How a Telford designer built his own machine and now runs a 3D printing and design business

Following advances in technology, it can now be used to make almost anything and sees the material laid down, layer by layer, to form the chosen item.

Oliver Landau-Williams was so fascinated by the process that he built his own machine and now runs his own 3D printing and design business.

"I can sit in front of a computer and design things and then, with a click of a button, I can turn that visual representation into a real object that I can have in my hands within just a few hours," he tells Weekend.

He utilities the technology for a variety of different projects, from producing mobility aids and food molds to crafting half-tonne cast iron and oak sculptures.

"I got into it by chance," he tells Weekend. "I went to university to study computer games design and graduated in 2008.

"There were no real jobs on the horizon at that time because there had been a recession and a lull in the industry.

"I decided to a masters in multimedia and I went to Copenhagen to do some work experience. I was working in start-up lab where there were 20 to 30 small organisations in the same building.

"One of the organisations in the building had a 3D printer and I found it fascinating. I came back to the UK and bought all of the components and built my own from scratch.

"It was something that caught my eye and excited me - and the bug took hold," explains Oliver, who is based in Telford.

He set up in business Printotype eight years ago offering CAD and 3D design as well as 3D printing and rapid prototyping services and has worked within a variety of fields across the UK and overseas.

There are several types of 3D printing that use a variety of materials including plastic, powders, resin, metal and carbon fibre.

"I mostly work with plastic but I have also worked with some other interesting materials. I made some cricket balls from a plastic and wood shavings mix. They smelt like wood and looked like wood.

"I've also used ceramic powders, metals like brass and cooper, which can be used to make jewellery, and rubbers," explains Oliver.

Explaining the printing process, he says: "It's almost like a cake piping bag and you're squeezing out the icing. You keep putting on layers to build up the structure until you get to the top."

Since setting up his business, Oliver has worked with many different businesses including a meat pie producer, a horse dental specialist and an off-road wheelchair specialist.

One of his favourite recent projects saw him in play a part in creating cast iron sculptures for the North York Moors National Park.

"Sited up on the moors alongside the old structure of the iron kilns, it shows how it would have looked in its heyday, and has beautiful weathered colouring that blends into the environment perfectly.

"The excellent woodworking on this project was provided by another local firm, Netley Joinery, who were excellent partners on this project - I look forward to more exciting projects like this," he tells Weekend.

3D printing has lots of advantages for businesses and is ideal for producing small quantities of parts. With a 3D prototype, businesses can see how a concept fares in reality when performing its intended task, and then any necessary modifications can be made rapidly until the design is perfected.

"You can produce real-world prototypes without spending money on tooling and machining. Nearly any component, part, or invention can be converted into a real world product in hours or days," says Oliver.

Oliver was delighted when his business, Printotype, was named "3D Design Specialist Of The Year" at the 2022 Innovation & Excellence Awards, which celebrate the success and achievements of businesses that have taken an innovative approach.

"It was nice to be recognised for the efforts I put into this job," he says.

"It's been quite a challenge working through the past few years, especially with Covid impacting on a lot of businesses ability to develop and improve new and existing products, but Printotype has been able to endure through this and succeed with some really exciting projects and helped out numerous businesses, both locally and nationally.

"Being able to bring innovation and new technology into the region and to businesses big and small is incredibly satisfying, and very beneficial to our clients," he added.