Mike Vasquez will be giving a talk “The Printed Athlete – How 3D Printing is Changing the Face of Sports.” It is free and open to the public.
Over the past two decades 3D printing has radically shifted the way that many industries design new products. The medical field uses the process for creating bespoke hearing aids and aerospace companies use it to design more efficient aircraft. However, one of the sectors that is on the leading edge of this revolution is sports. All the major sporting goods brands have started to adopt the technology. From 3D printed high end parts for F1 race cars to multi-colored 3D printed footwear prototypes at Nike; the opportunities offered by the new manufacturing process has the chance to transform how athletes and customers interact with the games they love. This talk focuses on how 3D printing technology already has and will continue to revolutionize sports using examples from Mike’s time at Burton Snowboards and Loughborough University’s Sports Technology Institute. Additionally topics such as the future of the technology and growing areas of innovation including mass customization and protective equipment will be discussed.
About Mike Vasquez
Mike recently finished his PhD at the Sports Technology Institute at Loughborough University in England. The institute is the world’s largest research facility completely dedicated to solving technical engineering problems in sport. As part of his work he helped Burton Snowboards design new materials that could be used to 3D print snowboard binding components. Originally from Minnesota, Mike made his way out to Boston to attend MIT. While there he was able to combine his passion for sports and engineering by working at the MIT Sports Innovation Center. He earned a BS (’08) and M.Eng (’09) in Materials Science and Engineering. He was a captain of the MIT baseball team and continues to stay active by playing baseball, snowboarding, and distance running. He finished his sixth marathon last fall. He is the co-founder of the Sports Technology Podcast and has worked with Burton Snowboards, New Balance, Rawlings, Easton Sports, Wimbledon, 3M, and Progressive Sports Technologies.
About Automated Manufacturing Night
Automated Manufacturing Night is a monthly event where a speaker will discuss a topic related to Automated Manufacturing on the third Thursday each month. It is affiliated with the CNC Build Club (http://www.meetup.com/CNC-Build-Club/), a group where folks work on automated manufacturing machines at Pumping Station: One. It is also open to the public.
Pumping Station: One is a Chicago hackerspace located at 3519 N Elston, Chicago IL 60618.
