Climbing to cruising altitude: Promoting an academic library's 3D printing service

Abstract

Since the main campus library at a regional, public doctoral university implemented a 3D printing service in the fall of 2015, the service has struggled to take off. The campus community has shown tremendous interest in 3D printing technology in the service's first full year, but relatively few patrons have submitted print requests. In response to this turbulence, additional resources for educating and training patrons have been created in an attempt improve access and lower barriers to entry. Library staff have also conducted a broader, campus-wide marketing campaign, began offering additional workshops to further educate the campus community, and worked directly with faculty who may be interested in incorporating 3D printing into course assignments. This paper reports on the various marketing campaigns, methods, and educational programming that have led to the 3D printing service getting up off the ground, and leveraging its 3D printing service to directly support students from the College of Engineering and Technology. Even though the number of print requests have decreased, faculty in the College of Engineering and Technology have used the library as a focal point as their students participated in new projects and have collaborated with the College of Business and the Brody School of Medicine on many experiential learning projects.