Development of in-house rapid manufacturing of three-dimensional models in maxillofacial surgery.

hree-dimensional imaging and rapid prototyped planning odels provide an excellent diagnostic tool for the assessent of complex facial deformity,1–5 but limitations include he amount of time required,1 particularly in the management f emergency cases,2 and cost.3 The technical and organsational difficulties encountered in the implementation of his technology in a modelling service have already been ddressed.4 Nottingham University Hospital maxillofacial unit has nvested in office-based rapid prototyped technology. We escribe the system and its current applications. Satellite rapid prototyped bureaux are expensive to set p (costly machinery and overheads), rely on wide proviion of services and use by large numbers to make a profit. ffice-based systems are less expensive, require smaller remises and use simpler technology. Choices are limited to hree-dimensional printers (gypsum or starch-based), fused eposition modelling (FDM) systems (ABS plastic-based) or hermojet wax-based. The ZPrinter 310 Plus (Z Corporation, Burlington, Masachusetts, USA) was chosen as it was inexpensive (£25,000), as the fastest build times (4 h for a full skull), and is easy to aintain. It is cost effective (£1/cm3) with low waste, is accuate (±0.1 mm in the Z plane, ±0.2 mm in the X, Y planes), as small proportions and can make hard, soft or flexible odels. It can also be used to identify different types of body issue depending on the predefined threshold setting selected Fig. 1). The main advantage for in-house systems is that the linician, not staff at a bureau, controls the interface with