3D MAP-MAKER SCULPTS LAND
Firm models mountains, river valleys, towns
Jody Mitchell is part artist, all entrepreneur, and more than a little MacGyver.
Bereft of both experience and training, she ordered a 3D printer to her home in Tumbler Ridge and fashioned an award-winning business making biodegradable topographical maps for governments, First Nations, mining firms and ski resorts.
“I was raised in the north to get things done on my own, tinker around and make things work,” said Mitchell, a self-described nature nerd and tech head.
Good thing, too. Because when her first 3D printer arrived, it was in pieces with no instructions for assembly, at least nothing in English. But after a little head scratching and experimentation, the Flashforge Creator Pro worked. Her company Filaprint was born.
With one of the region’s few 3D printers, Mitchell soon landed a $900 contract to make dinosaur-head finger puppets for the District of Tumbler Ridge. It was almost a good idea.
“I didn’t charge nearly enough for that work. I’m sure I didn’t make any money on it,” she said.
At first, Filaprint made curiouslooking custom cookie cutters, hard-to-find parts, dinosaur teeth, skull replicas — frankly, a lot of stuff that could pass for plastic keychain doodads. But the work allowed her to learn the “art” of 3D printing, working with and enhancing available digital models for printing.
“That’s where I learned my craft, got familiar with the software and started to design things,” she said.
3D printers use digital data to fashion objects from metal, ceramic, wood, and most often plastic. But much of the freely available digital data is flawed — uploaded to the Internet by enthusiastic, but unskilled teens in many cases — which means that operators have to be crafty to accurately replicate objects.
“A lot of it is crap, it has to be repaired,” said Mitchell. “At least 80 per cent of the files that people bring to me for printing are flawed, so I design something myself that is close.”
It wasn’t until she struck on the idea of re-creating the mountain landscapes of northern B.C. that Mitchell was able to combine all her passions — art, the outdoors and technology — into one lucrative business.
“It also allows me to work from home, be a stay-at-home mom, and earn an income,” she said.
Her 3D topographic maps perfectly match the ups and downs of local mountains, river valleys and even towns. Satellite services such as Google Earth, GeoGratis and a dozen others offer free downloadable topographic data.
As with the digital data sets for objects, the freely available satellite data is often flawed. You get what you pay for in this world. She has worked around those problems by merging data with acceptable, but not great, results.
Mitchell now purchases more ac- curate satellite topographic data or partners with drone operator and aerial videographer Brandon Braam of Above Tumbler Ridge to collect her own digital imaging of B.C. mountain ranges, meadows and valleys.
“The drone is able to take a large number of pictures over a certain area and the software stitches them together using GPS readings and builds a 3D model of the landscape,” said Braam. “Jody can then take that model and print it.”
The drone can provide high resolution over an area of about one square kilometre, he said.
Using specialized software, Mitchell cuts the data into slices that can be reproduced by the printer in layers just a few microns thick. The difference between a flat map and her hand-painted, tactile maps is like night and day.
“When you get in the board room, people look at flat topographical maps and they don’t really know what they are looking at,” she said. “It’s a lot of lines and colours, but it’s hard to know what they mean. When it’s in 3D, suddenly it’s clear where a ski lift could go or why a pipeline has to go around because there’s a mountain in the way.”
Filaprint maps are fast becoming a fixture in visitor information centres as trail maps, lobby features for municipal governments, and as public education tools by mining companies. They are also used in trade shows and public hearings.
Mitchell is currently working with Braam to produce an aerial video and 3D map for the District Municipality of Kitimat, a display piece that will take in all the natural features and tourist hot spots in the area.
“Both the video and the land model will really showcase all these amazing places,” she said.
When it’s in 3D, suddenly it’s clear where a ski lift could go or why a pipeline has to go around because there’s a mountain
“I will travel over there with Brandon to get my inspiration for the place, so I can hand-paint their map.”
She is also collecting data for a 3D map showing the topography of an area that is being considered for a liquefied natural gas export facility.
Mitchell makes all her land models from PLA — polylactic acid — a biodegradable, recyclable plastic filament that is made from starch and sugar. It’s the right idea at the right time.
“I do it in a way that isn’t releasing any harmful fumes into my house around my kids,” she said. “That was really a high priority for me.”
When Mitchell presented her business idea to the economic development agency Community Futures, they loved it.
“I had written a business plan and revenue projections and they gave me $5,000, enough to buy my first printer and enough supplies for a year,” she said. “I just walked in off the street as a person who could never get a loan and they said yes and loaned me the money.”
The business community loves the idea, too. Filaprint walked away with the prize for best business concept at the 13th Annual Small Business B.C. Awards last month, a prize that includes access to mentors and resources Mitchell can use to grow her business.
If she wants it to get bigger, that is.
She has recently branched out into consulting, doing setup and training for other businesses that want to acquire and successfully operate their own 3D printers.
“I did two setups yesterday and they are all over northern B.C., so it’s been really hectic,” she said.