Securing environmentally friendly manufacturing industries is ideal to reduce cost and waste; support cleaner and greener technologies, and lower the negative impacts of production on society and the environment. Additive manufacturing (AM) has been rapidly developing over the last decade and shows great potential to reduce the need for energy- and resource-intensive manufacturing processes. By disrupting total supply chains; enabling circular economies and creating less material waste, AM is naturally poised to become a great alternative to traditional manufacturing methods, like injection molding and die casting. The rapid design iteration and feedback cycle in 3D printing technologies have even proven to be an ideal and sustainable solution to the complex global and ongoing health pandemic arising from the COVID-19 virus in 2020.

To promote the environmental benefits of AM over traditional methods of manufacturing, leading independent metal AM provider Sintavia launched on November 2019 a trade group for additive manufacturers. Since then, the Additive Manufacturer Green Trade Association (AMGTA) has garnered a great deal of attention encouraging pro-environmental behavior. The group has now announced new AM companies have joined the organization in a bid to advance the technology’s sustainability. The new additions drive up the organization membership base to twelve companies from eight countries, all of them committed to promoting sustainability in the sector.

Sintavia is the only company in the world with Nadcap approvals for laser additive manufacturing, electron beam additive manufacturing, and in-house heat treatment. Image courtesy of Business Wire.

Joining Sintavia as co-founders are the Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corporation, a supplier of stable industrial gases to a wide variety of global industries headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, and QC Laboratories, a subsidiary of Sintavia and an industrial and commercial non-destructive testing laboratory focused on AM components. These co-founders will determine the strategic direction of the AMGTA, provide governance oversight, and consider future research projects that members may vote to commission.

Additionally, nine AM manufacturers will become participating member companies and contribute their expertise to develop best practices for AM, as well as help other organization members grow their businesses and acquire new customers. From Karlskoga, Sweden, Additive Manufacturing Excellence For Industry (AMEXCI), an accelerator for the adoption of additive manufacturing in Nordic industries will become part of the AMGTA family. As well as the Danish AM Hub, Denmark’s national meeting point for the AM ecosystem, strengthening the Danish business community’s competitiveness by promoting the use of 3D printing technology.

The Danish AM Hub Fund supports emerging technologies and sustainability. Image courtesy of Danish AM Hub.

EOS, the world’s leading technology supplier in industrial 3D printing of metals and polymers is also joining in as participating member. So, is GE Additive, another world leader, this time in additive design and manufacturing, a pioneering process that has the power and potential to transform businesses. With three decades of 3D printing experience, software solutions and 3D printing services provider Materialise will provide knowledgeable expertise on open and flexible platforms to enable industry players build innovative 3D printing applications.

The other companies involved include Siemens Digital Industries Software, a driver of design, engineering and manufacturing transformation with its Xcelerator digital enterprise portfolio; leading German provider of industrial metal 3D printing machines SLM Solutions, focused on metal additive manufacturing and multi-laser technology, and Stryker, a leading medical technology company offering innovative products and services in the fields of orthopaedics, medical and surgical, and neurotechnology and spine. Finally, the AMGTA will be joined by the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland (NMIS), a group of industry-led manufacturing research and development facilities transforming skills, productivity and innovation helping to make the country a global leader in advanced manufacturing.

“I’m delighted to welcome each of these esteemed founding members and participating member companies to the AMGTA,” said Sherry Handel, AMGTA’s Executive Director. “Their commitment not only to support the mission of our new trade group, but also their passion for sustainability, well positions the AMGTA to serve as a key industry resource in advancing sustainability in the additive manufacturing industry. I am looking forward to working with each of our member companies as we embark on this exciting and important journey together.”

Handel had previously expressed her enthusiasm over AMGTA’s focus on promoting the inherently positive environmental benefits of AM within key industries and the public at large during a Women in 3D Printing (Wi3DP) virtual sustainability panel on September 2020. At the time, the expert said companies in the AMGTA space could help produce independent research, good reliable data and metrics. For Handel, the existing research does not provide enough good metrics in data, so AMGTA is already commissioning academic research through life-cycle assessment (LCA), to quantify and provide data and metrics on what it takes to produce a particular part via both traditional and AM processes. Eventually, this will help the industry better understand what the eco-footprint is, and reveal some areas that will make it even more sustainable in the future.

With waste from billions of tons of raw material extracted and processed taking a toll on our planet and our health, Handel also suggested there is a huge opportunity to improve manufacturing processes and create a true circular economy. Everyone contribuiting is what going to make it happen, remarked Handel. That is why AMGTA is taking the first steps in thatc direction, towards a more sustainable production life cycle, promoting the environmental benefits of AM within end markets and with the general public as a whole.

One of the world’s top biopolymer producers, Brazilian petrochemical company Braskem (NYSE: BAK) has an indirect wholly owned subsidiary, Braskem America, that’s the leading producer in the US of the thermoplastic polymer polypropylene (PP). The company has previously shown interest in 3D printed aerospace applications, but is now turning its sights to 3D printed prosthetic devices with the launch of its own e-NABLE chapter. We’ve often discussed the heartwarming e-NABLE volunteer community, which has been matching makers with children and adults in need of low-cost 3D printed prosthetic upper limb devices for nearly nine years now. Braskem’s newly established chapter successfully completed the e-NABLE prosthetic device certification process, which means that Braskem’s Pittsburgh Innovation & Technology Center can commence the philanthropic creation of 3D printed, PP-based prosthetic hands.

“On behalf of the entire Braskem team, we are incredibly honored to be partnering with e-NABLE around launching the new Braskem e-NABLE chapter with our world class innovation and technology team in Pittsburgh. The visionary founders at e-NABLE have created a global network of digital humanitarians that are leveraging the latest in material science and technologies to tackle some of the most pressing medical needs for prosthetic devices, particularly in underserved communities that often lack adequate resources and access to proper medical care,” said Jason Vagnozzi, Braskem Additive Manufacturing Leader, North America. “The Braskem team can now bring its polymer science expertise in polypropylene, the primary input to the 3D printed PP Phoenix V3 prosthetic hand, to the benefit of well deserving children and adults in Pennsylvania or anywhere around the globe.  We couldn’t be more excited to kick-off our new e-NABLE Chapter and to start helping change lives for the better.”

Braskem 3D Printed Polypropylene Phoenix V3 Prosthetic Hand. e-NABLE Phoenix Hand v3 designers: Jason Bryant, John Diamond, Scott Darrow, Andreas Bastian, Team Unlimited, e-NABLE France, and Jeremy Simon.

Polypropylene is an ideal material for 3D printing the Phoenix V3 prosthetic hand, which is one of e-NABLE’s most common devices. PP is resistant to household chemicals and cleaners, such as acetone and other nail polish removers, and more lightweight than other filaments, which makes the prosthetic easier to hold all day. It’s also a very durable material, so while 3D printed prosthetic hands made with other filaments can break or crack easily, especially when the temperature is low, the device can hold up well under daily wear and tear when made out of PP. Additionally, Braskem’s polypropylene filament can be safely heated and custom-formed, so that each prosthetic device user can have the best fit.

Because of its vast experience producing PP and 3D printing it, Braskem America will be able to support the e-NABLE community in a big way, putting its manufacturing and materials expertise to work 3D printing PP-based e-NABLE Phoenix V3 prosthetic hands, which will then be provided free of charge to recipients in need not only in Pennsylvania but also around the globe.

Braskem Polypropylene pellets for 3D printing

“We are excited that Braskem has joined the global e-NABLE community as an official chapter!  Indeed, Braskem’s expertise in materials (specifically polypropylene) and 3D printing will bring benefit to the entire community of some 8,000 volunteers and 177 chapters in 51 countries,” said Bob Rieger, e-NABLE Chapter Coordinator. “We look forward to learning more about these materials, and having our volunteers use and maximize their application in helping underserved people and communities with upper body 3D printed prostheses.”

Braskem initially chose to be certified to produce only e-NABLE’s Phoenix V3 prosthetic hand, though it plans to work towards other certifications in the future. This way, the company’s newly launched e-NABLE chapter can print more PP-based prosthetic upper limb devices and grow the number of people it’s able to help.

(Source/Images: Braskem)

Al Siblani is a 3D printing pioneer who got his start over 19 years ago. He worked with layered object manufacturing—the paper, and laser technology—which is a leitmotiv of our podcast and was exceedingly problematic at the time. Subsequently, Siblani founded EnvisionTEC, whose digital light processing (DLP) technology has been a major player in manufacturing, especially for jewelry casts, hearing aids, and dental applications.

We speak to Siblani about his history in 3D printing and how he managed to found his firm. He shares some war stories with us and talks about the current state of EnvisionTEC and the market. He also expresses what he wants to do in the future and how he perceives the market. EnvisionTEC’s development from a one-technology company to one that deploys various different technologies in many markets makes it a versatile, independently held firm. Siblani relays the potential for one particular area, bioprinting specifically. He also talks about the position that being an employee-held company gives the firm and how he sees his independence in the future. All in all, a great story for us and hopefully for you as well. Tell us what you thought of this episode and keep up your suggestions!

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The secret to email marketing campaigns that drive high engagement? Not really a secret. It’s email personalization.

Tailoring emails to your contacts’ needs can have a great impact on your average click-through rates and conversions. But to personalize your messages (beyond using your contact’s name) you need to use dynamic content.

And if you’ve heard this term before, you know that dynamic content syntax can be intimidating, especially if you don’t have much coding experience.

But the truth is, personalizing your emails with dynamic content isn’t that complicated. All you have to do is learn the basics and give it a go. Not convinced? In just a few minutes, you’ll see for yourself.

What is dynamic content in email marketing

The dynamic email content is any element of your marketing message that changes based on your recipient’s information or behavior.

Any time you see an email greeting you by your first name or showing you products that you’ve previously left in your shopping cart – that’s the work of dynamic content.

Why you should use dynamic content

Personalized email communication is one of the best ways to drive higher engagement and return from email marketing.

In the GetResponse Email Marketing Benchmarks study, we also keep seeing that emails using personalization in the subject line or the email body observe higher conversions.

The same goes for sending your email campaigns in response to your recipients’ actions, at the time that works for them best.

But does that mean you can’t send an email blast every once in a while? Not necessarily, but if it’s your long-term strategy, you’re probably not going to be satisfied with your results.

Two ways to use dynamic content

There are two main ways you can use dynamic content in emails. These are variable substitution and content insertion. Here’s how they work.

Variable substitution is about changing some variable (e.g. a word or a link) based on your contact information. 

Most often, marketers use this to greet customers by their first name or to mention their company name.

Content insertion is about inserting entire sections of content – phrases, paragraphs, images.

Typically, you’d use this to show products you customers have left in their cart or might be interested in, based on their previous purchases.

How to use dynamic content in GetResponse

There are a few ways you can personalize your messages using dynamic content in GetResponse and we’ll go through them one by one. You’ll find full technical documentation in our Help Center.

1. Personalizing your email using merge words

You can personalize your emails using something called merge words. These short pieces of code (looking similar to this [[firstname]]) will present any value you have stored for your contact.

For example, [[email]] will display your individual contact’s email address while [[name]] will show their full name.

You can also use the same method if you want to use data stored in your contacts’ custom fields. All you have to do is type the name of the custom field in the square brackets, e.g. [[favorite_sport]], and the appropriate variable will be substituted in its place.

What if you don’t know if every contact has a particular custom field assigned? All you have to do is create a fallback message, e.g. [[customfieldname fallback=”yourfallbackmessage”]

Here’s an example:

You’re planning a weekend sale in your online sports gear store. You’d like to personalize your email subject line using some of the information you’ve gathered about your audience.

You decide to use the information about their favorite sport, which you’ve previously stored in custom fields the following way:

Custom field name: “favorite_sport”

value: “volleyball” for those who like volleyball

value: “basketball” for those who like basketball

and so on.

Here’s what you’ve come up with for the email subject line:

48-hour sale! -70% on all [[favorite_sport fallback=”sports”] equipment!

This way contacts with a custom field value being “basketball” will see:
“48-hour sale! -70% on all basketball equipment!”

Those with “baseball” will see:
“48-hour sale! -70% on all baseball equipment!”

And those who don’t have a custom field value defined yet, will see:

“48-hour sale! -70% on all sports equipment!”

As you can see, merge words are very simple to use. But the best thing is that you can use them in any element of your email. That means you can use merge words to personalize your subject line, preheader, email body, footer, or even an individual CTA button.

Below you’ll see how you can quickly access the list of predefined merge words in the newsletter creator.

2. Personalizing your email using dynamic content syntax

If you want to use slightly more advanced personalization in your emails, then you’ll have to refer to the dynamic content syntax.

Let’s imagine that you have an online store selling products for pets. Dog owners will be interested in different offers than cat owners and you want your offer to reflect that. The same goes for those who own a different kind of pet, or those don’t own any pets at all.

Having first added a custom field “pet” with the value of “cat” or “dog” for individual contacts, you can use the following few lines of code:

Let’s see what happens here.

1. We’re starting off by first setting up the conditions for what will happen if a contact has at least one value for the custom field “pet”

2. Next, we’re specifying the message that dog owners will see.

3. Then we’re choosing what cat owners will see.

4. What about pet owners who don’t own a dog or a cat, but maybe a bird instead? We can specify that too, like in the message below.

5. How about those who don’t own a pet just yet? It’s also specified in the lines below.

Note: This particular condition is preceded by {{ENDIF}} because we had to close the first set of conditions – if A has a dog, or a cat, or some other pet.

Also, since no other scenario is possible (you either have a pet or you don’t) we had to close it by another {{ENDIF}}.

How to add dynamic content to your emails

As you can see, this is a bit more complex, but not all that difficult if you play around with it. One thing that you’re probably now wondering about is how to add this syntax to your message. There are two ways.

The first, simpler method is to just copy and paste it into your text block or any other element you’re planning to personalize, in the email creator. Exactly the same way you’d do with merge words.

The second, more complex method is to add it directly in the HTML editor. Although more advanced, it has some advantages, like the ability to take full control of how your content will be styled, if you’re planning to add your own HTML or CSS styling.

Using this method, you can quickly add multiple elements such as:

• Product images
• Discount codes
• Text paragraphs
• CTA buttons
• URLs

But do note that this a more advanced method that I’d recommend mainly for those who feel confident enough to edit their own HTML code.

What you can achieve with personalization

By now you should feel pretty confident about using dynamic content in your emails. Of course, knowing it isn’t the same as using it. So go on and put that newly-acquired knowledge into practice.

If you’re looking for inspiration, below you’ll find a couple of examples of how brands tailor their content with personalization.

We’ve also prepared a quick guide providing more ideas on how you can target your email campaigns. You can access it through the link below.

WASHINGTON, DC — Se acerca la temporada de festividades y el Servicio Postal de los Estados Unidos invita a los usuarios a planear y hacer sus envíos anticipadamente a amigos y seres queridos asignados en bases militares en tierras lejanas o sirviendo en alta mar.

Para enviar paquetes a bases militares o misiones diplomáticas en el exterior, el Servicio Postal ofrece un precio con descuento de USD 19,60 para la Caja Flat Rate Grande para Priority Mail. Este precio incluye un descuento de USD 1,50 por caja para envíos a destinos internacionales APO/FPO/DPO (Air/Army Post Office/Fleet Post Office/Diplomatic Post Office).

Las cajas Flat Rate para Priority Mail están disponibles sin costo en las sedes de la Oficina Postal y también pueden solicitarse en usps.com. Las estampillas, las etiquetas y los formularios de aduana también se pueden imprimir en línea en cualquier momento utilizando la herramienta Click-N-Ship. Todos los artículos postales se pueden encontrar en store.usps.com/store/home.

Para asegurar que sus saludos para las festividades sean entregados de manera oportuna hasta el 25 de diciembre, el Servicio Postal recomienda que las tarjetas y paquetes sean enviados a las direcciones militares APO/FPO/DPO en el extranjero antes de las fechas de envío relacionadas a continuación.

Utilice el Kit para Atención Militar para enviar obsequios y paquetes

El Servicio Postal creó un Kit para Atención Militar gratuito con base en los artículos que más solicitan las familias de militares. El kit contiene:

• Dos cajas Flat Rate para Priority Mail APO/FPO
• Cuatro cajas Flat Rate para Priority Mail medianas
• Cinta Priority Mail
• Etiquetas de dirección Priority Mail
• Seis sobres para formularios de aduanas

Para solicitar el kit, llame al 800-610-8734. Podrá encontrar indicaciones para empacar, etiquetar y enviar artículos a tropas de los Estados Unidos en store.usps.com/store/product/shipping-supplies/military-care-kit-P_MILITARYKIT. Para solicitar cajas flat-rate con el logotipo "America Supports You", visite usps.com/freeboxes.

Para etiquetar el paquete

• Escriba el nombre completo de la persona en servicio
• Incluya el número de unidad y la dirección APO/FPO/DPO con el código postal de 9 dígitos (en caso de tener uno asignado). Por ejemplo:

Army/Air Post Office (APO)
SOLDADO XX XX
PSC 3 BOX 4120
APO AE 09021

Fleet Post Office (FPO)
SEAMAN JOSEPH SMITH
UNIT 100100 BOX 4120
FPO AP 96691

Diplomatic Post Office (DPO)
MELANIE ADAMS
UNIT 8400 BOX 0000
DPO AE 09498-0048

• En la dirección no debe escribir el nombre del país donde se encuentra asignada la persona en servicio
• Incluya una dirección de remitente
• En una tarjeta dentro de la caja, incluya el nombre y la dirección de la persona en servicio, al igual que el nombre y la dirección del remitente, que servirá en caso de que la etiqueta de envío se deteriore durante el transporte

El Servicio Postal no recibe dinero de impuestos para sus gastos de operación y cuenta únicamente con los ingresos generados por las ventas de productos y servicios postales para financiar sus operaciones.

Importante: Para obtener recursos multimedia del Servicio Postal de los Estados Unidos (entre ellos, videos, audios y fotografías en calidad de publicación), visite la Sala de prensa USPS. Síganos en Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest y LinkedIn. Suscríbase al canal USPS en YouTube, síganos en Facebook y disfrute nuestro Postal Posts blog. Para obtener más información acerca del Servicio Postal, visite usps.com y facts.usps.com.

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What:

The U.S. Postal Service joins the Drug Enforcement Administration to raise awareness about the dangers of drug abuse with the release of the Drug Free USA stamp. The release coincides with Red Ribbon Week, Oct. 23-31, promoting drug abuse prevention.

A pictorial postmark of the first-day-of-issue location, Arlington, VA, is available at usps.com/shopstamps.

News of the stamp is being shared with the hashtag #DrugFreeStamp.

Who:

Louis DeJoy, Postmaster General and Chief Executive Officer, U.S. Postal Service

Timothy Shea, acting administrator, Drug Enforcement Administration

Gary Barksdale, chief postal inspector, U.S. Postal Inspection Service

Peggy Sapp, president, National Family Partnership

Camille Schrier, Miss America 2020

When:

Tuesday, Oct. 27, 10 a.m. EDT

Where:

The stamp dedication ceremony will be livestreamed on the U.S. Postal Service’s Facebook and Twitter pages. The ceremony will not be open to the public to remain in compliance with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance on the COVID-19 pandemic. There will be designated space for media covering the event.

Background:

Red Ribbon Week, which takes place in schools and communities nationwide every year from Oct. 23-31, helps parents as well as teachers, business owners and neighborhood organizations promote drug abuse awareness and prevention.

Participants wear a red ribbon or red to symbolize their dedication to preventing drug abuse. The annual campaign is sponsored by the National Family Partnership.

The Drug Free USA stamp features original artwork by Aaron Draplin. The image of a white star with lines of red, light blue and blue radiating from one side of each of the star’s five points suggests the unity that is necessary at all levels to effectively address drug abuse. The stamp’s background is dark blue. “Drug Free USA” appears above the stamp art, while the stamp’s denomination, “Forever,” appears below it. The year 2020 runs vertically along the bottom right corner of the image.

Greg Breeding designed the stamp and was also the typographer. USPS Stamp Services Director William J. Gicker was the art director.

The Drug Free USA stamp is being issued as a Forever stamp, which will always be equal in value to the current First-Class Mail 1-ounce price.

Postal Products

Customers may purchase stamps and other philatelic products through the Postal Store at usps.com/shop stamps, by calling 800-STAMP24 (800-782-6724), by mail through USA Philatelic, or at Post Office locations nationwide.

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

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WASHINGTON, DC — It’s important to practice good safety protocols all day, every day. But it’s especially important during the holiday season. There’s so much to do to get ready — with all the decorating, shopping and cooking — sometimes people lose sight of common hazards that could ruin the holidays.

For the U.S. Postal Service, the safety of our employees and the communities we serve is always a top priority. We have some tips that will not only help keep our carriers safe as they deliver your holiday gifts, but you and your family as well.

Keeping Postal Service Employees Safe

In addition to making sure your carrier has a clear path to your door, there are other ways to keep both your carrier and other Postal Service employees safe during the holidays and year-round.

• Don’t overpack boxes. Not only could the box burst open, but overweight/overstuffed boxes can cause injuries. Items should easily fit within the box you’ve selected without bulging out the sides or ripping the seams of the box. If you can’t fit everything in one box, consider getting a bigger size or send in multiple shipments. Customers can get free Priority Mail and Priority Mail Express boxes, in a wide variety of sizes, at their local Post Office.
• Don’t send restricted items such as alcohol or alcoholic-based materials such as colognes and perfumes; aerosols; or fireworks. Please see our website or ask a Postal Service employee for more information on restricted items.
• If applicable, remove replaceable batteries from any battery-operated device. Wrap and place them next to the items in the package. Customers should include new batteries in the unopened, original manufacturer’s packaging if possible.

“Safety is important no matter the time of year. But even the most safety-conscious person could  forget simple, quick safety checks during the hustle and bustle that is the holiday season,” said USPS Occupational Safety and Health Senior Director Linda DeCarlo. “Try to set aside a few minutes each day to look for, and correct, potential hazards in and around your home. Those few minutes could be the difference between a happy holiday or an unhappy one.”

In and Around the House

There are many things you can do to help prevent or reduce injuries throughout the holidays. While cooking, always turn pot handles toward the back of the stove to prevent accidentally bumping them and causing spills, keep kids at least 3 feet away from the stove and supervised at all times, and make sure anything that can catch on fire is kept away from a hot stove.

If you’re outside, take care to clear any snow or ice on steps, sidewalks and driveways, and around your mailbox. Also make sure to salt the cleared areas to prevent refreezing.

Snow and ice may not be an issue for you, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have to watch for outside hazards. Yard equipment, toys and yard trimmings on the lawn, walkways or steps can cause a tripping hazard or serious injury. It may be easy for homeowners to notice and avoid such hazards, but your letter carrier may not. Many times, carriers may have their hands full of packages and could miss seeing obstacles in their path. It only takes a few moments to make sure your yard and sidewalks are clear of hazards to keep everyone safe.

Furry Family

We love our furry family members. They provide a lifetime of joy. But even the best-behaved dogs, and even cats, can pose an unfortunate hazard to people they don’t know.

More than 5,800 postal employees and a staggering 4.5 million Americans were attacked by dogs last year. Many attacks could be avoided if dog owners would take a few extra moments of precaution. The Postal Service participates in National Dog Bite Awareness Week every year and here are a few tips to keep you, your carrier and your dog safe during the holidays and year-round.

• If a carrier delivers mail or packages to your front door, place your dog in a separate room and close that door before opening the front door. Some dogs burst through screen doors or plate-glass windows to attack visitors. Dog owners should keep the family pet secured.
• Parents should remind their children and other family members not to take mail directly from carriers in the presence of the family pet, as the dog may view the person handing mail to a family member as a threatening gesture.
• The Postal Service places the safety of its employees as a top priority. If a carrier feels threatened by a dog, or if a dog is loose or unleashed, the owner may be asked to pick up mail at a Post Office until the carrier is assured the pet has been restrained. If a dog is roaming the neighborhood, the pet owner’s neighbors also may be asked to pick up their mail at the area’s Post Office location.

Additional holiday news and information, including all domestic, international and military mailing and shipping deadlines, can be found at the Postal Service Holiday Newsroom: usps.com/holidaynews.

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

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WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. Postal Service issued the Our Lady of Guápulo stamp today. This Forever stamp was dedicated in a virtual ceremony and is now being sold at Post Office locations nationwide and online at usps.com/guapulostamp.

News of the stamps is being shared on social media using the hashtags #ChristmasStamps and #ReligiousStamps.

“The Postal Service is delighted to present this Christmas stamp, Our Lady of Guápulo, which continues our tradition of Madonna and Child stamps,” said USPS dedicating official Angela Curtis, vice president, Retail and Post Office Operations. “Beginning today, this gorgeous stamp is available to use for your holiday cards and packages.”

Curtis was joined for the ceremony by Tey Marianna Nunn, director and chief curator of the Art Museum and Visual Arts Program, National Hispanic Cultural Center. The virtual stamp event can be viewed on the Postal Service Facebook and Twitter pages.

The painting “Our Lady of Guápulo” was created in the 18th century by an unknown artist in Cuzco, Peru, the former capital of the Inca Empire. Historians characterize the artists at this time as members of the Cuzco school. Between the 16th and 18th centuries, European painters worked with indigenous artists in and around Cuzco. The Europeans trained local artists in styles and forms that dominated European countries at the end of the Renaissance period and during the Baroque era.

“Our Lady of Guápulo” reflects a local variant of the Virgin of Guadalupe in Extremadura, Spain. The figure venerated as Our Lady of Guápulo originated as a sculpture, commissioned in Quito, Ecuador, in 1584 and transferred to a chapel in the nearby village of Guápulo in 1587. Closely resembling the Spanish holy image from which she originated, the statue was credited with many miracles. Represented by many artists since then, she is often portrayed dressed in an ornate, pyramidal robe fastened with a rosary, holding a flowered scepter in one hand and the Christ Child in the other.

Art Director Greg Breeding designed the stamp.

The stamps are being issued as Forever stamps, which will always be equal in value to the current First-Class Mail 1‑ounce price.

A pictorial postmark of the First Day of Issue location, New York City, is available at usps.com/shopstamps.

Postal Products

Customers may purchase stamps and other philatelic products through the Postal Store at usps.com/shopstamps, by calling 800-STAMP24 (800-782-6724), by mail through USA Philatelic, or at Post Office locations nationwide.

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

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Founded in 2007, Local Motors is a ground mobility company that’s focused on developing methods of designing and building transportation. The company runs microfactories in its home state of Arizona, as well as Tennessee, Maryland, and Berlin, and has used 3D printing to make several vehicles, such as the Strati, the LM3D Swim, and the electric, self-driving Olli shuttle. Olli has been successfully deployed in a number of places around the world, including Saudi Arabia, Germany, Italy, Washington D.C., Ohio, New York, California, and more.

Turin, Italy: Through May of 2020, employees and guests of the UN ITC-ILO campus were able to take a ride on Olli, while the self-driving vehicle gathered valuable data and insight from operating in real urban conditions.

Local Motors is actually one of two subsidiaries under parent company LM Industries (LMI), which calls itself the world’s first digital vehicle manufacturer and was named to Fast Company’s 2020 list of the World’s Most Innovative Companies for Shaping the Future of Mobility this spring. LMI has just announced that it received $15 million in funding from Mirai Creation Fund II, which is managed by Japanese asset management firm SPARX Group Co., Ltd and invests in innovative technologies in the fields of robotics, intelligent technologies, hydrogen-economy technologies, electrification, and new materials.

“Local Motors has a unique advantage to quickly deliver impactful products that can revolutionize the automotive and mobility industry. At a time when the world is changing faster than ever, we’re thrilled to be working with a company that can evolve with it,” Seiji Miyasaka, President of SPARX Group’s US subsidiary and new Local Motors board member SPARX Capital Investments, Inc., said in a press release.

Since Local Motors began series production for the latest iteration of the Olli—the third generation Olli 2.0—LMI says that there’s been a “significant resurgence” in interest from people looking for safe, reliable transportation.

“We share a dream with SPARX Group to completely reimagine the mobility and automotive industry, with the goal to truly move society forward in a profound way. Delivering innovative and locally relevant vehicles and mobility solutions has been at the core of our company from the beginning, and we look forward to pushing the industry to be a more clean, customer-centric business,” Jay Rogers, the Co-Founder and CEO of Local Motors, explained in the release. “SPARX’s investment, which includes Toyota Motor Corporation and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation as seed LPs for the Mirai Creation Fund II, proves that our commitment to low-speed autonomy and digital manufacturing can make a direct impact in the world through cleaner manufacturing and better mobility experiences for all.”

The funding comes two years after Local Motors secured over $1 billion in financing for Olli customers from sustainable transportation leasing company Xcelerate and Elite Transportation Services. This latest $15 million raise from SPARX will be used to move product development along for the autonomous 3D printed Olli, as well as drive production and deployment for the shuttle, getting it to the consumers and customers looking to change up local mobility in a major way.

This is all well and good, but we had some questions. Over the years, LMI has changed its direction multiple times, focusing on both 3D printed public transportation and private passenger cars, open source vehicles, and even a crowdsourcing design site for branded competitions through its global community of designers and engineers, Launch Forth, which is also the company’s social media and co-development platform. We wondered if perhaps LMI raised this $15 million to pay the bills so it could keep trucking, especially during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. So we reached out to Rogers to ask about some of the company’s developments in regards to a possible change of focus.

“Throughout the course of the pandemic, Local Motors has been incredibly nimble and adaptable to our new constantly-evolving reality,” Rogers told 3DPrint.com in an email. “Luckily, our microfactories and 3D-printing manufacturing process gives us a competitive edge to be especially adaptable. Today, we are committed to delivering innovative and locally relevant vehicles and other mobility solutions that have been consistent with our company vision since its origin. Now, as we assess a future throughout and beyond the pandemic, our current focus is to continue commercializing Olli through strategic deployments with key partners in our priority communities.”

With the focus clearly to be on Olli for the near future, we wondered if LMI would be pursuing personal 3D printed vehicles any longer, or would instead dedicate its resources solely to forms of mass transit.

“As the world’s first and only digital vehicle manufacturer, we remain committed to leveraging one of the world’s largest 3D printers and our expertise to drive innovation around additive and subtractive manufacturing. The speed and adaptability of 3D-printing allows us to be incredibly responsive to customers’ constantly changing needs, so thankfully we will always be in a position to meet demand,” Rogers told us.

That doesn’t directly answer the question of whether or not LMI will stop 3D printing personal vehicles in lieu of mass transit solutions, but it seems like Rogers is confident that the company could focus on both if needed. We also asked what the company’s current financial situation was like, and if LMI has been generally profitable in its other projects.

“We were thrilled to announce the capital raise, and we look forward to continuing to build off of it to drive product development, production and expansion of Olli,” Rogers told 3DPrint.com. “Throughout the course of the pandemic, we have launched Olli in locations such as Jacksonville, Florida and Ghent, Belgium, with more international and domestic deployments planned for later this year and into 2021. While we do not disclose our revenue or profitability metrics as a private company, we remain focused on creating shareholder value that aligns with our business plan.”

Finally, while writing this story, we also noticed that the Launch Forth URL automatically redirects to the Local Motors website, so we wondered if that site was now defunct.

“Like many other companies over the past several months, Local Motors has been forced to make difficult decisions to prioritize immediate business needs,” Rogers told us. “While we did shut down Launch Forth and launchforth.io, co-creation and community remain at the core of our company. We are committed to being an open innovation company that leverages an ecosystem of innovators to consistently meet the demands of our customers, and deliver the products they need most.”

One thing is for sure: no matter what exactly is going on behind the scenes with LMI, Local Motors is continuing to address the demand for clean, safe autonomy. The company has been working hard this year, despite the pandemic, to validate the safety of its vehicles and prove that their 3D printed structure performs just as well during a crash test as vehicles made with conventional manufacturing. This summer, it also announced a partnership with Florida-based Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) provider Beep, and is planning to deploy hundreds of its autonomous vehicles there in the near future.

“Our partnership with Beep, improved crash testing process, and distinct manufacturing method puts Local Motors in a unique position capable of meeting consumers’ constantly changing needs around the world today and in the future. This funding will help propel our vision forward, and continue making a difference in our communities,” Rogers said.

(Source: Business Insider / Images: Local Motors)