From the archive: A briefcase used to show capabilities of digital fabrication in client meetings, 1994.
A 3D printing archive made up of fabricated artefacts, digital files and reading material has been acquired by Pennsylvania State University.
Penn State and Ennex Corporation, the company which originally compiled the archive, struck the deal in 2018 with the university now publishing its finding aid for use by students, faculty, researchers and the general public.
The Ennex 3D Printing Archive includes around 90 3D printing objects, including a human skull and two gar trees, fabricated as far as back as 1991 by 20 organisations across four countries with the earliest 3D printers on the market; more than 300 books and periodicals amounting to 23,000 pages, including all the books and conference proceedings published on the technology during the 1990s; business plans, speaking videos, patents, brochures and a proposal to Mattel; and more than 12,000 digital files, including business and financial records, engineering designs, photographs, correspondence and websites.
Penn State, one of at least nine institutions interested in taking the Ennex Archive, including Science Museum of London, MIT Museum, the Smithsonian Institute and the 3DP Museum, adds the collection to its already-extensive focus on 3D printing technology. The university has more than 100 3D printing systems on campus, from desktop extrusion machines worth hundreds of dollars to metal additive manufacturing platforms worth more than a million, and eight classes focusing on processes, design, materials and more.
“This is an exciting collection that fits the mission of our new 3D printing lab. Our faculty are excited that a collection like this exists,” commented Athena Jackson, Head of Special Collections for Penn State at the time of the acquisition. “It answers the ‘why’ question, helping to explain where the technology comes from.”
The new Head of Special Collections, Jennifer Meehan, said: “The Ennex Corporation records represent an important resource for studying the history of printing and technology. This collection significantly adds to the Penn State libraries’ growing collections in the area of science and technology, and offers exciting opportunities for engaging students and researchers through classes, exhibits and events, both physical and virtual.”
“What is interesting here is that it provides, literally, solid evidence of where things stood in the 1990s,” added Marshall Burns, founder of Ennex. “The artefacts show what people were making; the conference proceeding show in great detail what ideas people were working on to improve the technology and what results they were getting; the client reports and our Board of Customers videos provide a unique glimpse into the heretofore secret business meetings of the time.”
The archive has been organised into 18 boxes of physical materials occupying 18 linear feet in Penn State’s Special Collections facility, as well as a hard drive containing 1.4 terabytes of digital files. Access to inspect the materials in person may be requested using the inventory form in the finding aid.
Excerpt of interview of Ennex founder Marshall Burns from the 1998 television programme, "Today's Physicists," produced by the American Institute of Physics in September 1995.
