The Department of Science and Technology Philippine Council for Industry, Energy, and Emerging

Technology Research and Development (DOST-PCIEERD) agreed to fund one of Pangasinan State University’s project: Establishment of a Solid Freeform Fabrication Research Laboratory (SoFFRel). 

Said laboratory was allocated P 6.5 million pesos to house 3D printing materials with potential applications to metal fabrication for students, faculty, and researchers of PSU. Moreover, facilities for automotive, blacksmithing and metal crafting using solid freeform fabrication will also be provided.  

SoFFRel is the first 3D printing and metalcraft fabrication laboratory in Pangasinan. It is said to be located at PSU Urdaneta, home of the Machine Automation and Technology Innovation Center (MATIC). 

The rapid prototyping and manufacturing technology (RPM), is an integration of many different disciplines. It generates an entity by first forming a series of layers according to the dispersed section information of the digital model, and then piling the formed layers sequentially together.  

Later, with the progress of material and enabling technology, many new RPM techniques emerged out and have been already applied in the fields such as rapid tooling/moulding, direct formed usable part, nano-/micro-RPM, and biomanufacturing.  With all these said, this will enable PSUnians’ to materialize their blueprints relevant to rapid prototyping and manufacturing research(PSU Echoes, Vol XX No.2).