Vibrant Hawai‘i Donates 3D Printers

Vibrant Hawaiʻi is donating 28 Prusa 3D printers to educational facilities and nonprofit companies across Hawaiʻi Island as a result of its Resilience Hub initiative which mobilized in September of 2020 by means of a County of Hawaiʻi CARES grant, and continued as a result of July 2021 by donations made by Kohala Coastline residents.

3D printing was released to Resilience Hub sites and local community partners to support the generation of and obtain to individual protecting equipment (PPE) at a time when demand from customers was large and provides from companies was low. Massive Island Face Protect, the grassroots group who partnered with Vivid Hawaiʻi, was fashioned by Hawaiʻi Island volunteers, quite a few of whom have an experience in engineering.

“The Massive Island Face Defend team shaped in spring of 2020 as a volunteer team of 3D printing hobbyists and fans,” claimed Kean Wong, Application Director of Big Island Facial area Shield. “During the world PPE scarcity in early 2020 we 3D-printed countless numbers of face shields and confront mask clips and dispersed them to healthcare services, business enterprise, educational institutions and folks all throughout the island. Viewing the will need for engaging instructional programming for keiki across the island, we pivoted and ended up excited to husband or wife with Vivid Hawai’i in the Hubs 1. and 2. packages, as properly as with many summertime camp plans in 2021, to supply resourceful academic encounters throughout the island. It has been wonderful to practical experience enthusiastic and engaged keiki, and for corporations and communities to see 3D printers as approaches to engage persons with design and style and creative imagination employing this thrilling engineering.  We appear ahead to seeing how these great colleges and nonprofit organizations make use of the 3D printers to encourage innovation and neighborhood resilience.” 

Hubs 2., which ran from February – July 2021, was constructed upon the demonstration of community associates to proficiently and proficiently reply to important demands to assist restoration and resilience. Growing beyond food distribution and furnishing immediate help to keiki’s length learning, Hubs 2. explored means in which community members could lead in offering pathways for economic restoration, like foods resilience initiatives and checking out tech innovation by using 3D printing.

“Tech literacy and practical experience across the island differs, so 3D printers introduced an possibility to increase the expense in products and further commit in our individuals,” stated Ashley Kierkiewicz, Resilience Hubs Co-Chair. “The pandemic introduced to bear how integral technological know-how is to our lives. By producing 3D printers a lot more available and giving education via Resilience Hubs, we uncovered young children and family members to technological know-how that fostered layout-thinking, and possible sparked an fascination in pursuing a vocation in tech, which is shaping up to be a major sector in the islands. Major Island Facial area Shields was a phenomenal spouse in supporting communities actualize ideas into tangible solutions.”

At the Miloliʻi Hub, 3D printers were powered by a generator due to the fact there is no wired electrical power in the setting up. This caught the fascination of other education and learning groups who realized that the deficiency of electric power was not a hindering variable to offer tech schooling in rural places, as formerly considered. 

“We proved that just about anything is achievable in this article in Miloli’i and there’s other teachers who are thinking about providing methods and systems due to the fact we did it in a hālau with two 3D printers and a generator. For the keiki, the 3D printers also enlightened them to endless prospects. They received techniques concerned in applying the printers, but far more importantly they received the self confidence to be engineers who know this spot and their spot in the ‘āina,” mentioned 3D Printing Mentor Kendra Killkuskie. 

By the near of Hubs 2., Major Island Face Shields had delivered 235 3D printing workshops and enrichment activities centered on rising vital wondering capabilities, entrepreneurship expertise, design and style thinking and STEM capabilities. The 10 3D printing coaches achieved 3,333 keiki and their people all over Hawai‘i Island.

“Many communities have not experienced the probability to interact with sophisticated technological know-how so offering this plan was extraordinary, “ mentioned Wong. “We are self-confident that in 10-20 decades some of these keiki will head down a STEM path. We have challenged them to think about broader options than the types they to begin with understood existed.”

Vibrant Hawaiʻi’s islandwide 3D printer donation to faculties and community spots will continue on to assistance obtain to resources and technological innovation that advance innovation and localized remedies to build resilience.

“This task actually types neighborhood empowerment. By making potential and self esteem in rural parts of our island by means of education and mentorship, local community individuals can acquire the lead in creating options that will get the job done for them,” reported Janice Ikeda, Executive Director, Lively Hawaiʻi. “I am amazingly grateful to Kean Wong, Caroline Landry, Ava Williams and their staff that brought 3D printing technological innovation and capabilities to each and every district of our island. They initiated the dialogue about completely positioning printers in the fingers of the community, and we wholeheartedly assist this.”

3D Printer Donation Distribution

• Hāmākua: Hāmākua Youth Foundation (2), Paʻauilo Elementary and Center Faculty (2) 
• Hilo: East Hawaiʻi Cultural Heart (2), Haili Christian Faculty (1), Hawaiʻi Science and Technologies Museum (2) 
• Puna: HAAS/ASC (2), Volcano College of Arts and Sciences (2) Kaʻū: Kaʻū High and Pāhala Elementary Faculty (4) 
• Kona: Miloliʻi/Kalanihale (2), Holualoa Elementary (2), Kahakai Elementary (1), Laʻiopua Local community Center (2), Kealakehe Intermediate University (1) 
• Kohala: Kohala Large College (2) 
• Waimea: Waimea Middle School (1)