if we weren’t already in awe enough of our cohort of 84 companies that comprised the inaugural MassChallenge Texas, this final 16 also includes 3 veteran or military-owned companies along with us, Sempulse and Abraxas Technology (shoutout to you Bunker Labs for the support!). We also join the ranks of 12 Texas-based companies along with – Abraxas Technology, Aquasprouts, Cloud 9, EQO, GrubTubs, Popspots, Sempulse, Tiny House Coffee Roasters, ZPeg, Cloud Dentistry and Novothelium. As well as share industry knowledge and excitement with fellow finalists Partboyz Auto Parts, The Mentor Method, Pay Your Tuition, and Augmenta.

To be amongst these 84 companies and now these top 16, without a doubt, already makes us winners to be considered compatriots of companies at this caliber of innovation and impact who share our values of building companies intent on making this world better off than we found it. That said, today (August 1st) we pitched to another panel of judges in pursuit of a share of the $500,000 equity-free cash prizes to be awarded at the first MassChallenge Texas Awards Ceremony taking place on Wednesday, August 15 in Austin, Texas at Hyatt Regency Austin. At that event on the 15th, we’ll be bringing along Gigabot X to show everyone in person 3D printing from FOUR different types of waste and we’re hoping to earn funds (such as the People’s Choice Award!) to fuel an even faster production of these 3D printers that will use garbage to fuel solutions to big problems. Thank you, MassChallenge. #DreamBigPrintBigger

About MassChallenge: MassChallenge is a global network of zero-equity startup accelerators. Headquartered in the United States with locations in Boston, Israel, Mexico, Switzerland, Texas, and the UK, MassChallenge is committed to strengthening the global innovation ecosystem by supporting high-potential startups across all industries, from anywhere in the world. To date, more than 1,500 MassChallenge alumni have raised more than $3 billion in funding, generated more than $2 billion in revenue, and created more than 80,000 total jobs. Learn more about MassChallenge at http://www.masschallenge.org.

Cat George

Blog Post Author

New Feature: Linear Advance

Here at re:3D, we are results driven and want to provide the best possible product for our customers. Before the release of the new Gigabot Firmware 4.2.0, we wanted to put the new feature, Linear Advance, to the test. Referenced from the Marlin website, Linear Advance allows users to print more dimensionally accurate parts. Under normal conditions, the extruder gear movement is a linear proportion to all other axes. However, the pressure buildup in the nozzle is not proportional to other axes and this leads to extra material being extruded at the end of each movement.

To solve this issue, linear advance changes the extrusion rate whenever the extruder slows down or speed up, creating an even extrusion line no matter the speed or change in direction. The K value has units of mm of filament compression needed per 1 mm/s extrusion speed [mm/(mm/s)]

The advantages of this feature are as follows:

Better dimensional precision.
Higher printing speeds are possible without any loss of print quality.
Visible and tangible print quality is increased even at lower printing speeds.
No need for high acceleration and jerk values to get sharp edges.

A total of 48 test specimens were printed at a different layer height, speed and K value. Each of the 25mm squares were printed individually to decrease the effects of other variables. A circular indentation was added to the middle of the model to increase the number of changes in travel direction, emphasizing the effects of Linear Advance. Shown in Figure 1, are a set of test pieces printed at 0.31 layer height, 120mm/s and a K value of 0.0, 0.05, 0.1, and 0.15 from left to right.

Each test specimen was measured with a caliper. In Table 1, the dimensions of all of the test squares are shown. The highlighted boxes show the test specimen that had the most accurate dimensional reading in its group. As linear advance decouples the extrusion motor from other axis, the print quality is visually and quantitatively improved. Shown in Figure 1, Linear Advance significantly reduces the extrusion of extra material on the outer edges at higher print speeds and larger layer heights. As print speed decreases, the addition of Linear Advance has less of an impact on the quality, however, it is still beneficial with a delta of 0.2 at 40mm/s and 0.15 layer height. These results showed to be consistent with expectations because as flow rate increases, the more buildup of pressure and potential for extra material to come out of the nozzle. With 8 test samples of 0.1 K value and 4 samples of 0.05 K value excelling in accuracy, a weighted average of K= 0.08 provides a good value to improve print quality across the board.

If you are interested in using this feature on your Gigabot, please visit the full feature list of the new Gigabot Firmware 4.2.0 here

Noah Pan

Blog Post Author

Gigabot 3+ Firmware 4.2.0

Introducing the new Gigabot Firmware 4.2.0. This new firmware release features the latest version of Marlin 1.1.8 and is packed with new features that will elevate the user’s experience with the Gigabot.

Notice: This Gigabot Firmware is only for users with the Azteeg X3 Pro (GB-371 and up) with the dual limit switch kit. This version will not work for bots with single Y limit switches.

Here are the links to purchase the upgrade kit, new Simplify3D profiles, and to Download the Firmware

Table of Contents:

A New Look

Dual Y Axis Homing Switch

Linear Advance

Ditto Printing

Filament Change Routine

Continuous Printing After Filament Change

Babystepping for Perfect 1st Layer

Other Links

A New Look

The changes in the new firmware can immediately be noticed on the main info screen of the Gigabot. The larger font makes it easier to read and navigate. (Figure 1.)

The contents and item order of the Prepare Menu have also changed to create an easier and more accessible experience. The preheat option is placed on the top so a target temperature can be set quickly. A new and improved Change Filament routine item is shown followed by the Move Axis menu plus three axis homing actions. (Figure 2.)

About Printer is the newest addition to the screen menu (Figure 3). This menu displays useful information about the printer, such as the model number, firmware upload date, prints completed/ failed, total print time and longest print job completed. This data can be used to keep track of a regular maintenance schedule for your Gigabot.

Dual Y Axis Homing Switch

A major feature of the new firmware is the support for dual Y-axis homing switches. This feature provides more consistent performance and a higher degree of dimensionally accurate printed parts out of the Gigabot.

Previously, a single homing switch existed on the left Y motor, resulting in a carriage that was not consistently parallel to the machine frame. During a filament change, it was possible for an accidental displacement of the carriage, losing positional accuracy (Figure 4).

With dual Y axis homing switches, the machine is guaranteed to be squared to the frame every time the machine is homed (Figure 5). This will provide more consistent performance and accuracy for all prints. Paired with the new filament change routine, the Gigabot will show precise repeatability.

Shown in Figure 6 is a print completed to torture test the dual homing switch feature. A line of gcode was inserted after each layer incrementation to move the extruder aside, disengage the stepper motors, rehome, and continue printing. The results show the consist carriage squaring that the dual homing switch provides. After over 1000 layers, the tower shows homogenous layer quality with no layer shifts.

Linear Advance

Do your prints ever look like the image in Figure 7? Linear Advance is a new feature that allows users to print more dimensionally accurate parts. Under normal conditions, the extruder gear moves linearly in proportion to all other axes. However, the pressure buildup in the nozzle is not proportional to other axes and this leads to extra material being extruded at the end of each movement.

To solve this issue, Linear Advance changes the extrusion rate whenever the extruder slows down or speeds up, creating an even extrusion line regardless of the speed or change in direction.

The advantages of this feature are listed on the Marlin website and are as follows:

Better dimensional precision due to reduced bleeding edges
Higher printing speeds are possible without any loss of print quality
Visible and tangible print quality is increased even at lower printing speeds
No need for high acceleration and jerk values to get sharp edges

re:3D performed an extensive test on this new feature to determine the optimal K value for different layer heights and printing speeds. Shown in Figure 8, is a set of test specimens printed with different K values. Figure 9. shows the improved dimensional accuracy from a specific K value.

A weighted average value of K= 0.08 was chosen, improving print quality for a number of different print settings.

Check the blog post for more information:

Ditto Printing

Duplicate nozzle printing (aka. Ditto Printing) allows the user to print with both nozzles at the same time. It can produce two identical parts with the only constraint that the X length of the object is smaller than the hotend offset (~55mm on the Gigabot). This feature is particularly useful when mass producing parts, cutting printing time in half which can be very beneficial. To enable this feature, download the new 4.3 Simplify Profile for Gigabot, choose PLA Duplicate Nozzle or PC-Max Duplicate Nozzle under the Auto-configure for Material tab and Duplicate Extruders under the Auto-Configure Extruders tab. In the slicer, place only one model on the build platform and start the print. The bot will produce two identical parts.

(Note that this feature works by mirroring the left extruder to the right. Only the left filament runout sensor will be active and the right will be inactive.)

re:3D uses this feature to increase the speed of printing in-house production parts (Figure 11,12).

This feature can also be used to infuse parts together! Like this crazy dual color infused Marvin or 3DBenchy boat shown in Figure 13 & 14.

Filament Change Routine

The new filament change routine provides a series of walk-through interfaces that guides the user through the entire process. The user first selects the extruder and material type that needs to be changed. (Figure 15)

Shown in Figure 16 are a series of walkthrough LCD screens. The Gigabot will first heat the desired nozzle, then automatically unload the filament. The LCD will then direct the user to unload the filament and insert new filament. The filament will automatically purge and ask the user if they want to purge more or continue printing. There are also added safety features that will unheat the nozzle if the machine has been idle for a minute.

Previously, filament changes were tedious with the cable chain obstructing the workspace. With the new firmware, the nozzle park position is on the right side, avoiding all obstructions and allowing for easier filament changes. (Figure 17.)

Please Note: For filament changes from high-temperature material to lower temperature materials (Ex. Polycarbonate to PLA), Please manually heat the nozzle up to the melting temperature of the higher temperature material, switch materials, then purge 200mm of filament and lower the temperature down for the second material. This will clear out the nozzle of any previous material to prevent jamming.

Continuous Printing After Filament Change

Continuous printing after filament change is a feature specifically designed for the long prints that the Gigabot produces. Often times, the Gigabot uses an entire spool of filament and upon filament runout, the machine pauses and waits for the user to change filament. Production time will dramatically increase if the user is unavailable.

With the new Continuous Printing feature, the user loads two spools of the same filament into both extruders. When the first spool runs out, the Gigabot will automatically unload the filament, load and prime the second nozzle, and continue printing. This feature is listed under Controls> Filament> Filament Runout (Figure 18). The user can choose between two filament runout features, pause for change or continuous printing. These options are also available during mid-print so the user can change settings as any given time.

For very long prints, once the second filament spool starts printing with the left nozzle, it is suggested to pause the print and load another spool of filament into the right nozzle.

Shown in Figure 19 & 20 are some of the largest prints that re3D has done. The print time could have been dramatically shortened with the use of continuous printing after filament runout.

Babystepping for Perfect 1st Layer

Babystepping allows the user to adjust the Z height at very small increments to achieve a higher quality first layer. To use this feature, double click the encoder during the first layer of your print until the LCD screen displays the Babystepping screen as shown in Figure 21. Scroll the knob to move the Z up or down (clockwise to move the nozzle away and counterclockwise to move the nozzle closer). Babystepping can also be activated through a M290 gcode. Look at that perfect first layer in Figure 22!

re:3D uses this feature to accommodate for the expansion of the heated bed during high temperature prints such as polycarbonate. A M290 Z0.25 moves the nozzle 0.25mm away from the bed and M290 Z-0.25 moves the nozzle 0.25mm towards the bed.

As seen in Figure 23, Babystepping can dramatically improve the first layer quality. At the start of this print, the nozzle was too far from the bed and the babystepping was adjusted to -0.217mm. After the adjustment, a perfect layer line was achieved.

3D Printing Contest: Fast Furniture Challenge

About The 3D Printing Fast Furniture Challenge:

re:3D had a #HurricaneStrong year in 2017 – our Houston team was hit by Harvey and our team in Puerto Rico withstood Hurricane Irma and Hurricane Maria. June 1st marks the official beginning of hurricane season in Puerto Rico and we want to open a global challenge to create a 3D printed solution to have “fast furniture” available if we undergo another hurricane.

Hurricane Maria destroyed over 70,000 homes in Puerto Rico – and the furniture in it. Our team in Puerto Rico had boots on the ground and was exploring using 3D printing for recovery efforts and one of the number one asks from the community was 3D printing solutions for destroyed furniture. So our teammate Alessandra set on a mission to create 3D printed furniture joints that could be made as quickly and cheaply as possible to then quickly assemble basic furniture that can withstand 150 pounds using pre-cut wood from Home Depot. Needless to say, this is not a simple task – but we believe in solving complex problems and as a community-driven organization, we’re opening up this up challenge to the global community in hopes of identifying a solution to be prepared for this year’s hurricane season. We know this product would be good for a womb chair. If you’re looking for such a product, this is a good womb chair replica for sale near you.

3D Printing Fast Furniture Challenge

Goal

Create modular 3D printed joints in PLA that can effortlessly be assembled into a 36”x36” table with pre-cut wood from Home Depot under 1 hour.

Application: Open application for any person or groups worldwide.

Requirements

3D joints must take less than 48 hours to print and cost under $20 to print.
Materials: pre-cut wood from Home Depot. No nails, screws or glue should be used for assembly
Furniture must be able to withstand 150 pounds
Easy assembly and disassembly
Watertight STL files submitted to info@re3d.org with a digital 24”x36” presentation board with visual content (renders, drawings, assembly steps…) explaining your design.

Contest Timeline

Applications Open: June 8th
Submit STL files and presentation board by August 8th
Semi-Finalists Selected For Printing Their Design
Winner announced August 29th

Awards

re:3D will identify the top 3 table joint designs to be printed on Gigabot and assembled using wood sourced from Home Depot. The design that can bear the most load after assembly will be deemed the winner.
Winner will get a price of $250 USD
Judging Criteria For Semi-Finalists
- Creativity
- Well organized, coherent presentation board
- .stl quality: watertight, containing little to no errors.
- Ability to 3D print joints without supports.
- Estimated print time
Judging Criteria For The Winner
- Assembled table using pre-cut wood will be able to withstand 150 pounds
- Assembly difficulty
- Print Cost
- Print Time

What To Take Into Consideration

PLA is weak against tensile forces
3D printing creates objects with layers which is also their weak point: 3D prints tend to break along the layers just as wood breaks along the fiber direction.
Different wood sizes won’t fit on the same basic pipe-like joints

Next Steps

Submit any questions you have on the 3D Printing Fast Furniture thread in the re:3D Community forum!

Cat George

Blog Post Author

3d printing Contests furniture Hurricane Recovery

Introducing Gigabox

Introducing Gigabox, a full enclosure for your Gigabot 3D printer.

Gigabox is designed to elevate and stabilize the ambient printing temperature of your Gigabot, allowing for large-scale, high-quality printing in high-temperature materials like ABS, nylon, and polycarbonate. Your Gigabox enclosure also serves to protect your Gigabot from the dust and dirt so that it feels just at home on the factory floor as the office environment.

Constructed of transparent, shatter-resistant polycarbonate, Gigabox allows your bot to reach an internal temperature of up to 60°C. Three removable hood panels allow for easy access to the top of the machine, with polycarbonate printed holders at the base of the enclosure to store the hood side panels when not in use. The large front panel is fitted with plastic living hinges which allow it to fold down for convenient access to the interior. Polycarbonate printed handles allow for easy maneuvering of panels, and sixty-four neodymium magnets snap and hold them securely into place.

Gigabox can be installed onto the GB3+ as well as the previous-generation GB3. We recommend setting aside at least four to eight hours to complete the installation.

Order now in our online store or email sales@re3d.org for a quote.

Morgan Hamel

Blog Post Author

Gigabot X Launches On Kickstarter!

Learn more about Gigabot X, the first product of a family of products that will empower users to print from reclaimed plastic. To become a beta user and check out more details, visit the Kickstarter campaign page!

Cat George

Blog Post Author

MassChallenge Texas 2018 – Here We Come!

We're thrilled to be scaling up with MassChallenge as MassChallenge scales to Texas!

MassChallenge is a global network of zero-equity startup accelerators that is headquartered in the United States with locations in Boston, Israel, Mexico, Switzerland and the UK. To date, 1,495 MassChallenge alumni have raised over $3 billion in funding, generated over $2 billion in revenue, and created over 80,000 total jobs.

This year, MassChallenge is running an inaugural program in Texas. As a company that is founded, headquartered, and proud to be rooted in Texas as we scale globally, we here at re:3D are excited to be part of this cohort of 84 startups from 11 countries in a program run in our hometown. These startups are solving problems in industries from high-tech, health care, clean energy, social issues and beyond.

Not only do we get to be collaborators alongside this cohort of high-impact entrepreneurs from around the world and in a program rooted in the Texas startup community we call home, but also re:3D will receive access to MassChallenge’s global network, world-class mentoring from experts, tailored programming, free co-working space, and access to corporate partners. The accelerator culminates in August 2018 at the MassChallenge Texas Awards Ceremony, where selected startups will pitch for the opportunity to win a portion up to $500K in no-equity awards. As we scale up the work we are doing and move the needle toward realizing our vision, getting access to these resources in real-time and on a day-to-day basis is paramount.

We are grateful for the opportunity to join forces with this global community of support who likewise share our commitment to strengthening global innovation. Follow the journey and learn more at texas.masschallenge.org!

Cat George

Blog Post Author

Lessons from Two WeWork Creator Awards Wins

With two WeWork Creator Awards (and two wins!) under our belt, we thought you might enjoy some quotable nuggets of our journey from the Austin stage to New York City. We hope we can inspire another Creator out there to enter for yourself!

A Silver Lining in the Eye of a Hurricane

Everything started back in June of last year when we won the $180,000 Scale Award at the WeWork Regional Creator Awards in Austin.

That cash from WeWork allowed us, as Head of Engineering Matthew Fiedler likes to say, to shorten a year-long process down to six months – that of creating a pellet extruder prototype. R&D Intern Robert Oakley and Matthew have been hard at work on the design, which we got to show off at the Global Finals.

We also established a more permanent presence in Puerto Rico, spurred on by our participation in the Parallel18 accelerator program.

We never could have imagined that just months after starting that program, not one but two of our offices would be hit by catastrophic hurricanes – Harvey in Houston and Maria in Puerto Rico. Our offices were spared damage, but what the twin natural disasters did do is reinforce our belief in our mission of creating a system to take plastic trash, grind it up, and 3D print with it.

With Hurricane Maria and the subsequent loss of running water in Puerto Rico, there is no shortage of plastic water bottles on the island. An island community is exactly the kind of environment in which a system like this would do so much good. Rather than resorting to shipping plastic waste to the mainland, a machine that could 3D print with recycled plastic could do the double-duty of creating useful objects in an isolated area while simultaneously dealing with the plastic problem.

We’re excited about the possibility of creating a machine that could be so useful in such an environment, and we also feel privileged to be in Puerto Rico working with some of the most driven, motivated people.

“It is a really optimistic place right now,” Samantha remarked. “People are really inspired.” Many millennials, she’s noticed, have thrown themselves into the task of rebuilding in the aftermath of the hurricane, leveraging technology to create a new future. “They believe in their island, and I’d say the sense of nationalism is higher now.”

Winning the WeWork Creator Awards in Austin allowed us to start hiring in Puerto Rico, and the latest win will afford us to continue.

A Million Bucks

Winning the Scale Award in Austin was a big deal for us, so getting the word that we’d be one of eight finalists vying for $1 million at the Creator Awards Global Finals in New York City was huge.

You already know what that crazy week was like (and if you don’t…), so I’ll fast-forward to the main event.

J. Kevin White of Global Vision 2020 and Samantha are the last two left sitting in the room offstage where all the finalists were being held. Wearing noise-cancelling headphones, they’re unaware that everyone is being awarded money, and that both of them will be getting $1 million. Samantha recalls the thoughts running through her head in the moment.

When we saw everyone but us leave the room, we both looked at each other and were confused. We considered that perhaps the winner had been revealed and we were receiving a side award or other commitment of support from WeWork or a partner. We were in shock that there could be a chance we might be receiving 1st and 2nd place.

They’re brought on stage. Samantha’s face goes through a rapid-fire sequence of emotions.

When we were brought on stage everything around us seemed to slow down. Kevin has become a friend in this process and while I recall him standing there, everything else was a blur.

Samantha Snabes

The first thought Samantha says entered her head when she realized they’d both won was happiness that the whole team was there to experience the moment, whether in person in the audience or via livestream in Texas or Puerto Rico. This included longtime friend and mentor Seba, currently Parallel18‘s Executive Director, whom we met back in 2013 when he was the Executive Director of Startup Chile.

But, she adds, “I’ll be honest, a week later it hasn’t set in.”

"Winning itself was surreal. Every morning I wake up and have to remind myself that Wednesday night really happened.

Samantha Snabes

No Such Thing as Overnight Success

It’s been a long road to this moment.

re:3D was born in 2013, and five years later nearly to the day, this 2018 win has been our biggest cash influx since our inception. Patience and perseverance have been the name of the game. To finally have in our hands the means to push full-speed toward our mission of 3D printing with trash, it can seem unreal.

Things could be so hard and lonely at times that it seems really unbelievable that we now have such a perfect partner (WeWork). I’m worried that at any moment it will set in and I’m going to break down in hysterics, because several times a day I’m overloaded with gratitude. Kevin and I spoke on the phone last night, and his experience has been very similar. I’m so thankful that we can share this experience together.

The WeWork win isn’t big for us only because of the size of the prize, it’s the type of partner we see in them – an organization with a similar mindset and vision to our own.

Although the win may not have completely sunk in for Samantha, she’s caught herself pausing multiple times a day to reflect on the newfound peace she’s felt lately. “Knowing that we have the resources to scale & care for our team & community,” she explains, “but more importantly, that we have a partner we respect and who supports our open-source, social-focused vision.”

The big Creator Awards win means a lot of different things to our team.

It means the resources to work on a major R&D project, the ability to grow our time, time to focus on telling the stories of our customers, health insurance for the team. re:3D’s Head of Engineering, Matthew, added that the win provided “validation that there are other people who share our vision.”

And we’ve only just begun.

The thing I love the most is knowing that the journey is just getting started.

Samantha Snabes

“Not only are we excited to grow with WeWork, but also the other Creator Awards winners and future Creators we will get to know in 2018” says Samantha.

And as for those future Creators out there, some wisdom from someone who’s gone through it all?

“APPLY!”

“The experience is so much more than the awards or winning,” Samantha adds. “You, your team, and your community have everything to gain by submitting your application!”

There’s nothing to lose.

Morgan Hamel

Blog Post Author

3d printing Creator Awards gigabot Global Finals New York City Pellet extruder Pellet Printer WeWork WeWork Creator Awards

WeWork Gave Us a Million Dollars

Exactly one week ago, on Wednesday, January 17th, five members of the re:3D team joined the screaming throngs filling the theater at Madison Square Garden and watched as our CEO and Co-Founder Samantha Snabes took the stage.

Along with seven other finalists, Samantha answered questions from a panel of five judges: WeWork CEO and Co-Founder, Adam Neumann, Joy Mangano, inventor and entrepreneur portrayed by Jennifer Lawrence in the movie “Joy,” Lisa Price, founder of Carol’s Daughter, Tamara Steffens, GM of Business Development at Microsoft, and Tim Ferriss, author of “The 4-Hour Work Week.”

Everyone knew the judges’ deliberation was going to be hard: they were faced with picking just one winner from a golden lineup. When they came back to the stage, they had news for us. There would be a change of plans.

Instead of a single one million dollar grand prize winner, each finalist company would walk away with a chunk of money, and they would award two million dollar checks.

Samantha sat in a room just offstage with the other representatives from the finalist companies, each wearing noise-cancelling headphones and oblivious to the twist of events that was taking place onstage. The camera on the big screens cut to them, giving the audience a glimpse of the eight. If I’m not mistaken, all of them were on their phones.

In ones, twos, and threes, they were plucked from the room and whisked onto stage.

First, Manal Kahi from Eat Offbeat and Becca Keaty of Bunker Labs, each winners of $180,000. Next came Elizabeth Lindsey of Byte Back, who took home $360,000. As each round passed, those of us in the audience knew our odds of taking home a million increased. Then came the $500,000 round – three of them – Sebastian Jünemann of CADUS, Naveed Parvez from Andiamo, and Or Retzkin of EyeControl.

That was it. Samantha didn’t know it yet, but we’d just won a million dollars.

The final two – J. Kevin White of Global Vision 2020 and Samantha – faced the hosts on stage with expressions that vacillated between fear and confusion.

And then the reveal.

Almost before the words had escaped co-host Adi Neumann’s mouth, Samantha grabbed White’s arm with the realization they’d each be taking home a million. Confetti exploded from the ceiling, friends and family rushed the stage, and the audience went wild. We did, at least.

We said it last week – this entire experience with WeWork has been absolutely incredible, and taking home a grand prize was just the cherry on top. We’ve learned a lot since taking the Creator Awards stage in Austin last June, we’ve met a lot of amazing people along the way, and we continue to be inspired by our fellow finalists and semifinalists and the good you are doing around the globe with your work.

And of course, we are honored to have WeWork as a partner in fulfilling the dream we’ve had since 2012: to – in Samantha’s words – “make a toilet-sized 3D printer powered by trash.”

Postscript: We have a lot of people to thank.

First and foremost, thank you WeWork for making this incredible event happen. Your vision is inspiring and the lineup of companies in the Global Finals exemplified that. We will forever be grateful for this opportunity and experience.

Thank you to all the people and organizations who have supported us along the way and made our journey to last night’s stage possible: Kickstarter, Startup Chile, Unreasonable Institute, Bridge Community, Parallel18, Bunker Labs, Tom Chi, Pascal Finette, Wevolver, IEEE N3XT, and more.

Gracias a Sebastian Vidal, Executive Director of Parallel18, for speaking on-stage at the finals as our advocate, or testimonial. From Santiago Startup Chile days to Puerto Rico with Parallel18, you’ve been with us since the beginning.

Thank you to all our fellow Creator Award Global Finalists and Semi-Finalists. Eat Offbeat, Andiamo, Bunker Labs, Byte Back, CADUS, EyeControl, Global Vision 2020, Quaker City Coffee Company, Warmilu, Coral Vita, Chatterbox, and LeVar Burton Kids. You guys inspire us.

And lastly, thank YOU, our community! From our very first Kickstarter backers to those of you who have been following our story online, we couldn’t do it without your support.

We are so excited to update you on our plastic-trash-printing progress.

201801117-creator-awards-finalists-and-semifinalists

201801117-creator-awards-adi-neumann-justin-baldoni-j-kevin-white-samantha-snabes-win

Morgan Hamel

Blog Post Author

Pitching for a Circular Economy: What We’d Do With a Million Dollars From WeWork

It’s Wednesday January 17th, 2018, and we’re in New York City.

Tonight we’ll be on stage at arguably the most well-known arena in the world, Madison Square Garden.

Seven incredible companies are by our side. One million dollars is on the line.

These are the WeWork Creator Awards Global Finals.

What are the WeWork Creator Awards Global Finals?

If you don’t already recognize the WeWork name, it’s time to get aquainted.

WeWork is, as their website says, a global network of workspaces where companies and people grow together. But it’s more than just office space. They’re the self-proclaimed platform for creators, and they’re putting their money where their mouth on this statement with the Creator Awards.

The Awards were “designed to find those world-changing ideas, put them in the spotlight, and give them the resources to go further.” In their words, they’re rewarding entrepreneurs, artists, startups, and nonprofits who are thinking in new ways and creating real change, supporting innovative projects and the people behind them. They’re putting millions of dollars into allowing people to fulfill their own personal versions of the WeWork mantra: “Create Your Life’s Work.”

Over the past year, WeWork has been holding Creator Awards around the world – from Austin (that’s us!) to Tel Aviv. Thousands of applicants, hundreds of regional finalists, and millions of prize dollars later, it comes down to tonight: the Global Finals.

The Finalists

We’re in the company of people and organizations doing absolutely incredible work. The lineup is staggeringly inspiring.

There’s Becca Keaty, 20-year retired veteran of the Army National Guard representing Bunker Labs, a national non-profit empowering veterans and active duty service members with tools to start and grow their own businesses.

Elizabeth Lindsey from Byte Back, a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit improving economic opportunity for underserved metro area residents through computer training and career prep.

Manal Kahi and Wissam Kahi are the Lebanese sister-brother duo of Eat Offbeat, a company delivering home-style ethnic meals conceived and prepared by refugees resettled in NYC.

The CEO of Andiamo, Naveed Parvez, whose company in London is using data, biomechanics, and 3D printing to create affordable, custom, and fast medical braces and other devices.

Tel Aviv’s Or Retzkin, the CEO of EyeControl, creators of the first communication device that enables locked-in individuals like ALS patients to communicate using only eye movements, without the need for a screen.

Sebastian Jünemann of Berlin-based CADUS, a nonprofit humanitarian relief organization that has developed and implemented affordable mobile hospitals on the frontlines of crisis in Syria and Iraq.

And then there’s one wildcard, a mystery eighth finalist who will be chosen by popular vote from a group of six semifinalists.

Like we said, it’s quite the group.

One Million Dollars

One million dollars. That’s the grand prize the eight of us are competing for. Each organization has unbelievably compelling reasons for how they’d use the money – we can’t say we don’t feel for the judges.

We know you’re curious – what’s ours? We figured you’d ask.

There’s a few different things we’d do with the money, with the main being the development and release of a system to 3D print from plastic waste. Thanks to the Scale Award we won at the WeWork Austin Creator Awards, we’ve been able to prototype a pellet extruder to 3D print using plastic pellets, including pellets made from recycled plastic. Here’s a video about our progress on that project and what’s still to come.

But our ultimate goal is bigger than this.

In order to fulfill the dream of able to shred volumes of plastic trash that would be dried and fed automatically into a printer, there are some resources we need. Winning the $1 million would provide us the financial resources to not only refine our pellet printer prototype to accept ground-up plastic water bottles, but also to allow us to engineer a grinder, dryer, and feeder system to allow people to truly manufacture from waste onsite.

It’s been our mission from the start to create a standalone system that could serve as an on-site factory, allowing a user to 3D print directly from waste. No matter what happens tonight, WeWork has helped take us one big step closer to that dream. We’re so thankful for this experience, the incredible people we’ve met, and the lessons we’ve learned along the way.

Best of luck to all the finalists tonight, and thank you WeWork for the adventure!

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Morgan Hamel

Blog Post Author

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About The 3D Printing Fast Furniture Challenge:

3D Printing Fast Furniture Challenge

Goal

Requirements

Contest Timeline

Awards

What To Take Into Consideration

Next Steps

A Silver Lining in the Eye of a Hurricane

A Million Bucks

No Such Thing as Overnight Success

Photos by Wework

What are the WeWork Creator Awards Global Finals?

The Finalists

One Million Dollars