Objet shows off 3D printing prowess with printed Fenway Park replica

dlpmagazine.com-2012-05-01, Issue 5

In commemoration of the 100th anniversary of Fenway Park in Boston, Objet Ltd., produced this massive replication of the Boston Red Sox's ballpark on an Objet Connex500 multi-material 3D printer.

In commemoration of the 100th anniversary of Fenway Park in Boston, Objet Ltd., produced this massive replication of the Boston Red Sox's ballpark on an Objet Connex500 multi-material 3D printer.

The 3D CAD modeling was based on blueprints and up-to-date images of the legendary stadium. Measuring 3-feet by 50-feet the model includes all of Fenway's storied details from the Green Monster in left field, to Pesky Pole, the exact number of lights illuminating night games and even the red Ted Williams seat in right field.

Printed in 40 sections that were assembled to create the complete model, the replica was produced at Objet headquarters in Billerica, Mass. The final model weighs 105 pounds and measures out to be 1/200th of the size of the actual ballpark which serves as a shrine to the legions of Red Sox fans and the home to the ballclub to this day.

The model debuted April 19 at the ballpark and has since been donated to the Boston Sports Museum. Before that it was featured on Fox News and toured other Boston locales.

“As longtime Red Sox fans, and frequent visitors to Fenway, we wanted to celebrate this historic event by sharing something that all fans could appreciate,’’ said Bruce Bradshaw, Director of U.S. Marketing for Objet in a press release. “Objet’s printers are used by architecture firms around the world to create incredibly detailed models in mere hours rather than weeks; so it seemed a natural fit for us to use this technology to recreate Fenway and deliver it to people throughout Boston.”

While this model was created with the company's largest printer which is often used for creating architectural models, the company's Eden260V printer is used in the dental space for printing models and other lab products. 3D printing remains an exciting and emerging technology for just about every manufacturing industry, and it is exciting to see where these printers are heading.