3D Printed Keyring: Seven Years Later

 

In 2018 we produced a series of key rings for various purposes, as shown for a tractor and also several that were for local businesses.

We also used this to resolve a specific problem that we had at our school - we have a student operated PE equipment shed, where students distribute the equipment for the school for general use by the students at lunchtime and return and check off the gear at the end of the break.

This room is accessed by a key but a long term issue has been to ensure that the key is returned each day to the location that is kept at.   When the key was small it was able to be placed in a pocket etc and wasn't necessarily recognisable.

This was the design created by students in 2018.   It is a standard design, that has been produced a number of times.   The print was designed to be oversized as we were having versions of this key be replaced as the key went missing.

The design at the time also had the lettering above the print line, which is something that we have tended to move away from in recent years as the lettering with handling can break off.   The (rugby) football shown in the design is indeed sunk slightly into the base of the design - and this provides it with strength.

Seven years later the print looks like this.    The lettering has survived with some evidence of some loss of structure but this needs to be put in the context of how much the print has been handled.  It has been used by students at the school everyday for seven years, daily.   

At some point someone has taken a pen or marker and shaded in the ball, and there is visible evidence of the fading of the colour (which originally was orange but has now faded to red).   We have seen similar evidence of this with another long term print that we have been monitoring, for years,  which is the numbers that are on display outside for the evacuation assembly area.    These have been in place for a similar level of time in an outside environment.

We have seen a similar level of aging from the outside print - the colour has faded (and been resprayed) but the integrity of the print itself has remained.

We have actually printed a replacement print for the PE shed key, however this has not been in use as it is a backup when the key itself is lost or needs replacing.