The 3D printer is a favorite tool among product designers. With a 3D printer often placed in the same room as the designer, rapid feedback and faster design cycles make it a staple in large companies. But corporations are not the only ones making use of this increasingly popular technology. Individuals are also increasingly using 3D printing for work and play.

Where does the attraction to 3D printing come from? Speed and automation of manufacturing, accessibility to the masses, and increased complexity of designs are some of the reasons.

The hardest part of the 3D printing process is making a 3D printable model. 3D printers automate the build process once a 3D model is complete. It's easy to buy a printer, but it's much more difficult to make or find good quality models.

Why should you learn how to design for 3D printing? Good designers charge $50 per hour and up, with complex designs taking dozens or hundreds of hours, so learning how to model can save you lots of cash if you're developing a model to print. Alternatively, 3D modeling is a skill you can contract out to produce models for others.

When designing for 3D printing, it is essential that you understand how the process works so that your designs actually work in the printer. Although 3D printers can make very complex models, those models must meet a specific criteria to be printable.

In this chapter, we'll discover what 3D printing is, how it works, who uses the technology, when it makes sense to use 3D printing, and why SketchUp is a good tool for the job.