3D Printing Workshop for the National Heritage Board: Peranakan-Inspired 3D Printing
National Heritage Board staff designed their own Peranakan fidget clicker.
Over this National Heritage Board 3D printing workshop in Singapore, participants got an introduction to 3D printing, a close look at how a printer works, the techniques and best practices behind a good print, and designed their own Peranakan tile.
Introduction to 3D printing
Participants explored additive 3D printing and the full process from designing a model to printing it.
3D printing best practices: designing with 3D printing in mind
Participants explored the most common challenges and how makers solve them.
- Overhangs: parts that stick out sideways with nothing underneath tend to droop as the plastic cools.
- Bridges: spans between two points can be printed across a gap, but only up to a point before they sag.
- Supports: temporary scaffolding printed under tricky areas, then snapped or peeled away once the print is done.
3D printing settings for the best output
Getting the balance between walls and infill right is one of the most useful skills in 3D printing. More infill means a stronger, heavier part that takes longer to print. Less means a lighter part that prints faster. Good prints come from choosing the right balance for what the object needs to do.
How we customised the National Heritage Board 3D printing workshop
A good keepsake should mean something to the people who make it. With heritage at the heart of NHB's work, The Young Maker designed a Peranakan-inspired tile pattern for the session, sized at 35mm square to sit on top of a pocket-sized clicker.
Each participant assembled their own clicker from its 3D printed parts and created their own design by colouring the tile.
What participants took away
- A clear picture of how additive manufacturing differs from traditional ways of making things.
- A working knowledge of a 3D printer's main components and what each one does.
- An understanding of walls, infill and layer-by-layer printing, and how they shape strength and print time.
- Best practices for overhangs, bridges and supports when designing for print.
- A Peranakan tile clicker they coloured and built themselves.
Bringing 3D printing to your team
The Young Maker runs 3D printing and 3D modelling sessions for organisations across Singapore, from team building activities to staff learning days, and each corporate 3D printing workshop can be customised around a theme that matters to the group. You can also see what participants can make at The Young Maker 3D Printing Lab.
Frequently asked questions
What do participants learn in a 3D printing workshop?
Participants learn what 3D printing is and how additive manufacturing differs from subtractive methods, the main parts of a 3D printer, how a print is built from walls and infill layer by layer, and best practices for overhangs, bridges and supports. At the National Heritage Board workshop, they also coloured and assembled a 3D printed clicker to take home.
How was the National Heritage Board 3D printing workshop customised?
The Young Maker designed a Peranakan-inspired tile to reflect NHB's heritage work. Each participant coloured the tile by hand, chose one of three base colours and assembled it into a 3D printed fidget clicker keychain.
Do participants need any 3D printing experience?
No experience is needed.
Curious what your team could make?
Share your theme and group with us, and we will shape a hands-on 3D printing session around it.
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