Christmas has been and gone, Big Ben has rung in the New
Year - it must be almost time for the BETT Show in London, writes Box 3D printing guru Jack Dempsey.
Now that the mince pies are all gone and the tinsel is down,
I'm getting excited about the first industry show of the year in the education
technology landscape.
Bringing together 800+ leading companies, 103 exciting new
edtech start-ups and over 34,000 attendees from the global education community,
this is THE show to discuss the future of education.
What's that got to do with me, a product manager at Box?
Well, the education sector has proved to be a very successful market for us
when it comes to 3D printers.
Progressive teachers are looking for ways to spark interest
in science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics subjects.
Children of the 90s will remember the excitement when the
teacher wheeled out the enormous TV and VCR. Imagine the classroom atmosphere
as a 3D printer appears from the store cupboard. What better way to the capture
the imagination of today's tech-savvy teens?
The great thing about 3D printing is that it incorporates so
many subjects and skills. First, there is the assembly of the printer itself,
which really gives the pupils and insight into how 3D printing works.
Then the youngsters can be encouraged to come up with the
idea of a new product, before creating the product in CAD design.
The product then can be printed, which is an exciting
process in itself, and tested to see how it might be amended and improved
before being taken to market.
It's a brilliant example of real-life product development
from paper and pen to a tangible object. It teaches them to think with freedom
and work through problems.
It is widely accepted that Britain has a huge skills gap in
many aspects of engineering - and it's deepening. We need to inspire children
to think about going into these jobs when they get older, and I believe 3D
printing could act as the perfect door-opener.
At Box we have a special section on our website
with examples of the best 3D printers for education. Check it out: https://www.box.co.uk/products/area/bestfored