(NaturalNews) The growing popularity of open-source, three-dimensional (3-D) printing technology is now taking shape as a national franchise operation, with the UPS Store leading the charge on this pioneering technology. The all-in-one packing, shipping, and small business solutions chain has announced that it will expand an initial pilot rollout of six stores offering 3-D printing solutions to 100 more stores in response to popular demand.

Customers will now be able to 3-D print innovative prototypes, end products, and various other one-of-a-kind items with ease, all without having to purchase their own 3-D printing machines. Participating UPS Store locations will now be equipped with all the tools necessary to upload specialized 3-D CAD files, for instance, allowing users to print whatever they wish with the touch of a button.

Small business owners are learning that 3-D printing is the wave of the future, offering a decentralized solution for innovation and product development that simply can't be matched with traditional fabrication technologies. Whether you're a home inventor, a business owner, or just a curious techie, the UPS Store's 3-D printing offerings are making it easier than ever to put ideas to life.

"Small business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs will have the opportunity to print prototypes as part of the new product development process," explains a UPS Store announcement about the rollout.

"We've seen aspiring entrepreneurs take an idea to prototype, and then to market. We've seen inventors prototype a robot that interacts with humans by recognizing their voices and speech." With this printer, The UPS Store locations will be equipped to produce items like engineering parts, functional prototypes, acting props, architectural models, fixtures for cameras, lights and cables."

UPS has invested in top-of-the-line 3-D printing machines that cost $20,000 each

Select UPS Store locations, which are listed here, will be equipped with the highly advanced Stratasys uPrint SE Plus 3-D printer, a $20,000 machine that's among the best in its class. The average home user probably wouldn't purchase a machine like this, which makes having one available at your local UPS Store all the more enticing.

"The Stratasys uPrint SE Plus that we use in locations allows us to serve our sophisticated small business customers with precision and reliability that can't be matched with a home printer," says the company.

Sure, you could probably pick up a decent 3-D printer for your home for around $1,000 and potentially gain similar capacity for your needs. But for the average user, this probably doesn't make practical sense, and according to UPS, the Stratasys uPrint SE Plus is capable of producing highly advanced parts that cheaper machines can't produce.

Users can create Food Rising Mini-Farm Grow Boxes using UPS Store 3-D printing machines

If you've been following our work here at Natural News in recent months, you've probably seen some announcements about the Food Rising Mini-Farm Grow Box system for producing food off the grid, and without much resource input. Included in this project are instructions for users to 3-D print the parts they need to build these boxes.

With some UPS Store locations now offering 3-D printing at $30 per cubic inch of material, this may be a viable option for individuals who would rather not invest in a home machine. However, if you plan to 3-D print a lot of parts, or build multiple boxes and experiment with other projects, investing in a home printer like the RepRapPro replicating 3-D printers may be a better option (spools of 3-D printing material range in price, as explained in further detail here):
https://reprappro.com/

To learn more about the Food Rising Mini-Farm Grow Box system and how 3-D printing is changing the world in which we live, visit:
http://www.foodrising.org/

Sources:

http://www.theupsstore.com

http://www.stratasys.com/3d-printers/idea-series/uprint-se-plus

http://www.foodrising.org/

http://money.cnn.com

https://reprappro.com/