Engineering and science are physical subjects, but much of the teaching happens on whiteboards and screens. Printed models close that gap. They give students something to hold, take apart and test, and they’re far cheaper than buying commercial teaching equipment for every lab bench.
Why physical models help students learn
A gearbox, a heart valve or a crystal lattice is hard to picture from a diagram. When students can rotate a model, see inside a cutaway and connect parts themselves, abstract ideas become concrete. Models also make it easier for a lecturer to show the whole class the same thing at the same time.
Three kinds of printed teaching aids
Curriculum models
Models designed around specific topics, for example mechanical linkages, structural members, molecular structures or anatomical regions. Because they’re printed from digital files, a department can produce identical sets for every group and reprint parts that wear out.
Hands-on lab kits
Durable parts for practical sessions that get handled, assembled and disassembled every term. Material and wall thickness are chosen for repeated use, not just appearance.
Demonstration models
Large-scale or cutaway models for lecture halls, showing internal features that are normally hidden, such as the inside of a pump or the layers of a composite.
Planning a set of models
- Start from the learning outcome. What should students understand after handling the model?
- Decide on scale. Bench models and lecture-hall models need very different sizes.
- Plan for wear. Tell us how often the models will be used so we can choose suitable materials.
- Think in sets. Printing identical sets for groups is efficient, and files can be kept for reprints.
Teaching anatomy? Models printed from real scan data can show cases that are rarely available as specimens. See how anatomical models are used in training.
Working with us
We work with universities and technical colleges to design and produce training models, from a single demonstration piece to sets for a whole class. Read about our education and training service or request training models.