Shapeways will be holding a metal 3D printing contest from today until the 15th of January. The winning entry will win his(or her) own model printed out in Titanium.

To start off: Wow! Can we really 3D print metal just like we do with White Strong and Flexible now? Well, yes and no. 3D printing in metal (or direct metal printing) is not as accessible a technology as the regular 3D printing technologies that we use at Shapeways at the moment. The material that is used is also more expensive, because it is a Titanium alloy. The machines and the process itself are much more expensive also. Just how expensive? To give you an indication: we estimate that the contest winners prize(which can be 10 cubic centimeters)will cost us around $1000 to $2000 depending on its size! To top it all off there are design rules that you will have to follow when designing for 3D metal printing. Check out the half scale Light Poem in Titanium to the right. 

We are not offering metal as a material right now; however this is a unique opportunity: your unique object 3D printed in titanium. As far as we know you will be amongst the first people ever to be able to have your own personal design made and then 3D printed in titanium. There are some companies out there using the technology, but even their usage is rather limited and direct access to these machines? Unheard of!

If you're interested in entering in the contest or want to know more about Direct Metal Laser Sintering(aka Metal Laser Sintering or Metal 3D printing) you can go to our special contest page here.

As you've probably heard by now this contest will not be a walk in the park. It is by far our most challenging contest so far but then again it is not every day you get to win something that no one has ever won before. Good luck!