enforcement traditionally has been able to look at the outside of the envelope. the supreme court decided that the fact of your phone call, who you called, when, for how long, also was essentially the outside of the envelope. >> watch book tv all weekend, every weekend on c-span2. television for serious readers. representatives from u.p.s. and general electric were joined by other manufacturing lead others capitol hill today to talk about 3d printing. leading the hearing was the chairman of the house subcommittee on commerce, manufacturing, and trade, representative michael burgess. this is two hours and 45 minutes. >> i'll recognize myself for five minutes for the purpose of

an opening statement. today we're continuing our disrupter series and focusing today ons>1o additive manufactu, also what is known as 3d printing. addivetive manufacturing has disrupted the industries it has impacted, not just by challenging incumbents but also by lowering costs and increasing efficiency. harnessed properly this is another example of how innovation is creating jobs and opportunity and helping set the stage for revival of manufacturing in the united states. additive manufacturing has been around since the 1980s with the patent forester i don't lith grief issued to charles hull, the founder of one of the companies test fooig fying today, 3d systems. about 30 years later surveys show about two-thirds of industrial manufacturers say they are implementing additive manufacturing either by experimenting or using it to create prototypes of finished products. and the 3d printing industry is

expected to grow from about the 6 billion it is today to over $20 billion in a year five years' time. 3d printing has already woven its way into our manufactured products in subtle ways. for example, some of the commercial airliners we all fly will soon use 3d printed parts in their engines and ge will testify about that today. many of the cars on the road have had their development sped up dramatically thanks to 3d printed prototypes. additive manufacturing has plugged itself into a growing proportion of the manufacturing supply chain because the designs are flexible and they are a naturally better solution for certain tasks. 3d printing is also making a splash in less subtle ways. people around the globe are benefitting from prosthetic limbs which were otherwise unaffordable. surgeons can create accurate surgical guides which reduce errors and as a result will save lives.

scientists have begun experimentally printing human cell structures using a person's dna, result in a logical use of life's own building blocks but certainly potentially revolutionary for patient. in my district 3d printing is enabling businesses to get the job done more efficiently. i have a constituent back home, his name is adrian murray, he runs a hot rod modification shop called painless performance. he provides customers with custom wiring harnesses for their classic cars. these parts are no longer manufactured on an assembly line but using a 3d printing prototype offered by specialty equipment manufacturers association, painless performance is able to speed up the development process. i think we're going to show a video clip of that if the technology doesn't fail us and i'll continue talking while that runs. as the subcommittee with jurisdiction over vehicle safety, we are especially interested in ways that vehicle

suppliers and manufacturers are using polymers and plastics to enhance safety. can we turn the sound down? mostly it's the visual we want. carbon fiber reinforced plastics have 12 times the energy absorption capabilities while adding half the weight of some comparable metal parts. additive manufacturing is helping automakers and part sats pliers integrate these innovative materials into cars which is making us safer and improving fuel efficiency. as 3d printers become more affordable the universe of people able to print 3d print objects on their own expands. one of the things in research for this hearing, my staff found an article for me, it's actually from australia that talks about ralph mopes, a neurosurgeon from prince of wales hospital in sydney. in resecting a tumor in a patient he had to replace the top two vertebrae. pretty difficult operation. and obviously without proper type of prosthetic it would have

been impossible. so the surgeon worked with an australian medical vice manufacturer to craft replicas of the patient's top two vertebrae out of titanium. i want to read you a quote from the surgeon. and he's from australia so he talks funny i'm sure. to be able to get the precipitated implant that you know will fit perfectly because you've already done the operation on a model, it was a pure delight. it was as if someone had switched on a light and said, crikey, if this isn't the future, well, i don't know what is. so dr. mopes, i agree with you, if this isn't the future, i don't know what is. i now turn to miss clark from new york, ranking member of the subcommittee, for opening statement. >> good morning, chairman burgess and members of this morning's panel. mr. chairman, thank you for holding this hearing on the 3d printing. for many of us, when we think of 3d printing, we think of plastic

toys, key chains, other trinkets. but 3d printing is about more than just the novelty of printing in plastic. this technology has many applications that we're only starting to explore. 3d printers enable small-scale personalized production that gives consumers more choice and convenience. consumers can order affordable custom printed items from cell phone cases to shoes and prescription eye wear. 3d printers help product designers by allowing them to print prototypes more easily. manufacturers can print replacement parts on demand. prosthetics can be customized to make people who have lost a limb more comfortable. and recently a 3d printed vertebrae as our chairman has indicated was implanted into a child with bone cancer. while today we are mostly printing in plastic and metal, 3d bio printing opens a whole new world of possibilities in

the medical field. doctors may one day be able to grow needed organs for transplants or skin for prosthetic limbs or skin grafts. the future potential of this technology is one more reason why we need to increase our federal investments in research and innovation. but as we think about the tremendous potential of 3d printing we also need to consider possible risks and challenges. here are some of the questions on my mind. how should we protect consumers when the consumer doesn't buy the product, but rather the blueprint to make a product? how does 3d printing work with our existing laws on intellectual property? and what should people be able to make with 3d printers? i'm especially concerned about 3d printed weapons. think about this. if someone has access to a 3d printer, all they need is the right blueprint. when the gun buyer is now the gun manufacturer, who does the background check? who's responsible for keeping

weapons out of the wrong hands? this isn't theoretical. the first 3d printed gun was made three years ago. an all-plastic gun would be a violation of the undetectable firearms act. but a law banning the manufacture of nonmetal guns only goes far when a plastic firearm can be made as home. we may not be far from seeing metal guns being printed at home. those who design blueprints for 3d printing and provide 3d printing capability must take responsibility to ensure that their businesses -- their business does not endanger other lives. we in congress need to make sure that our laws are up to date with today's technology. i look forward to hearing from our witnesses on the potential for 3d printing as well as your pore suspecttives on how we deal with some of these challenges. having said that, mr. chairman,

i yield back. >> chair thanks the gentle lady. gentle lady yields back. chair would inquire mr. pillone. >> 3d printers and the products they produce have the potential to transform and improve our lives. it's remarkable to think about what is already boss nibble this space, not to mention of the possibilities for the future. today 3d printers are driving innovation in american factories, schools, hospitals, homes. all around the country health researchers are using 3d printers to develop new approaches to tissue transplant and regeneration. the level of customization permitted by 3d printing can allow prosthetics, hearing aids, and dental liners to be made more confirmly, effective, and affordable. now think about the potential for 3d printers to transform the way cutting-edge medical care is distributed, the laest and greatest discoveries would no longer be limited to those who

have access to a select group of medical facilities. instead, 3d printers could help to easily reproduce new treatments and therapies at any hospital throughout the country in the world. 3d printing technology also has the potential to help build a more dynamic and inclusive workforce. at rutgers university in my district, innovators created 3d printed braille maps that make a local vocational training center easier to navigate for the visually impaired. additionally 3d printers allow people to create prototypes of new designs or inventions at lower cost than traditional production techniques, thus helping underrepresented communities gain access to entrepreneurship. the development of 3d printing technology is a great example of how effective public-private partnerships can be. this administration and members such as representative kennedy have worked to strengthen federal support for 21st century manufacturing technology such as 3d precipitating. i look forward to hearing how the national network for manufacturing innovation is working with companies such as

those represented by our witnesses today to promote american innovation and safeguard the future of domestic manufacturing. and as with all new technologies the further adoption of 3d printing raises safety and regulatory questions. many of us have seen the media coverage about 3d printed guns. while the ability to make guns at home may not be new, the ability to make them easily and cheaply poses new safety risks and increasing the number of guns made outside of the registration process could increase the number of guns in the hands of criminals. in addition questions have been raised how to protect intellectual property as 3d printers proliferate. there have been concerns about some types of inks used in 3d printing containing bps, a chemical that the fda has banned from use in baby bottles and children's drinking cups. 3d printing offers enormous possibilities for innovation and manufacturing, increased opportunities for entrepreneurship, and convenience and customization that was not available before. it's exciting to think about the

possibilities and i'm confident these innovations can be coupled with consumer protections so that they really can improve people's lives. did you want some time? i yield you the rest of my time. >> thank you. thank you very much, mr. milone. i want to thank the chairman for calling this hearing. i'm really excited to understand how the national institutes are going. building out the progress. i have been drbragging about yo like crazy everywhere so hopefully it's good. very much look forward to understanding and getting some lessons from you. what's working well, where we can improve. as other institutes are stood up around the country how we can try to learn from your success. most importantly, trying to understand how government can be a positive source for innovation and trying to lower some of the barriers to entry and the risks that local innovators take and small businesses take in trying so make sure we can spur the next generation of manufacturing here in the united states.

what that also means for workforce, integration with our workforce, workforce training, all the way up the supply chain. grateful for the opportunity to be here. grateful all of you are willing to come testify and look forward to hearing from you the rest of the morning. >> seeing no other members seeking time we'll conclude with member opening statement. the chair would remind members pursuant to committee rules all members' opening statements will be made part of the record. we do want to thamg our witnesses for being here today, taking time off your day to testify before the subcommittee. today's witnesses will have the opportunity to give opening statements and then we will follow with questions from members. our witness panel for today's hearing includes mr. neil oranger, vice president for alliances and partnerships of 3d systems. mr. alan ambling, vice president for global distribution marketing with u.p.s. mr. ed morris, director of national additive manufacturing innovation at the national

center for defense manufacturing and machining. and dr. heardrick, additive technologies leader for corporate supply chain and operations within general electric. so we appreciate all of you being here today. we'll begin the panel with mr. oranger. mr. oranger, you're recognized for five minutes for an opening statement, please. >> thank you. thank you, mr. chairman, councilman clark, and members of the distinguished subcommittee. thank you for the invitation to address you today. i'm honored to discuss a critically important topic, how our manufacturing is revolutionizing the delivery of health care. 1983 -- >> mr. oranger, is the gllt on green light on? >> it is. >> maybe pull it a little closer. even though this is the premier technology committee in the united states congress we have pretty low tech equipment. please continue. >> how's this? okay. in 1983, my company's founder chuck hall invented 3d printing.

he was applying a process called sterile lith grief to replicate an i-cup designed and drawn on a computer. his patent was granted in 1986 and business took off from there. more than 30 years later the industry is in full throttle. for its own part 3d systems is the world leader in addiivetive manufacturing and the only major u.s.-based printing company. from the outset we've catalyzed continuous health care. the future is now. in the early 1990s we revolutionized manufacturing of hearing aids, rapidly customizing the form and fit to an individual's ear with unparalleled precision, helping build wireless devices with comfortable bio compatible materials. today 99.5% of all hearing aids are 3d printed worldwide. a decade later, we helped two graduate students from stanford university discover a better way to straighten teeth. with our technology they

manufactured what became invisiline, clear other do theic liners. today align is a world leader in mass customization, accuracy, and comfort, producing over 20 million individual liners in the last 12 months alone. 3d printing continues to advance significant breakthroughs in the field of precision management. stay errors medical treatments intensively to individual characteristics of each patient. as part of this movement, together with genomics, medical images, 3d printing is revolutionizing the practice of saving and improving lives. today i'd like to concentrate on three areas. virtual surgical planning, fabrications of advances implants and devices, and new modeling prices. vsp empowers surgeons with unparalleled precision. significantly reduces the time did in the surgical theater and saves lives. our experts interact directly with doctors, receiving data

from ct scans, then design and build surgical guides that are placed on a patient to support a particular procedure. we're showing a video right now in the hearing room to highlight the case of blessing. he sustained a land mine injury to his upper and lower jaws, tongue and teeth. today he can smile. 3d systems work with joel berger, oral maxofacial surgeon, to rebuild blessing's face and give him new teeth. involves taking bone tissue and vessels from the fibula, reconfiguring them to configure an upper and lower jaw. we use 3d scans to visual aisles the surgery in 3d. including a mandible and macs sill la cutting tools of lower and upper jaw to guide the surgeon's saw blades in the operating room. it's an inspirational story over tens of though us in the last several years. aside from the surgical guides blessing's surgeons used 3d printing models for reference

during the operation. these models show surgeons what is hidden beneath layers of soft tissue and gave surgeons hands on experience with blessing's jaw anatomy long before the surgery. fine 8ly i want to talk about how 3d printing is transforming wholesale production of medical devices and implants. i brought a titanium component of a hip transplant which we 3d printed. rather than go through the onerous process of building a cast model or a cast mold, shaping and cooling and coating a single part, metal 3d precipitating allows us to consolidate the supply chain, saving time and resources. it also allows us to add functions to the part with designs that maximize bone cohesion, structures that simply cannot be built via any other manufacturing process. so doctors and device manufacturers can send its data to engineering 3d models. then we use direct metal printing to build dozens of titanium cups in a single build process. we've been working with regulators to assure appropriate

assurance on the process. in all these areas we have strong and constructive partner in the federal government. as we work to receive appropriate qualification maintain a balance between promoting innovation and ensuring safe delivery of care to patients. as 3d printing improves production i'm hopeful we might see these efficiencies translate to lower costs for the patient. integrating these novel processes and tools require a greater understanding not only by the regulators but the health insurance industry as well. in due time perhaps it will be commonplace for these tools to be integrated ask into conventional billing processes. it's time for 3d printing to be appreciated as an important instrument for mainstream quality care. i look forward to discussing this and other issues with the committee today, thank you. >> chair thanks the gentleman. chair recognizes mr. ambling. five minutes to summarize your opening statement please. >> good morning, chairman, members and staff of the

committee, fellow witnesses and attendees. my name is alan ambling. during my 23-year tenure i've helped our business develop and grow across all aspects of the e-economy and watch innovative new solutions like carbon-neutral shipping. while you are likely familiar with u.p.s.'s fleet of 100,000 brown trucks and 25,000 employees globally. more than 100 years ago u.p.s. started as a bike messenger in seattle. in 2016 we operate one of the largest airlines in the world and offer global supply chain services including ocean and air freight, ground freight, brokerage, contract logistics, in addition to our more familiar ground package services. our global logistics network made more intelligent and efficient has the potential to

radically reshape and reinvent economies. that's why we're interested in 3d printing which could disrupt traditional manufacturing the way that e-commerce has disrupted traditional retail. certainly as this new technology becomes more widely available there will be bumps in the road and hurdles to overcome. but the power of 3d printing cannot be overstated. it's disruptive not just because it's new but because it helps small businesses and entrepreneurs do what they already need to do today, only better and less expensively. therefore as 3d printing revolutionizes manufacturing it will also affect our business of supply chains and eventually product pricing and the end consumer experience. 3d printing effectively means that businesses no longer will face minimum quantities.

up-front tooling costs which is a big expense for businesses large and small makes 3d printing ideal for small-batch production runs. and there's no tax on complexity. what i mean by that is there's no corresponding increase in cost for a more complex design, like this. the disruptive nature of 3d printing therefore will create opportunities but it will also require adjustments. as it becomes possible to set product design instructions via the internet and print products locally, small businesses and entrepreneurs will be able to move from the idea phase to the production phase more quickly and cost effectively. instead of delivering a product from a warehouse, products could be delivered from a 3dy printing service. disruptive technology like 3d printing stands to help our customers do more with a lower environmental impact.

all while benefiting consumers like you and me. it has the potential to increase profit margins within the supply chain by reducing costs and that's good news for small businesses and entrepreneurs especially. additionally, it's important to understand that disruption will happen. there's almost no stopping the spread of technology and innovation, so we're either in the game or watching it. and i know what side of the equation u.p.s. wants to be on. to that end, in anticipation of 3d printing's impact, u.p.s. has already started putting 3d printers in the u.p.s. store locations. our initial customer response was so positive that we have since expanded to more than 60 stores with plans for continued growth. likewise, through our internal venture capital arm, we invested in a 3d printing manufacturer named cloud ddm and put their production facilities in the

heart of our louisville supply chain campus minutes from our global hair hub. the operation has been up and running for a i can't remember and allows companies to order parts and prototypes to be printed late into the evening and have them delivered anywhere in the u.s. by the next morning. in doing so, u.p.s. has helped to create a model that actually increases package demand and differentiates the company from other carriers. that's groundbreaking stuff. today u.p.s. is learning and adapting to new technologies, something we've done many times over our more than 100 years of operation. as proven over and over throughout history, those who embrace innovation and change early and often are the most richly rewarded. and disruptive technology like 3d printing has that incredible potential. i commend the committee for their interest in understanding more about 3d printing and welcome this opportunity to share what we have learned up to this time. thank you for your time today.

and i look forward to answering questions. >> the chair thanks the gentleman. mr. morris, you're recognized for five minutes to summarize your opening statement, please. >> good morning, chairman burgess, vice chairman lance, members of the staff and committee. my name is ed morris vice president and director for america makes, the national ad manufacturing innovation institute. we are consciously dual branded as america makes. the maker community wants to deal with america makes, the deep industry are happy to deal with industry. the maker community get a little leery of institutes, too perform, too official. that's the reason for the dual branding. we're operated by the defense manufacturer not for profit 501 c 3 company, that's been in existence solving technical, manufacturing and business problems for our clients. our mission at america makes begins with why do we exist? as we all know the u.s.

manufacturing economy, the economic engine of manufacturing, is nowhere near as robust as it's historically been or needs to be. so what are we going to do about that? we are taking this incredible technology of additive manufacturing and accelerating it in the united states by dealing with the technical issues, the technical barriers, doing technical transition for companies with real products, and trading the next generation workforce and reinvigorating the interest of the youth in america as manufacturing as a well-paid, excellent career. why ad manufacturing? as has been shared it's a disruptive game changer and game changers often are are overused but i'm comfortable with declaring ad manufacturing is a game changer. fundamentally when you change game you game the rule is. we have a lot of people come to us and talk about the excitement and their interest in ad

manufacturing and they say, i want to get involved in ad manufacturing. ascm has identified seven different types of ad manufacturing. i realize when people approach us, they're generally -- it's like asking, hey, i want to cook dinner. help me cook dinner. to be more specific what heat source are you going to be using? lessers, et cetera. what materials are you going to be using? polymer or plastics, metals, ceramics, organic tissue, human tissue? what are you going to do with it? what's for dinner? are you going to be serving plastic parts, mechanical parts, electronic parts? food, one of our 3d systems did a demonstration of printing oreo cookies for a demonstration we were involved with. and you can print body parts. one of the things that excites me is the potential of integrated mechanical and nonelectronic 3d printing devices. one of our key members,

university of texas at el paso with the tech center for 3d innovation, we've recognized them as our first satellite center, broadening our footprint in a very substantial way across the united states. our public partners are the department of defense of department of energy, department of commerce, department of education, nasa, the national science foundation, faa, fda. and we are strong believers in the power and wisdom of a public-private partnership. we currently have 163 members, correcting an error in the printed testimony, we have 55 small business, not 85. 43 large businesses. 13 government partners. 10 nonprofit organizations. and four manufacturing extension partners or meps. they are a very valuable partner in helping doing the technology transition for this. as of january 2016, we had an $87 million portfolio of research and development.

sample projects, use of manufacturing in the foundry business ledo)wh by business incubator revolutionizing the foundry casting business, making sure it stays on our shores, taking out costs, cycle time, and improvement product performance. we also have a project on biomedical devices with the university of pittsburgh working on oft amazing magnesium alloy for bio absorbable cranial implants. applying the partnership model to education we are doing lots of activities including a certification program with the society of manufacturing and engineering, a fellowship program with the american society of mechanical engineering. we're partnering with the u.s. department of veteran affairs as part of a google organization -- google.org grant, to train returning military veterans. we think that's a very important service to the nation. what better source of expertise and competency to tap, and innovative people as well. we're also revolutionizing stem education for those that want

hands-on learning, making math relevant in what you produce with the capabilities. regarding the public/private partnership its ability to with cost share is the economic model, we think it's a very wise policy and business practice. the taxpayers' investment on topics of mutual interest as if it were able to almost double the taxpayers' money. the industry size is able to maximize their research and development dollars. it is in line with the better buying power position of department of defense to optimize contractor development and internal research and development. in closing quoting a good trend steve wellby, honorary secretary of defense for research and engineering, with this technology, let's disrupt ourselves before others disrupt us. thank you. >> chair thanks the gentleman. dr. heardrick, you're recognized for five minutes to summarize your opening statement, please. >> thank you. chairman burgess, vice chairman lance, ranking member and

members of the committee, it is a privilege to share g.e's thoughts on 3d printing. today a designer can create a computerates design model of a part and increasingly new designs and processes like this are being connected and managed through a digital thread where the freedom of design and manufacturing seemingly has no limits. one of ge's engineering leaders appropriately captured it when she said, complexity is free. my name is dr. ed herbrick, i'm the additive technologies leader for ge, helping to spread the application of aiditive technologies across ge's industrial portfolio. this portfolio expands across industries that build, move, power, transport, cure the world from jet engines and power generation machines to locomotives, medical imaging systems and more. the emergence of 3d precipitationing and additive

technologies and industry has been both sudden and disruptive. boeing and airbus conducted the first flight test for their 737 max airplane, a-320 meo single-aisle jets with leap engines. the first engine to include 3d printed nozzles, which is the engine's fuel injector mixing fuel and air in precise ways to achieve maximum fuel efficiency and lower emissions. using metal printing the fuels no dells are more fuel efficient and durable compared to those made with conventional technologies. production of 3d printed metal parts in jet engines will have been almost unheard of even a decade ago. today we are asking what else can be printed in the engine to drive performance even higher? as it is ge aviation will be producing 35,000 printed fuel nozzles per year at the world's first mass aidetive production facility in auburn, alabama. by 2020 we will have produced more than 100,000 metal printed

fuel nozzles. this success of implement of additive technology in the aerospace industry is paving the way for broader applications in other industries. ge's use of aide additive technologies and innovation -- >> oh no. we okay? okay. hopefully my voice was loud enough that you picked it up okay. ge's use of additive technologies and aviation is only the tipping point of an exciting transformation under way across their 400-plus fak trees. by 2025 we expect additive manufacturing methods will be used in the design and manufacture of more than 20% of ge's new product concepts. our efforts in additive are part of a much broader nourishtive to build a digital thread through manufacturing that transform our factories into brilliant factories. it is through the digital thread where additive technologies can truly emerge and recognize their full potential for industries of all kinds.

let's see. in many ways the excitement and emphasis on additive manufacturing of metals and industrial materials is the product of a more than 20-year research odyssey. as early as 1993, researchers at ge global research demonstrated the fees bit for binderless metal powers. it's interesting to note the development and material advancement between then and now. 1993 the laser use had 7.5 watts of power, a scaling speed of 2 millimeters per second, produced parts that were 30% distance. today we're using lasers with 200 to 1,000 watts of power, 16ing speeds of 1,000 millimeters a second, produce parts greater than 99.9% dense straight out of the box. further when implemented with care the performance of additively produced metal parts meets and exceeds that of standard casting techniques. this is a critical point. i cannot emphasize enough the importance of understanding the physical metallurgy in order to produce this high-quality repeatable performance as the

materials properties are determined during the printing process. manufacturers have had centuries to understand the physical properties of materials that have been traditionally milled or machined into the desired shape. with additive and metals in particular we have been working 20 years. fortunately ge through its global research center is home to some of the world's foremost experts in materials and additive techniques to help make these evaluations. i'd like to highlight a particular example where ge print admin tourized version of a steam turbine rotor to test a new idea ge researchers have for reducing the cost of water desalinization. the rotor is being used to demonstrate cost effective water and salt separation. in that case metal printing empowered the team to design something that could not be made in any other way and has the potential to dramatically improve the energy efficiency for this critical water desalinization process. in order to accelerate new applications like this one ge has built a new facility in

pittsburgh, pennsylvania, dedicated solely to 3d printing called the center for additive technology advancement. that was an rpe program and partnership. i'd like to highlight -- let me see. i'd like to highlight some of our work in the critical importance of building a robust ecosystem and additive technologies across the u.s. we're proud to be a partner of and applaud the america makes national additive manufacturing institute in youngstown, ohio, which has been a leader in building this ecosystem in manufacturers, machine makers, and other key stakeholders in the addivetive supply chain. as we go forward ge will continue to look for ways to strengthen the additive system in the u.s. additive manufacturing isj]. a transformative technology that is an important tool in realizing ge's brilliant factory vision. it and is will have far-reaching impacts that could accelerate the introduction of new

high-performance products that will support global infrastructure for years to come. thank you and i look forward to your questions. >> the chair thanks the gentleman, thanks all of our witnesses for your compelling testimony this morning. thanks for all you're doing for the revitalization for manufacturing in america. and we appreciate your efforts in that regard. you've talked about the experience you've had with manufacturing things for years. and now you've moved into this new realm. so i suspect there were significant challenges for like the quality control folks who assured that the device in question was going to stand up under the heat and pressure of a jet engine or a pump or whatever you were building. i mean, i suspect that has been an ongoing process and one that has developed sort of simultaneously with the technology. is that a correct assumption? >> it is, yes. it's been a many-year journey.

i think what ge brings to this is our knowledge of commercializing other advanced technologies like advanced casting techniques, welding techniques and the like. so we use the same process methodology of really fundamentally understanding the science at our research center as i mentioned and then working closely with our partners to really understand how these products perform in the field. >> you're literally building airplane parts out of pixie dust, putting them into the planes we're all going to fly home on later today. >> it's advanced metal poweder that looks like metal flour, so i suppose you could paraphrase to call it pixie dust. it's very highly engineered pixie dust. >> that is reassuring. mr. oranger, let me ask you, your technology, you've talked about it in your testimony, invented your company in the united states. patent system in the united states. despite challenges is one that is the envy of the world.

then you intersect with the regulatory side of the world. so sometimes we see things that are invented here but then subsequent manufacturing tends to go other places in the world. is that something that you all have encountered? >> so -- i'm a little bit at disadvantage. fy say anything wrong my lawyers are going to come down on me pretty hard. >> this subcommittee is so genteel. there's no oath given -- >> i'm not worried about you. >> there's no oath given, no lawyers backing up the panel. >> let's just say, you're absolutely right. so as i said, this technology has been around for 30 years. we've invent ed many of the technologies that we've been discussing here today. and we've been acquiring a lot of these companies along the way as well. in spite of it being 30 years

old it's become a little bit of the wild west. and there are constantly new innovations, there are patents that seem to be very similar to patents that were filed previously. and we have to be vigilant. and fortunately we do have a very good, close relationship with the u.s. patent and trade office. we do work very closely with regulators. there's always going to be issues particularly when you compare our system with a system overseas. and that's where we're really challenged. and we do appreciate the assistance that the government is providing us as we navigate these waters right now. >> i want you to consider this subcommittee as your subcommittee and the interaction that we've initiated today, i want it to be an ongoing dialogue. because to the extent possible, we want to remove barriers for

you. we don't want the invention to happen here then the manufacturing occur somewhere else. we want these jobs in the united states of america. we want to make america great again, can i say it any more distinctly? >> i'm not going to touch that. i will say to that point, i very much appreciate that. i will say that what's actually been quite exciting coming -- i spent most of my career in the federal government. and only have transitioned to private sector two years ago. and i'll tell you, coming to this company and seeing what we're doing in terms of u.s. jobs is phenomenal. we just acquired two european companies. a french company and a belgian company. belgian company. these are companies that have been honing the craft of metal additive manufacturing and we're now seeing and insourcing thanks to my company not only in terms of production but r&d. we're actually moving these jobs over here. it's actually thanks in part to projects that we're doing with america make.

i'm actually funding an aerospace and defense project. we've started to build up a laboratory in penn state. and it's thanks to the good work of ed and his colleagues as well as other folks that we're teamed with that seeing this technology not sit still but continue to innovate. we'll stay engaged with you as we navigate these waters. >> two of the most highly regulated industries -- medicine, health care, and the air espace industry. mr. morris, do you want to add something? >> yes in regard to the global economic competition we find ourselves in it is absolutely true that although the technology manufactured was invented in the united states, we lost the elite and generally the sense is europeans are ahead by about five years because they doubled down with national investments in their areas and they are the major source of the materials and the 3d printing

devices. although united states and companies such as 3d systems are coming on very rapidly and regaining the lead for the united states, which we think is crucial. i think this really comes into focus, the importance of a public/private partnership as a wise policy for a nation in this global economic competition we find ourselves and it's a good business model for the taxpayer and for the companies and academics for that matter. >> very well. thanks the gentlemen. my time's expired. i recognize the ranking member of the subcommittee of illinois for five minutes for questions, please. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i encountered 3d printing in 2013, we had a manufacturing showcase, and congressman john starbains brought in a business from his district, direct dimensions. and they took a picture of me, three or four, and made this 3d print, a bust of me, in plastic.

it was very interesting and a little strange. but i did save it. i want to say, this is part of our series as i'm sure our chairman said of our disrupter series. and what we're hearing today are the wonders of this. and the positive. and i just want to say, before i ask questions along those lines, that these technologies can be in the hands of all kinds of people as we go forward. and i hope, mr. chairman, that we'll also have a hearing on what are the things that we ought to watch out for? i know that congresswoman clark raised the issue of the ability to produce perhaps small arms. but who knows. and so i think we ought to be looking ahead too and thinking

about if there are threats to our country because of these kinds of new technologies and in the wrong hands. not only through the -- our concerns about competition around the world and making sure that we can advance making in america, but actual threats. but i wanted to focus on the positive too. at northwestern utah, whinivers which is in my district in evanston, illinois, researchers are pioneering bio compatible inks made of graphing that are used to 3d print scaffolding for tissue transplants and regeneration. very exciting. vees graphing structures can stimulate cell regeneration and also are cost effective. so mr. oranger, would you -- could these kinds of cutting-edge treatments become more widely accessible through the use of 3d printers?

>> yes, actually, i just returned from your district, i was just there last week. >> okay. >> talked to a couple of folks about northwestern's interest in metal. i'll tell you, the chicago area is booming in this area. very competitive area. for this technology. and it's very important that we continue to innovate there and incubate that technology. on the bio side, i'll tell you, there's a lot of fact and fiction and aspiration. to answer your question, i think you summed it up quite well. there is sort of the short-term, there's a lot that can be done in scaffolding, and it's being done currently and i'd say we're about one to two years away from seeing this matured sufficiently where it's going to become as commonplace as some of the other methodologies i discussed. on the other side, our folks in our medical modeling department

indicated that we're still a few years away from actually seeing a viable process for some of the other bio printable inks. but the research is being done. it actually -- we do see a feasible path forward. we are watching a lot happen in this marketplace. there are a lot of exciting new companies that are coming online in this space. and we would encourage that technology continue to flourish and that the government itself has a role to play. we've been talking to nih about this particular issue to see if there are ways we can work with them in terms of spurring innovation in this area. >> so you indicated some fairly early benefits here too. at what point do you think we will be able to see real savings for patients? and are we doing what we need to do now to make that occur? >> well, as i highlighted in my opening statement, 3d printing

has long been providing strong value to patients. not only in the hearing aids where we're making 99.5% hearing aids through 3d 3d printing or invisi:line but in medical modeling and the implant process as well. it's literally saving lives. we were talking about this earlier before the hearing. we have seen estimates that it takes about -- we charge patients about $100 a minute in the operating theater. so if you can reduce that time by rehearsal, by using ct scans, 3d printing the model and then practicing that surgery over and over again and also 3d printing surgical guides, essentially stencils you place on a patient, reducing the amount of improve sayings to zero, you are literally going to be saving lives, enhancing precision and saving money.

so i can tell you that we have done tens of thousands of these procedures and we are seeing a lot of breakthroughs. in terms of the scaffolding, there's a lot of investment in this arena, there's a lot of promise. the government is well involved as well, not only from the nih but in the department of defense, the united states navy, walter reed national medical center. there's a lot of work being done here. i think we are not too far away from some active clinical trials. >> maybe in another round i could ask how america makes -- works in the health space. thank you. >> the gentle lady yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from kentucky, five minutes for questions, please. >> thank you very much. it is great to have everybody here. what an interesting series we've had. i really grasped technology in grad school in the mid '90s, not

that long ago. it disrupted the typewriter and calculator industry. we did the same thing they were already doing just more efficient. i think it also disrupted the wite-out industry when i got on a word processor. dn have to use it anymore. it really took what we were doing and made it better. what's happening now is you are actually taking this technology and doing things we could never do before. it's amazing in the body parts and replacement, you couldn't do those vertebra probably in any other type of manufacturing. i have a manufacturing background. we take blocks of steel and make dies out of it, whittle it down for lack of a better term, that's actually what we do, just with computer controlled machines but now creating stuff by printing it by being additive, hope it doesn't replace what we do but it certainly enhances the precision what you can do in specific things. it's fascinating to be here. i will focus with ups. they are just outside of my district. a lot of your employees and a lot of your customers are in my

district. zappo shoes, bestbuy.com and geek squad which is a pretty interesting place to go. they don't have a plant manager. they have a mayor. they don't have community leaders, they have ambassadors. it's just an interesting business concept. but great people to be around. but a lot of it's based on supply chain. i know a lot of us think of ups, you said it in your opening segment, the brown trucks and airplanes that are flying in and out of louisville, but i know i'm more interested in what ups really does. you talked about it a little bit. give you some time to elaborate on how ups actually helps small businesses with supply chain management to build their businesses and how 3d printing is a big part of that mission. >> thank you very much. so ups is more than a package delivery company. we are a nnetwork company. we are not a manufacturer but a network company. we are a problem solver. we see 3d printing as another

tool in the bag to make businesses more efficient and to help them expand. so that's what the small businesses is what the ups store is all about. and helping small businesses grow. when we put 3d printers in the ups stores, one of the things small businesses have to do if they have a new product idea is to design a prototype. prior to 3d printing, that's an arduous task, right? you have got to create a model, sometimes that model is produced outside of the u.s., it's shipped back. now we are giving them the opportunity to produce that model and do rapid prototyping right in their home city. i have an example of a gentleman that we highlighted during our 3d printing week named caleb kraft and what he did was he's

creating supplements to gaming controls so people with disabilities can use -- can play the game. and because people have different disabilities, everyone is different. can you imagine how difficult that would be before 3d printing? that's one of the things we are unleashing innovation and so that's the, you know, the small customers we are seeing a lot of hobbyists, small businesses and designers using the ups stores. we have now more of an industrial grade 3d printing operation in our louisville supply chain headquarters and that's being used by designers but it's also being used by big manufacturers that have these service part networks and they need to have on demand parts, and so we are allowing them to order parts from us and be

delivered anywhere -- >> i have just about a minute. i want to ask you a couple more questions. i will ask them both, then let you answer. so where do you see the most demand for 3d printing today and where do you see it in three to five years? and what policies should we consider, what are important for us to consider as you see the demand for 3d printing and where it's going and what can congress do to help or not help or get out of the way? >> so great. so right now, this is what we are seeing. we are seeing a lot of rapid prototyping. that's kind of the application we're seeing the most. we are also seeing a lot of small batch production runs so even large manufacturers, if they are only printing or need to produce 500 or 1,000 of a certain item, it's actually less expensive right now to do it via 3d printing. we are all about efficiency and that's what they are doing. now, five years out, i wish i

had a crystal ball, but you know, what we see is we see more customized products that are tailored to the specific needs of the individual and 3d printing can allow that to happen. we think that's a little further out. but right now, we see definitely on demand parts in prototypes. in terms of legislation, again, ups is a network. ups is a global net york. right now we are only doing 3d printing in the united states. eventually as we help business by connecting a global network with our transportation, the plan is to do that with 3d printing. so as that happens, there are going to be legislative issues that arise that will need to be addressed to keep that going

because we know that the more we can promote global commerce and trade, it's good for everybody. >> the chair thanks the gentleman. gentleman yields back. chair recognizes miss clark from new york, five minutes for your questions, please. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i think our panel is today very stimulating conversation. it's great to hear all the innovation that is taking place. the sky's the limit as far as i see it. i would like to focus on access for underrepresented communities. this has been one of the focus issues that are especially important to me. using the emergent 3d printing industry as a unique means of empowering and including entrepreneurs from underserved and minority communities, because startup costs are lower, flexible, customization is easier, 3d printers offer advantages and opportunities to small businesses and new entrepreneurs entering the market. still huge diversity gaps remain in the technology manufacturing space. to harness the true potential of

3d printing, i think it's important to commit to eliminating obstacles to sort of equitable and to promoting initiatives that i believe can close this gap. you, mr. orringer, spoke about a relationship that was established with penn state. want to drill down a little bit and talk about perhaps colleges and universities in the hbcu system and hsi system and community colleges. mr. amling, you spoke to the small business advantage as well. mr. morris, my first question goes to you. what kind of outreach does america do to communities that are underrepresented in the tech world including minority, low income and disabled workers? >> thank you. excellent question. that's one of the key reasons why the university of texas el paso was so attracted to us, not only are they a leader in developing the technology but also in deploying it in their community with a heavy u.s.

mexican population, economically handicapped and we want to partner deeper with them to be able to help them continue and expand their technology transitions, again, more education in that area and new products, et cetera. tied to that also is the vision that we have of getting printers in every school in the united states. i was certainly taken aback last year when china announced an intent to put 400,000 printers in every one of their elementary schools. we should be doing the same thing and proceeding up the chain from more than just the elementary schools. that's the time to catch the youth in america, get them excited in careers in making things and in our context, when we talk about manufacturing, it's a system of design, manufacturing, inspection, production, et cetera.

it's all of these different well-paid good careers, long term careers that catching the youth in america, no matter where they are, no matter who they are, i think is pivotal for the united states and an important step forward. >> can you speak to some of the common challenges that entrepreneurs from underrepresented communities may face when beginning to incorporate 3d printing into their own small businesses? >> what we are finding as small companies come into american makes as members and we operate as a community of practice, openly sharing, we operate in this middle ground of precompetitive activities, when the small companies are able to rub shoulders with companies like 3d systems, rockwell collins, lockheed martin, et cetera, they develop relationships so one of our small companies, in cleveland, has benefited from that relationship and is now doing contracted work for them. so building this community and we are very focused on the manufacturing supply chain ecosystem.

how do we define that, how do we focus in on regional areas. we are doing pretty incredible things in our region in northeast ohio and southwest pennsylvania, trying to flush out, define that ecosystem and energize it for all the communities with the focus on those most urgently needing that economic boost. >> very well. mr. orringer you are nodding a smiling. want to share your thoughts? >> as you were talking about education, i was just reminded when i started working for this company, i came home with a little 3d printer and 3d scanner and i have a 5-year-old at home who is more advanced technologically than i am. my wife's a surgeon so she came home from a long day performing surgery, fell asleep watching tv. my daughter scanned her head, produced a model not quite -- not too different from that, and she's 5 years old. and i was blown away because i still hadn't figured out how to turn the darned thing on.

if you can see what happens when we bring these things into schools, it's not about 3d printing. 3d printing is a means to an end. that's something we need to understand. what i think about, i think about this in terms of digital literacy. this is critically important particularly in underserved areas. we need to make sure people have a full sense of what it means to be part of the digital economy. rather than focusing on getting expensive 3d printers into small businesses, what we really should be doing is making sure they have access to the digital tools, different kinds of cad, computer aided design technologies, training in this kind of technology. we can find ways to give them access to machines, whether it's through great companies like ups, we have similar programs, we have a company called quickparts that does on demand printing. you send us the cad, we will print out the parts. it's not about getting the 3d printer, necessarily, to those

entrepreneurs. we actually are able to reduce the logistical footprint for folks and now we are digitizing things. you don't even need to have that. so i think the task is important. i don't think it's as difficult as it could be and there are institutions like america makes and others that are doing some but we need to do more. we talked a little bit about our outreach to the veterans community. we have done a lot with walter reed and the veterans affairs administration. again, there needs to be more in this space. we would love to talk to the committee and figure out ways to catalyze more of this. >> actually, if i may add to that. this is just briefly. i think you made some great points and i think what's really exciting about 3d printing is it's just such a transformational, educational technology, for getting people into manufacturing and it's really just gotten into the public conscience -- consciousness. i was actually with ge

volunteers group in the bronx, we did an outreach, young entrepreneurs workshop with some students, middle school and junior high school students, and what was amazing was half the students, they were coming up with ideas to 3d print different consumer parts for ipods and things. when we go out and do these ge volunteers outreach activities, i'm doing things like taking fuel nozzles, taking manufactured components. we take 3d printers into schools and different workshops and things. really, it's the tool to get people hands-on with manufacturing in a way that we couldn't do with casting or welding. it's really a gateway to get them into these great entrepreneurial fields and great careers. it gets me really, really excited. >> very quickly, we did some summer camps. one particular summer camp was 7 through 10 year olds. one of the exercises was to take the students into our little

white board and they drew cookie cutters. one minority student drew a nice little figure cookie cutter. he then took it over to the desk top 3d printer and made the cookie cutter and we got a great picture of him, look, mom, this is what i thought. this is what i designed. this is what i manufactured. here's a cookie cutter for you. >> the chair thanks the gentle lady. gentle lady yields back. chair recognizes the gentleman from new jersey, mr. lance, five minutes for questions, please. >> thank you, mr. chairman. very interesting hearing. mr. orringer, balancing health and safetiy is obviously an important mission for medical device manufacturers and federal regulators alike. what steps are the federal regulators taking in order to educate themselves and the public about 3d printed surgical implants and has this approach been proactive and what else in your judgment could be done?

>> yes, sir. thank you so much for this question. i have to say it's not just because i'm a former federal bureaucrat, we have been actually pretty pleased with the engagement that the food and drug administration and others have shown. they actually held a workshop in october 2014 on the silver spring campus. they invited companies not only from the united states but from all over the world to have this dialogue and it was an all day affair. the fda said they were in receiving mode. they wanted to hear what the concerns were from us about regulation, what the concerns were for us in terms of barriers for innovation. are we any different from any other technology when it comes to regulation. i think in the end, the conclusion was no. we are one tool in a toolbox.

you have digital tools, you have means for designing things which is the cad package and you have different ways for actually executing. so i think one of the challenges we need to stay on top of is folks' attempts to redefine this technology as something that's extraordinarily different. we are not making "star trek" replicators here. these are very important tools, they have their uses. they also have their limits. one of the things i sort of alluded to in my statement, though, was concern about the inability for the pay codes to keep pace with innovation. so right now, we are innovating doing unique surgical processes. we are saving a lot of money for the health system overall, but the truth is there are no

insurance pay codes that can tell the patient this is how much it really costs. so what's actually happening is we are saving money but the insurance companies whether it's medicaid, medicare or private insurance, don't have a means to code what that procedure is. so there's actually a bit of a margin here. we would love to engage the folks at cms, medicare, medicaid or others, to ensure that we are actually able to make a fair process and bring that up to standard because right now, as you know, sometimes government regulation's a little slow. sometimes standards can be a little slow to implement. we really need to get this right because we are not really realizing all the potential. >> i trust those at medicare and medicaid and cms will be monitoring this hearing, because obviously, we need those codes for the reasons you have suggested. mr. morris, you wish to comment? >> i personally attended that workshop in 2014. i found it intriguing. my background is aerospace and

defense. as i was sitting through the different presentations on medical applications, i found myself two-thirds a way through the first of a two-day event, i was getting bored. why would i be getting bored? the problems and issues that they were all addressing are ubiquitous in manufacturing. need better materials properties, need better inspection capabilities, need better design tools, et cetera. at the end of the two days, in my personal synthesis, there are different things in medical applications, sterilization and biocompatibility. the common problems, it makes the importance of an institute focus on manufacturing and able to sheare across business sectos really relevant. we were pleased when the fda became a signed member about a month ago so they can sweep up the things we're already

learning, hear their specific needs and advance all the technology across the united states. >> to the distinguished members of the panel, are we in the advance in this country or do other countries perhaps in europe or asia have a system that recognizes this to a greater extent than we do in this country? >> it's been interesting in that one of the things that i heard from a good friend, one of our members, he did some visits at the invitation of the chinese government a couple years ago, and they shared that they are doubling down on their national investments because they saw what the united states was doing. so they are now surpassing us. representative from singapore visited me personally in youngstown, ohio, in our facility in downtown youngstown and they have now stood up a center for 3d printing and innovation in singapore with an initial funding of $150 million, more than twice the funding i have. >> thank you. my time is expired. i hope to be able to pursue this

further in the future. thank you, mr. chairman. >> the chair thanks the gentleman. he gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from california for five minutes for your questions, please. >> thank you very much for imparting your knowledge with us on what's going on in this dynamic, fast-changing industry. first question is from my wife. when can you think they will be able to make a husband brain, i didn't say human brain, i said a husband's brain to help someone pick up after oneself, remember anniversaries, et cetera? just kidding. that's the impossible. i know. on a more serious note, we have noticed that in america's libraries we have had an increase of donations and opportunities where libraries are investing in 3d printers now to the tune of over 400 libraries have access to little to no cost or no cost to individuals going to the library. to me there's a very important issue for making sure that we

have access to as many minds and as many inquisitive folks so that they can get turned on to how wonderful it is and how the potential of getting a job in the industry. how committed is the industry to advancing that kind of effort? >> i can take a shot at this just because we had a little bit of an excess inventory of desktop 3d printers about a year and a half ago, and we didn't rehearse this, by the way. and i had this great idea. why don't we donate these printers to libraries across the country, with one hitch. i didn't want to donate a couple hundred printers to lie brbrari and have them sit on a shelf and collect dust. that's a really big problem i see. so we actually held a competition, we partnered with america makes because they know

how to do competitions, and had an overwhelming response from all across the country. we need to do more like this. it's going to pay back dividends. we are struggling certainly still in terms of work force development in terms of making sure people have access to this technology and i strongly believe that if we can start bringing these kinds of tools to young people as soon as possible that's going to pay dividends in the long run. we are strongly committed. i know other folks on this panel are as well. we will be happy to keep you informed on our progress. >> yes. that's an investment in human capital, in connecting your industry to the minds of the workers of the future. yes? >> i pay a lot of attention to unintended consequence s in wha we do. you can do something really as dmirable and at the end of the day you're not doing something

admirable. schools are urgently needing encouragement at all levels of the government beginning at the local communities and perhaps in some of the local rotaries, et cetera, foundations and groups that are able to provide some funding. for example f , if we put a 3d printer in miss brown's class and it breaks, who's going to fix it? who's going to buy the materials? miss brown? that's not very kind. for the libraries, same vignette. how do we keep it operating, how do we get training materials in all the libraries and schools, how do we have resources available so it's not burdensome when this thing shows up. we can do great things but we have to do it wisely. >> thank you for pointing that out. one of the things i'm so proud to be an american is the fact that we have this reputation that when we embark on something and we dedicate ourselves to doing it well, it takes a long-term vision and a long-term

commitment and there's infrastructure costs, there's ongoing costs, et cetera, instead of just the flash of for example, the ribbon cutting, giving away printers and coming back a year later and embarrassingly realize that none of them are in use because you just explained without the follow-through, they are not doing anybody any good. it's a falsehood for whenever any of us, whether government or private industry or philanthropic philanthropically we do something without looking at the long sight of the issue. thank you for pointing that out. on the follow-up on that, i hope that you read into my question not just libraries, public schools, et cetera, that the industry actually maps out and shows us how we can either partner or they can take the lead, et cetera and how we can make sure we have that available as much as possible to every community in america. again, it's an investment in human capital, i think. i want to point out with my limited time here that when it

comes to bioprinting, apparently when you look at the 3d printer is used to place bioink in precise locations allowing cell types to align themselves in a manner that resembles the origination of native human tissues, these 3d human tissues can then be employed in drug discovery and development, biological research and therapeutic implants for the treatment of damaged and degenerating tissues and organs, et cetera. you get the picture. this is amazing. what do you see the top line issues facing those efforts when it comes to regulatory and technology and world competition? >> i'm not competent to address the regulatory issues but what i will say is i think where the

national manufacturing institute can come into play in a very important way in advancing bioprinting as we do with all the other areas of application of manufacturing is getting from the research to the true product application is historically called the valley of death. we got to structure across that valley of death. it begins with pulling a community of the researchers, academics, labs, et cetera across the nation with the end users and start the discourse of what do you need, where are you going, what are you building, how can we apply it and accelerate it. so we do a lot of workshops to do road mapping and we would eagerly like to do road mapping with bioprinting. some of our members are doing landmark research and development in bioprinting such as university of pittsburgh, case western university, et cetera. team those up with the medical end users working with our new member fda et cetera to lay out what's the right path, how do we accelerate, what's the funding

model, then continue to go back to this model of the opportunity to do the key thing in a public/private partnership. that is share the costs. where it's high risk, government money comes into play. industry needs to invest because they are doing the product application. we think that's a very shrewd model going forward. public/private partnership with cost share which is unique capability of an added manufacturing division institute. >> i yield back. >> the chair recognizes the gentle lady from indiana, five minutes for your questions, please. >> thank you, mr. chairman. thank you all to our panelists for your exciting testimony. i wasn't sure when i was reading this initially, but i think why this is so exciting is because i think this is the way to draw young people back into manufacturing. we have in central indiana in my district about 50 middle and high schools that have 3d printers that are being utilized in the classroom. we are trying, indiana is one of the country's most manufacturing

intensive states, but -- and then before coming to congress, i was senior vice president at our state's community college and i learned about 3d printing during that time period. but i think we still need to make sure the adults and the educators who are working with our young people have an understanding about this 3d printing. i had an event and we welcomed 3d parts manufacturing to educate school counselors at a school counselor event to try to educate them about 3d printing because they are the ones who influence our children and get them excited about these things. so i'm curious in expanding on the public/private partnerships which i completely believe in, how do we do a better job at bringing industry, collaborating with our educators and with either our nonprofits and try and get the young people more

engaged in 3d printing and the skills they need? what are some best practices you have seen, how do we expand this, because i think it is one of the manufacturing tools of the future. what do we need to be doing better? believe it or not, i actually think calling where they work maker spaces actually helps. because young people are not as interested in manufacturing, i think, as they are in making. mr. morris, you want to start? >> i'm wrestling with jeopardizing and putting at risk a very important relationship we have with elizabeth ford school district outside of pittsburgh, pennsylvania. they are a premier benchmark of redefining education in the united states and leveraging the power of added manufacturing 3d printing to teach.

the risk in the friendship is they are already being inundated with people who want to know what they're doing, is this the right place to go. we need to find some way to assist them. the key thing at this point is communication, communication. we could use more resources to communicate better across the nation this is what's happening, this is how you do it, this is where we can work together in the public/private partnership model in interesting terms to ib infect the united states, manufacturing is back and it's the right place for careers. >> if you think about, so dr. herderick, ge is located in so man locati many locations across the country, ups is, i don't know if your company is yet. what do you view as industry's role in partnering with the education community, and i welcome the fact that you put them into libraries and so forth, but what should we be

doing that we are not doing? >> i guess i want to, at the risk of contradicting myself, i want to make sure we distinguish a little bit. ed did this a little bit already. there's a distinction between what we see in maker spaces and what we see on a factory floor. particularly when we get into some of the very hard line manufacturing industries such as aerospace and defense and others. i really think it's important that we embrace both cultures and drive innovation in both areas. so there's a great company that i work with in indiana called third dimension. they have a beautiful shop of many metal 3d printers, they have a whole host of aerospace and defense customers. they are tied to purdue. they are not too far away from purdue, actually.

they embrace -- and they are a small business but they are embracing whole host of fellowships and internships, getting folks excited not just about the usual maker kind of space where you maybe play around with toys, but these massive million dollar hunks of hardware to actually see what actually happens on a shop floor and how we are revolutionizing manufacturing which is a totally different concept. it's really important that you see both sides of the spectrum. maybe you could see the maker spaces as a gateway but if you don't bring in the other part of the equation, then you are missing it. because added manufacturing is a serious business. we are a global company, the largest, we are at 50 locations all over the world. people haven't really heard of us. there's probably a reason for that. the reason is until recently, ge wouldn't want to brag that they

used it because they didn't want their competition to know how they made the secret sauce. that still takes place. our first added manufacturing machine, the serial number is sla 3. i saw it a couple years ago in general motors. it was installed there in 1989. this is not a new industry. it's just new to people. so i think the maker space concept is great because it's suddenly captured people's imaginations but it's also important when you think about public/private partnerships, encouraging manufacturing, you also bring people into the fold revolutionizing manufacturing now. >> the chair recognizes the gentleman from mississippi, mr. harper, five minutes for your questions. >> thank you, mr. chairman. thanks to each of you. it's an amazing technology. we really are only beginning to see what all we are going to be

able to do in the future. mr. amling, i don't have a question but ups was my very first job in my life as a 15-year-old. i loaded an 18 wheeler every night with boxes. i'm the one who packs the trunk on the family trips. >> you learned to work hard. >> we know how to build a wall. that's it. it might have been a 3d component to that as well, i'm thinking. but thank you each for being here. dr. herderick, when ge obtained certification from the faa for its jet engines it was clearly a major accomplishment for additive manufacturing. just curious how many pages of testing data does a company need to rely on in order to obtain that faa certification for a new item like that? >> so our materials testing data base that we built up before we take it to the faa, it's many

hundreds, even thousands of pages. it represents over a ten-year journey from initial concept. it was a single engineer, she had an idea in our combusters group and of course it became a cast of many hundreds. it was a pretty serious book of knowledge we took to the faa, as you might imagine. >> it's amazing. i'm just curious what extra effort was needed to show that the nozzles which was entirely 3d printed, that they were strong enough and did not create a safety risk? how do you go about that? >> so it all starts with understanding the fundamentals of the process and demonstrating what we would call a stable process. so demonstrating over many, many thousands of cycles, it's not just building one and going out and testing it. it's many years of effort and

building many thousands of fuel nozzles and demonstrating that every one is the same coming out of the machine process. we do post-treatments to heal any defects that come out of the machining process. then we actually x-ray the parts before they go out into service. so each part we have a 3d image of the part before it goes on to any engine. >> of course, going through this process, did this help ge learn how to navigate this certification process so that future parts maybe experience a quicker process? >> it did. >> that's great. how does additive manufacturing fit with and add value to the traditional supply chain? >> great question. so i will talk about the metals technology. i think a lot of people look at these metal printing technologies and think maybe this could replace casting or replace forging. in reality, what we are using it for is to create more valuable higher performance products

during the design phase that then transition to castings and forgin forgings. really what it's doing is opening up highly value added applications which really truly fit with american manufacturing, high value complex shapes and parts that we wouldn't be able to design without having the metal prototyping processes during our testing phase. >> that's great. let's talk about cost for a minute. what kind of cost savings do you think could be achieved if a manufacturer is able to take full advantage of 3d printing and integrate it as fully as possible into supply chain? >> well, i think the biggest cost is time to market. so being able to get to market much much more quickly and reducing the cost of different iterations of product lines. that's really where we are seeing the biggest benefit. getting to market faster with higher performance products. >> mr. orringer, what method of

printing was used to produce the titanium hip implant and why was this method best for the implant? >> yes. so this is the part we were talking about here. you can see it's pretty porous. we use a process called -- we call it direct metal printing. it's powder bed laser fusion which is kind of a mouthful. the reason why it's so important, i actually had to check with my wife who is the surgeon to actually understand fully what we are talking about here. so typically when you make a part like this, it's going to be casted and you can ultimately cast pretty -- a pretty solid and dense part. that's going to cause when you are talking about titanium, stress on a bone.

what we are able to do with 3d printing is we are able to actually design a part that is optimized to both reduce stress on the bone and also be porous enough to get bone to actually grow and actually regenerate. this can only be done through this process. typically what they have done in the past is they will cast this component and they will have a coating on top that's porous but it's not -- it's relatively superficial. if you can get a densely made part that's also porous, as contradictory as that sounds, you can actually help regenerate bone and help with the growth and not lead to bone stress. >> this is not only going to be better for that area but also speed up the healing process. >> exactly. exactly. and we are actually seeing this area explode. this is part of the factory of

the future. >> great. i want to say thanks to each of you for being here. i yield back even though i don't have any time. >> the chair thanks the gentleman. the chair recognizes the ranking member of the subcommittee for redirection. >> mr. morris, i just wanted to ask you a question on how america makes work in the health space has the ability to translate into increased access for patients across the country to the advancements that 3d technology has helped to do. >> i'm sorry, i'm not sure i heard everything there. >> i'm just interested in your work in the health space and how that is going to advance patients' access to better health care. >> we have got a couple of projects under way in several of our members are deeply involved in medical applications of 3d

printing. again, the challenge is to get the word out across the nation in effective ways so we try to do that communication best we can. there are some interesting things we have been learning in the process, both in terms of the technology of how you do the inspections and the similarity of problems for making parts for a jet engine versus parts imbedded in a body. and some of the more subtle things, this is really across cutting more than medical, what you heard in some of the testimony from neal was the models that were made. so a major use of the technique of additive manufacturing is for tooling. to be able to do tooling to adopt the surgery and to be very carefully precisely guiding the surgery tools, et cetera. then there are interesting subtleties. one of the key pieces of technology that's come along with 3d printing was 3d

scanning. as i was engaged with a conversation with a research scientist in the medical community, obviously when you've got a piece of bone missing maybe from a car accident, maybe it's a wounded soldier, you want to do a 3d scan so that implant perfectly fits. this is where the bioreabsorbable piece comes into play as the bone grows back the body absorbs the implant and you don't have to remove the metal implant which is really clever. they pointed out something that was sort of ai-ha, i should have seen this coming. you want it to match. but you also want it to match this side of the head because if you make this one a different shape than this shape, you have cursed that person for life. so there's all these different subtleties that we are communicating with the medical community. the explosive use of the technology is incredible. about one-third of the patents as of two years ago were in the medical applications of 3d printing.

>> gentle lady yields back. the chair thanks the gentle lady. i will recognize myself for redirection. you all brought it up so it's going to come up when we go back home. our schools are going to ask us hey, how do we get that for our students. so any of you want to provide some direction and advice to the members of the subcommittee? >> we initiated two years ago a process with donors choose where donors can go to the website and contribute funds and allocate it for 3d printers in their schools or wherever, maybe a boy scout troop, girl scout troop, et cetera. that is one mechanism for the public to partner and put their skin in the game, if you will, to get the printers in the hands of the youth of the united states. i want to also quickly point out another really outstanding benchmarking of using additive manufacturing 3d printing for

education. it is u.s. first. the first robotics competitions. industry has been stepping up in great fashion to tutor and mentor the teams in the first robotics competitions. we of course personally got involved in this attend twog of their annual nationwide and global competitions. we actually set up, we focused on 3d printers and were doing hospital repair of broken parts in the competition which was kind of cool. but that's another excellent model of s.te.m. education, training in all aspects of design including business with this technology. partnering with industry to put up the deep engineering6vmmú ta working and mentor the students outside the school. >> very well. mr. orringer, i wanted to ask you, you hear the bells go off, the vote series was called. fortunately, it looks like we

made it through our hearing. the good news for you is we have a long series of votes so it would keep us away for awhile. i think we will be able to adjourn before we go and vote. we do not -- this subcommittee does not deal with the fda but our full committee does. and it just strikes me as we are talking about things like the templates to build body parts, this really is cutting edge stuff. we have a regulatory agency, yes, they are equipped to tell someone how to go about getting a drug approved, they are equipped to tell someone how to go about getting a device approved but something that sort of blurs the lines between those two areas may be more difficult. so have you had any experience, positive or negative, in dealing with the regulatory side of this on your medical side? >> we are actually certified to

build class one, two and three devices in our facility in colorado which is where our medical modeling facility is placed. and our folks there tell me it's a difficult process. it's difficult to be certified, to be able to manufacture these kinds of components. you probably want that, though, to ensure that we maintain the appropriate levels of quality, safety, et cetera. >> yeah, you want it, but you also want the regulatory agency to be able to provide you or i want the regulatory agency to be able to provide you direction. what are the steps i have to go through, what is the pathway to getting this completed, then the complaint that i will hear frequently is somehow the rules all change along the way, then i've got to go back and recertify or reapply. yes, i want the devices to be

safe. i don't want to hear about things having to be recalled or removed. it's one thing with an automobile. it's a dreadful thing if it's in a child. but we also want to lay out the regulatory pathway for you so that you know and it's predictable that you know the steps and the sequence and you know that when you complete the tasks, that's the end of the process, that it's not an endless back and forth oh, we're going to need more stuff, we didn't ask tyou this, we will need for you to do this for a couple years and come back and see us. when i'm saying that this is your subcommittee, that's the sort of feedback that i need to hear, the committee need to hear, our staff needs to hear. we are anxious to have this be a continuing dialogue because it is -- this is the sort of stuff that's over the horizon but it's really pretty bright. i talk to medical students, the doctors, the kids in medical school today will have tools that no generation of doctors has ever known. that's pretty powerful. >> i appreciate that.

we will certainly keep you posted. i think it's already been discussed, really huge barrier to entry is just that certification process. five to ten years just to introduce a new material, new process into the system. if we can figure out a way to accelerate that process, not only on the aerospace and defense side but in all of our industries, i think the fda as well as the department of defense have a lot to contribute to this area. we would definitely appreciate your help in that, making that dialogue happen. >> thank you. again, thanks to all of you on the panel. it's been a very informative morning. seeing no further members wishing to ask questions, i will thank our witnesses for being here today. before we conclude, i would like to submit the following documents for the record by unanimous consent. statement for the record from the american chemistry council, without objection. so ordered. i would also like to submit a letter from the specialty equipment market association. without objection, so ordered. pursuant to committee rules, i would remind members they have

ten business days to submit additional questions for the record. ask the witnesses to submit their responses to those questions within ten business days upon the receipt of those questions, and without objection, the subcommittee stands adjourned.

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