By Lisa Capobianco Staff Writer From hair combs to iPhone cases to bracelets, members of Southington Public Library have a variety of items to create with the help of the new three-dimensional printer, which uses corn-starched-based plastic filament to mold objects. “It is cool because it is environmentally-friendly,” said Sue Smayda, the executive director of Southington Public Library. Due to a portion of a $5,841 grant from the Community Foundation of Greater New Britain, the library purchased a Makerbot Replicator II printer, which can create more than multiple objects at the same time. “This is a perfect combination of science, technology, engineering, art and math,” Smayda said. Once the printer starts creating the object with one layer, it gradually adds more layers until it has completed the project. The bigger the object, the more layers it requires, according to Smayda. The menu bar in front of the printer keeps track of the progress, indicating the percentage of the project’s completion. Users can make one object in multiple pieces and then glue them together, such as the glass that Smayda made. The amount of time it takes to create each object ranges from 12 minutes to an hour. “It is cutting-edge [...]
By Lisa Capobianco Staff Writer From hair combs to iPhone cases to bracelets, members of Southington Public Library have a variety of items to create with the help of the new three-dimensional printer, which uses corn-starched-based plastic filament to mold objects. “It is cool because it is environmentally-friendly,” said Sue Smayda, the executive director of Southington Public Library. Due to a portion of a $5,841 grant from the Community Foundation of Greater New Britain, the library purchased a Makerbot Replicator II printer, which can create more than multiple objects at the same time. “This is a perfect combination of science, technology, engineering, art and math,” Smayda said. Once the printer starts creating the object with one layer, it gradually adds more layers until it has completed the project. The bigger the object, the more layers it requires, according to Smayda. The menu bar in front of the printer keeps track of the progress, indicating the percentage of the project’s completion. Users can make one object in multiple pieces and then glue them together, such as the glass that Smayda made. The amount of time it takes to create each object ranges from 12 minutes to an hour. “It is cutting-edge [...]