The 3D ThinkLink students chosen to attend Advanced Training in our Northern Virginia lab gain valuable experience they can’t get in their classrooms at Youth ChalleNGe academies.
Last month’s sessions were more focused than ever before on preparing our students to compete for jobs that require 3D design and printing skills. They worked with professional-level equipment and learned about digital fabrication processes that go far beyond the simple, plastic-extrusion 3D printing they did on campus.
Cadets Hassan Lancaster and Jesse Henriquez from the District of Columbia’s Capital Guardian Youth ChalleNGe Academy, and Cian Moody and Christian White from Maryland Freestate ChalleNGe Academy, enjoyed four days of intensive learning in the lab with YouthQuest Director of Instruction Tom Meeks.
We prepared for the week by studying current job postings to make sure every activity we planned was relevant to what’s happening now in the fast-growing and ever-changing world of advanced manufacturing.
One highlight of the week came courtesy of our 2019 Community Partner Award winner, Fairfax County Public Schools, which donated two used Z Corp 310 powder/binder 3D printers to our lab. We’ve had one of them running since summer, but the other hadn’t been in operation for years. The cadets eagerly took it apart, cleaned and serviced it and did some troubleshooting. By the end of their first day in the lab, they had brought the old 310 back to life.
We were also pleased that YouthQuest volunteer Kanean Cruz was able to join us one morning to show the students how a desktop CNC machine works.
CNC (Computer Numerical Control) machining is an example of traditional subtractive manufacturing. A cutting tool spinning at high speed carves an object out of a block of material. In additive manufacturing (3D printing), a moving print head deposits material in patterns, layer by layer, to form an object without any waste.
In watching both processes side by side, our students learned that CNC and 3D printing are really two sides of the same coin. In both cases, the tool’s movement is guided by digital instructions called G-codes. The same design files our students create for 3D printing with Moment of Inspiration CAD (Computer Aided Design) software can be used to make objects with a CNC machine. Rapid prototyping shops and other digital fabrication businesses use a combination of additive and subtractive methods, so the CAD skills our students learn are doubly valuable to those employers.
Tom and the students got to try out a new Matter and Form 3D scanner that arrived just in time for Lab Week. Scanning is an alternative to CAD for creating virtual objects to be printed.
The students also got a taste of 3D printing with ceramics, something few people in the field have tried. Thanks to our Advanced Training, they can say they’re familiar with two methods of printing ceramics – powder and liquid resin – as well as using microscopes to examine the ceramic powder and a kiln to fire the printed pieces.
After four days of hard work, the cadets had an impressive list of experiences to add their resumés.
3D Printer Operation, Maintenance and Troubleshooting
– Operated SLA resin printer
– Repaired FDM (plastic filament) printers
– Repaired and serviced Z Corp 310 and 450 powder/binder printers
– Designed parts and printed them on Z450 full-color powder/binder printer
– Handled gypsum and ceramic powders
Post-Processing 3D Printed Parts
– Curing, support removal, sanding of SLA printed parts
– Depowdering and coating of powder/binder printed parts
Kiln Operation
– Performed ramp and hold firings of 3D-printed ceramic parts
Microscope Camera and Software
– Used focus stacks for ceramic powder particle distribution tests
CNC Machining
– Operated Carbide Nomad desktop CNC machine
Software
– Experience with Moment of Inspiration (CAD) and Cura slicing software
While all four cadets are interested in engineering, each has his own unique career path in mind. We wrapped up the week with a resumé review session, taking time to go over each student’s situation and tailor a plan for their next steps – community college, trade school, employment, military service or a combination of those.
The cadets reviewed listings of jobs for which they’re already qualified and practiced answering job interview questions in ways that will impress hiring managers.
These young men have compelling stories to tell prospective employers about overcoming mistakes and turning their lives around.
Now, as they graduate from the ChalleNGe program and open new chapters, they will continue striving to achieve their career goals with the failure-is-not-final attitude we have instilled in them throughout their 3D ThinkLink experience.
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Dylan Foster, who plans to be an artist, took full advantage of the new tools in our Lab. With a three-color printer available for the first time, he designed several red, white and blue creations, including a beautifully detailed chess piece. For his robot project, he made a battery holder that’s simpler and works better than the one our Director of Instruction, Tom Meeks, had devised. Our classes also taught him to stay focused on his goals. “I used to give up a whole lot easier,” he said. The South Carolina Youth ChalleNGe Academy graduate, who had never been so far from home before, said he “met a lot of good people” and gained valuable skills during the week in the 3D ThinkLink Lab. “It’s worth the time you put into it,” Dylan said. “You can learn a lot and do a lot.”
“Frustration was a big problem for me,” Kamie Moody admitted. Our 3D ThinkLink classes became her “outlet” from the daily pressures at Freestate ChalleNGe Academy. “Every Monday, when I had 3D, I was excited,” she recalled. Kamie appreciated the chance to learn about CAD (Computer-Aided Design) software because it will help her pursue a career in architecture. Experimenting with Moment of Inspiration’s new features brought out her creative talent. On a small scale, her designs look like jewelry, but on a large scale, they could be futuristic buildings. “The 3D ThinkLink program basically solidified what I already knew; that designing is something that I really want to do,” she said.
Our training might turn out to be a life-changing experience for Caleb Dujmovic. He was one of the top students in his 3D ThinkLink class at Freestate ChalleNGe Academy, where he said he enjoyed learning to make things for his family and friends. His favorite lab project was making a cellphone stand because it incorporated everything he’d learned during the week about Moment of Inspiration’s new features. Caleb applies the problem-solving skills we’ve taught him to his current job in the construction business, but he’s set his sights on a bio-engineering career. It’s something he’d never considered until he visited the 
Nicknamed “Highspeed” by the staff at Capital Guardian ChalleNGe Academy because he was often ahead of his classmates, Christopher Coleman was first exposed to 3D design software in 8th grade. Later, he “really got hooked on 3D” in the Hirshhorn Museum’s ARTLAB+ program. Our 3D ThinkLink classes taught him how to use new design tools and printers he’d never tried before. The self-described “loner” says he also learned to ask for help and work with others. “This program particularly helped me with a lot of my faults – things that I’ve got to improve,” Christopher said. “I learned to be more humble … There’s people that know stuff that I don’t know, and they don’t know things that I know.”
At first, Sherquana Adams didn’t want to sign up for our class at South Carolina Youth ChalleNGe Academy because she thought 3D printing was “for geeks.” But the more she learned about the many ways this technology is being used, the more interested she became. Sherquana, who aspires to be a surgical technician, was amazed by the medical applications for 3D printing. She thought it was “really cool” to put together 3D-printed pieces to make a kid-size prosthetic hand during Lab Week. “I now have a way to express myself,” she said. In just a few months, her opinion of 3D printing has shifted 180 degrees: “This is not for geeks, this is for anybody!”
