A 3D printer is available at Te Hāpua: Halswell Centre, and Tūranga during Creative Times. At New Brighton the 3D printer may be available during Creative Bites depending on the featured projects of the term. Matatiki Hornby Centre's 3D printer is by booking only.

Use our Book a Creative form to arrange a time that suits you to get one-on-one help.

Fill out our 3D printing order form to pick up at New Brighton or Shirley Libraries.

To design your own 3D model, you can use the web-based 3D design software Tinkercad. This is free to use, but requires you to sign up for a user account. Tinkercad has great tutorials starting with how to create simple shapes such as spheres, cubes, cylinders, wedges, pyramids, etc., which you can move, stretch, squash, rotate, twist, make holes in, add text to, and combine in various ways to make increasingly complex shapes. Models are printed in a single colour. We generally have black, white, and grey. If you have no particular preference, we will use the existing filament in the first available printer.

In order for our 3D printer to be able to print your file, you will need to convert your 3D model into an STL file. This is a standard file format for 3D models, and these files always end with “.stl”. As well as exporting your own Tinkercad file as on STL file, you can also find STL files that you can download from various websites, often for free. A useful website for searching for STL files is called Thingiverse, or you could use the search engine Yeggi to search across lots of different sites.

Once you have an STL file that you want to print, we need to convert it into a series of horizontal layers, or slices, that the 3D printer can make. This process is called slicing. Each layer consists of a series of movements of the extruder, which creates a layer of plastic. The printer’s base plate then moves down by a fraction of a millimetre so that the next layer can be added on top. Because layers are added on top of previous layers, we need to make sure that your file can be printed with each layer supporting the one below. This is not the always the case as not every 3D model you find on the internet is designed to be printed.

This is also when we decide:

• Which way up to print your model.
• How big it should be.
• How densely the inside should be filled with plastic.
• Whether to build your model on top of a plastic raft.
• Whether it needs supports to hold up parts of it during printing.

This is a complex process that requires some advanced understanding and experience. It is sometimes necessary to experiment, problem solve, and tweak various settings to find a way to print complex models.

We currently have Prusa i3 MK3 3D printers. The maximum dimensions are shown below, but anything close to this size is likely to exceed our maximum print time of 8 hours. For submitted jobs that exceed this limit, we will get in touch to discuss your options, which could include scaling down, or splitting your model into several smaller parts that can be printed separately.

Prusa i3 MK3 (maximum build volume of 25.0 cm L X cm 21.0 W X cm 21.0 H)

Get ideas for what to make by reading or watching 3D printing resources in our collection.

Photos of 3D printing at libraries

Check Linkedin Learning for courses on 3D printing and modelling designs.

Get ideas for what to make by reading or watching 3D printing resources in our collection.

Purpose

Christchurch City Libraries provides the community with access to new and emerging technologies and equipment such as 3D printers to inspire interest in design and bring customers creations to life. This policy establishes how and under what circumstances the public may access the Christchurch City Libraries 3D Modelling software and 3D Printers. Auahatanga Creative Spaces are places of learning. The purpose of our service is to support upskilling, prototyping, and creating. We support initial design conception, long-life learning, and non-commercial creativity.

Policy

Christchurch City Libraries 3D Printers are available for the public to produce three-dimensional objects in PLA plastic using a design that is uploaded or supplied to the library from a digital computer file.

• The library’s 3D printer may be used only for lawful purposes. The public will not be permitted to use the library’s 3D printer to create material that is:
  • Prohibited by law.
  • Unsafe, harmful, dangerous or poses an immediate threat to the well-being of others. No model or replicate weapons or accessories will be printed.
  • Obscene or otherwise inappropriate for the library environment.
  • In violation of another’s intellectual property rights. For example, the printers should not be used to reproduce material that is subject to copyright, patent, or trademark protection.
• The library reserves the right to refuse any 3D print request.
• Cost: At the time of this publication, the cost is set at 20 cents per gram of filament and $1 printing charge, however, this cost is subject to change at any time. (Rounded to the nearest full gram). For inducted independent users, the $1 printing charge will be waived.
• Only designated Library staff, volunteers or those having completed an induction and have gained a 3D printing licence will have independent access to the 3D printer.
• Only library approved and supplied consumables can be used on library 3D printers, to ensure they remain in working order.

Definitions

3D printing: the process of making a physical object from a digital model.

3D Printer: A 3D printer that uses melted P.L.A. plastic to produce objects designed on a computer.

CAD: Computer-Aided Design.

Procedures

The procedure for printing from the library’s 3D printers is as follows:

Design creation

• The 3D printer can be used coupled with basic knowledge of Computer-Aided Design (CAD) software. Creating a new design requires knowledge of 3D modelling software products. These have inbuilt tutorials to get you started. There are also tutorials available on LinkedIn Learning through the library website.
• Christchurch City Libraries has public computers available for 3D Design use. Tinkercad and Onshape are available on any browser and can be used to create 3D designs that are capable of being printed on our 3D printers.
• Digital designs are also available from various file-sharing databases. Printing priority maybe given to customers that have produced their own model.

Submitting a design for printing

• Library members can fill in the online form on the library website. Staff will review the model to assess printability. The online form can be found on the Christchurch City Libraries website.
• Wait/pickup time: Items must be collected from the library you requested. You will receive an email when your print is ready to be collected.  Items should be collected within 3 weeks, or customer should notify library if they need longer. Library will dispose of uncollected 3D items after 2 months.
  • The files will be readied for printing in Prusa Slicer or other authorized software before printing.
  • The purpose of our service is to support prototyping and printing small quantities. We have a limit of 8 hours for our print jobs, as we will not leave the printers running unattended. (Maximum 4 jobs per individual, per month)
  • Print times can vary depending on size and volume. Please note that during peak times print jobs may take up to 21 working days.
  • We reserve the right to photograph 3D designs for promotional use by Christchurch City Libraries.

Please note that procedures governing the use of the library’s 3D printers are subject to change.

Customers are responsible for understanding their legal obligations under copyright, trademark, patent, and industrial law as well as their moral obligations to protect their own and others' intellectual property.

Our libraries are busy public places, and all prints can be viewed by library users.

See the 3D webpages on Christchurch City Libraries for more information about the 3D printing service.

Customers are responsible for understanding their legal obligations under copyright, trademark, patent, and industrial law as well as their moral obligations to protect their own and others' intellectual property. Our libraries are busy public places. While we will endeavour to do our best to protect the privacy of your work, we cannot guarantee that it will not be seen by other customers. The Library reserves the right to refuse any 3D print request.

Read our 3D Printer Policy and Procedure.