A 3-D Printer Is Blasting Off to the International Space Station

By BA McKenna - June 6, 2013 | Tickers: DDD, SSYS, XONE | 0 Comments

BA is a member of The Motley Fool Blog Network -- entries represent the personal opinion of the blogger and are not formally edited.

If you already think 3-D printing sounds like an out-of-this-world technology, you'll beliterallyright in October 2014. That's when spacecraft companySpaceX with a 3-D printer in tow -- launches on a cargo mission to the International Space Station for NASA.

Earlier this year, Made in Space,a California-based private company, was awarded a Phase 3 Small Business Innovation Research contract with NASA's Marshall Flight Center to provide a 3-D printer for the 2014 mission. The project is the "3D Printing in Zero G Experiment," according to a Space.comarticle.

Why should investors care? Primarily, because the fact that NASA is hot for 3-D printing is a huge positive for the industry. Additionally, three public companies are partners with Made in Space: 3D Systems(NYSE: DDD),Stratasys(NASDAQ: SSYS), andAutodesk. And there's always the possibility of an IPO or buyout down the road...or up the stratosphere.

3D Printing in Zero G Experiment

The goal of this mission is to demonstrate the feasibility of using 3-D printing technology to produce spare parts and tools in zero gravity.

Made in Space will use its findings to develop a 3-D printing production lab -- the Additive Manufacturing Facility -- for NASA. The equipment for this facility is expected to be launched to the ISS in 2016.

Use of 3-D printers at the ISS is just the start. The ultimate goals are to use this technology on space missions and when humans colonize other planets, such as Mars, which some including SpaceX founder and Chairman Elon Musk -- believe will be within 20 years.

This fact illustrates the potential for 3-D printing to make life in space easier and less costly: "More than 30% of the spare parts currently aboard the International Space Station can be manufactured by Made in Space's machine," the Space.com article quotes company co-founder Jason Dunn as saying.

The rest is here:
A 3-D Printer Is Blasting Off to the International Space Station