Montclair State University Brings NJ's First MakerBot Innovation Center To Essex County

Montclair State University and MakerBot, a desktop 3D printing company, have partnered to open a MakerBot Innovation Center at the university’s Feliciano School of Business.

The center, which is located in Montclair State’s new Feliciano School of Business building, houses 35 “state-of-the-art 3D design and printing devices with cloud connectivity,” according to a release.

The facility is the first of its kind in Essex County and New Jersey, the only one in the New York City area, and only the ninth such center in the world, university administrators stated.

Montclair State also is the only university in the nation to have a MakerBot Innovation Center physically located within a school of business.

According to university administrators, the Makerbot Innovation Center will “advance the mission of Montclair State’s Feliciano Center for Entrepreneurship to foster creative ideas and apply intelligent design thinking.”

“3D printing is revolutionizing every industry in every sector around the globe, and it is imperative for tomorrow’s successful leaders and visionaries to be proficient in groundbreaking innovation and technology,” Greg Cant, dean of Montclair State’s Feliciano School of Business said.

Montclair State also will be collaborating with area high schools, including those in Paterson and Montclair, to introduce 9th through 12th grade students to 3D printing and design concepts, university administrators stated.

Working with the New Jersey Manufacturing Extension Program, Montclair State is in the process of also establishing a program to offer rapid prototyping via 3D prints for local small manufacturers.

Photo courtesy of Mike Peters

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