7. Large Format 3D Printing
Happy Returns Studio is able to produce FDM 3D prints at a range of large format sizes. Our standard FDM machine is able to fabricate volumes 23.5 x 23.5 x 23.5 inches (600mmx600mmX600mm) in a variety of plastic filament types and colors.
Our Robotic arm is also capable of large format printing with a range of plastics (PLA, PETG, PP).
This example shows a life size print of a terra cotta panel by esteemed Chicago architect Louis Sullivan. Originally it was a decorative piece from the Reuben Rubel House in Chicago built in 1884 and demolished in 1954. The terra cotta panel was 3D scanned by studio Co-Director Tom Burtonwood from the collection of City of Chicago Historian, Tim Samuelson. In 2016 Burtonwood and Samuelson collaborated on a 3D printed book called “Twenty Something Sullivan” that featured nine 3D printed pages of decorative ornament by Louis Sullivan produced before the architect turned thirty years of age.
The book is available to download and 3D print from Thingiverse. It and the 3D scans were placed into the public domain. 3D printed copies of the book by Burtonwood are available at the Harold Washington Library in Chicago, the Joan Flasch Artist Book Collection at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and Penn State.