Books

3D Printing

3D Printing

Purpose

The Desoto Parish Library, as part of its mission to inform, educate, entertain, and enrich, provides community access to emerging technologies such as 3D printing.  3D printing is the process of making a three-dimensional physical object from a digital design. The Library’s 3D printer uses melted thermoplastic to make objects from a digital computer file. 3D printing is a rapidly expanding field, and is expected to be a highly disruptive movement. It is our hope that, like knowledge in a book can expand one’s horizons, providing this technology might unlock new possibilities for our patrons and improve information literacy in our community. We believe that all DeSoto Parish residents should have access to emerging technologies regardless of their age, race, circumstances, background, socioeconomic status, education, or religion.

Policy

The Library’s 3D printer is available to the public to make three-dimensional objects in plastic using a design that is uploaded from a digital computer file.  Click here to view our 3D Printing policy.

Use of the 3D Printer

The Library’s 3D printing service is only available to DeSoto Parish Library patrons in good standing. The Library’s 3D printer shall be used for lawful purposes only.

Patrons shall not be permitted to use the Library’s 3D printer to create material that is:

  • Prohibited by local, state, or federal law.
  • Unsafe, harmful, dangerous, or poses an immediate threat to the well-being of others. Such use may violate the terms of use of the manufacturer.
  • Obscene or otherwise inappropriate for the library environment.
  • In violation of another’s intellectual property rights (e.g. materials that are subject to copyright, patent, or trademark protection).

Design Responsibility

Patrons are responsible for their designs.  Staff does not correct errors or modify designs.  If the conversion software declares the design is unprintable, or that it has serious errors, the patron is notified that the object is unprintable and that their flash drive may be picked up with no cost to the patron.

The patron pays for the object before it is released to the patron.  Refunds are not given for objects that do not print as the patron expected or desired.  The patron is not charged for failed prints caused by staff error or hardware failure.

Library staff will review every object file before it is printed, and Library reserves the right to refuse or delay any 3D print request.

Printing

  • Cost: $.07 per gram of filament used in the printing process, with an additional $2.00 setup fee per print job.  Prices are subject to change at any time.
  • Payment for 3D prints shall be made before receiving a completed print. 3D prints will only be released to the individual who printed the item, or an authorized user listed on their library account.
  • Objects must be picked up by the patron who submitted the print request.  3D prints which are not picked up within 30 days of print completion will become property of the DeSoto Parish Library.
  • Turn-around time on prints cannot be guaranteed.
  • Objects are generally printed in the order submitted.
  • Objects are printed only in the color offered by the Library at the time of printing.
  • Patrons are responsible for any desired post processing for their object such as filing or removing support plastic.
  • Patrons may 3D print any object for education, research, or personal hobbies. The 3D printing service is not designed for production use.  For example, print requests for large numbers of identical objects will not be accepted.
  • The library does not guarantee complete customer privacy during the 3-D printing process as printing may be done in a public space

 

Subscribe to our email newsletter to receive updates

Site Designed by Martin Creative.

Site Built by James Bobbitt.