1

Ethical Filament Foundation

Investing in the future of socially sound 3D materials sourcing

2

Objective

• The objective of the EFF is to benefit the world’s 15 million waste pickers who are among the lowest income groups globally, by encouraging the use of ethically sourced recycled materials to meet the rising worldwide demand for 3D printing materials.

• We propose to do this by establishing an ethical filament product standard and associated certification process that ensures the quality of the materials and the ethical sourcing of this material

• Materials that meet these requirements will be able to be branded as such for marketing purposes and to signal the quality and ethical values of the materials to production companies and consumers

• The Ethical Filament Foundation has been established and is embarking on a live proof-of-concept stage over the next 18 months

3

Value Creation

Waste picker’s earnings($0.15/kg)

Typical value creation for filament from recycled plastic

Processed plastic (shredded)($3/kg)

Filament product($30/kg)

The unifying idea

• A unique offering with filament sourced directly from waste picker groups in developing countries

• Filament is produced ethically on a ‘fair trade’ basis, from recycled waste• Enabling the waste pickers to receive more income from the waste they collect

Valu

e ($

/kg)

Material sourced from waste pickers currently makes up 0.5% of cost of filament

4

Background: 3D Printing

• 3D Printing (or additive manufacturing) is a process of converting a digitally designed or scanned object into a tangible three dimensional solid

• Unlike traditional manufacturing, it is an additive process whereby objects are built from the ground up, layer by layer, with no or very limited material waste

• Main end markets are currently healthcare (e.g. about 90% of hearing aids are 3D printed), automotive, industrial (e.g. aerospace) and consumer

• 3D Printing is already a $2bn industry and growing rapidly

• The four segments of the market are: – Systems (the printers)– Parts– Software– Materials

5

In Pictures – some examples

Unique designsSpare parts

And typical filament used…

6

The 3D Printing Market• 3D Printing is a substantial industry already and

set to grow significantly over the new few years

• Total market size estimated to $5bn by 2016

• Materials use expected to double to $1bn+ over next three years

• 3D printing is critical in a range of manufacturing and production environments already

Revenues USD (mn)

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013E

2014E

2015E

2016E

2014-16 CAGR

Systems 332 410 538 618 741 889 1,067 1,281 20%

Materials 218 266 327 423 528 660 825 1,032 25%

Products total

550 676 865 1,040 1,269 1,550 1,893 2,312 22%

Direct parts

184 260 412 624 780 975 1,218 1,523 25%

Service & parts

336 392 440 540 675 844 1,055 1,319 25%

Services total

50 652 852 1,164 1,455 1,818 2,273 2,841 25%

TOTAL 1,070 1,327 1,717 2,204 2,724 3,368 4,166 5,154 24%

Revenues by end market (2012) % USD (mn)

Consumer products 21.8 480

Motor vehicles 18.6 410

Medical/Dental 16.4 361

Industrial machines 13.4 295

Aerospace 10.2 225

Academic 6.8 150

Government/Military 5.2 114

Architectural 3.9 86

Other 3.6 79

Total 100 2,200

Source: Credit Suisse

Source: Wohlers Associates

“…[3D printing] is going to revolutionize design and manufacturing in the 21st century.”

Elon Musk, CEO Tesla, Chairman Space X

“A revolution [that] will change the world as much as the personal computer did”

Chris Anderson (Wired)

7

EFF initial focus: The Consumer Market• The consumer market is moving from

early adopters to the main stream

• Access to 3D printing either through inexpensive printers (<$500) or via high-street businesses

• The 70,000 printers to be sold this year are a tiny fraction of the addressable market and should double in three years 1)

• Materials still dominated by plastics, but metals and other materials growing fast

2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013E0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000

70,000

Uni

ts

Source: Wohlers, Credit Suisse

The two primary concerns about the viability of wide-scale use of low-cost 3-D printing are (1)

print quality and thus the suitability for market applications and (2) the ease of use..

Elsevier Mechatronics June

2013

Consumer printer shipments

2012 Material Sales to End Customers ($420mn) 2)

Photo-polymer

Laser-sintered polymers

Metals

Other

1) & 2) Source: Credit Suisse, Sep 2013

A number of established vendors have transitioned away from machines aimed at hackers and makers into the prosumer domain, where machines and associated services are now being marketed at a business-to-business level

53% of users stated their primary purpose for ownership was related in some way to their livelihood

Econolyst White Paper

A recent survey by Statistical Studies of Peer Production showed object quality the number one area for improvement in 3D printing

8

Sourcing the Materials

• Current materials (the filament) is sourced mainly from virgin (new) plastic

• Using recycled materials for filament production would reduce the need to produce new raw material – estimated to be 1.5 million kilos for consumer use alone in 2014

• There are 15 million waste pickers globally who recycle and sell plastic

• Employing waste pickers can create a reliable source of local supply of sustainable materials

• Working with waste picker organisations is most efficient route to signing up suppliers

• Inconsistent quality is a major issue for 3D producers

• A high-quality, globally consistent production standard requires a certification process that specifies grading of various materials for use in 3D printing

• A clear brand – à la Fair Trade – with recognised economic, environmental and social standards, will build awareness and demand for ethical filaments

• Actions to facilitate and encourage recycling for 3D printing such as reduction of label use and printing directly on bottle.

Input materials Quality & ‘recylability’

Empowering waste pickers by providing fair incomes and higher value jobs

Improve ease of recycling for use in 3d printing and achieve consistent, documented quality for end users

Dual aims:&

9

The Value Chain

Raw materials collection or production

Materials standards and processing requirements

Processing raw materials for filament production

Production of 3D printing materials

Establishing 3D printer operation

Incentivising and training waste pickers to recycle materials

R&D for recycling different materials for 3D printing

Distribution of processed materials

Distribution of printer ready materials

3D printing

Branding and marketing of materials

Lobbying industry and governments

Sales to end-users

Production

Business development EFF directly involved

Outside EFF scope

Potential future role for EFF

Collection and sharing of 3D print designs

10

The Foundation

1. Create and brand an ethical filament production standard and a certification process that guarantees the quality and ethical value of any certified filament to a third party consumer. Certification is process independent and only focuses on the quality of the final product and the social benefit generated in the process.

2. Advertise and market the Ethical Filament Standard and certification process. 3. Promote the concept of recycling to produce Ethical 3D Printing Filament that is sold to improve the

livelihoods of waste pickers and their communities worldwide.4. Sponsor research and development to improve the process for waste recycling at the grass root

level for use in 3D printing. All such research will be released to the Public Domain for use on an unrestricted basis by social benefit organisations.

5. Create an information repository to make public domain information regarding current research easily available to individuals or organizations.

6. Release research to the public domain for use on an unrestricted basis by social benefit organisations.

The Ethical Filament Foundation aims to:

Our Vision:• We believe there is an opportunity to create an environmentally friendly and ethically

produced filament alternative to meet the needs of the rapidly growing 3D Printing market• We also believe that by doing this we can open up a new market for value added products

that can be produced by waste picker groups in low income countries

11

The Next Steps

• Establish the Foundation that will be the guardian and promoter of the ethical filaments brand and production process

• Generate initial industry awareness and buy-in

• Establish partnerships with 2-3 industry partners to conduct a proof-of-concept

• Enlist support and expertise from leading academic institutions

• Engage with investors and funders to raise finance for a proof-of-concept to fund:– Launching the brand and promoting the concept– Materials research to develop an acceptable standard of ethical

recycled filament for the consumer market– Building a working model for entire value chain with a minimum

production output and distribution of 500kg of filament per month– Development of a Blue-print for global roll-out– Basis for funding of the ongoing operation

Key developments next 18 months:

Started

Started http://ethicalfilament.org

Ongoing 3D Print Show London, Amsterdam event, misc. press coverage *

started ProtoPrint in India, Others in discussion

Started Michigan Tech, ICTP Trieste

* http://techcrunch.com/2013/11/07/ethical-additive-manufacturing/