EC man, CVTC instructor design 3D printed honeycomb

Aug. 12—BRACKETT — With Wisconsin springs and summers comes the familiar buzz of honey bee season. Hidden in the tall grasses along curved country roads, passersby might notice the odd-yet-familiar sight of nightstand-like wooden beehives poking out of the surrounding greenery across the state.

In Brackett, one such sight is different. In one of two hives, surrounded by a brown picket fence and barbed wire to stave off the bears, sits two rectangles of 3D-printed honeycomb.

Eau Claire resident Ted Simpson, a 57-year-old beekeeper of two years, says those rectangles may be the key to combating decreasing pollination rates around the world. And in a region where honey bee season is particularly short, any "wing up" helps.

"I thought if I could give the bees a little bit more time by giving them some honeycomb in advance, then they could pollinate more," Simpson said. "If I could kick-start the process, that might also encourage more comb construction, as well."

The idea behind the 3D-printed honeycomb came when Simpson, also a driver's ed instructor and school bus driver, tagged along on a student tour of the Chippewa Valley Technical College's Manufacturing Education Center.

"They mentioned that the prototyping lab was available to the general public for small projects," Simpson explained. "And then I looked in and I saw 3D printers, and I went out to my hives and I thought, 'You know, I wonder if we couldn't give the bees some of this by making some fake beeswax so they could get a start.' "

Days later, Simpson returned to the lab and introduced himself to Joe Vydrzal, a CVTC mechanical design instructor. Simpson pitched his idea of 3D printing honeycomb to Vydrzal.

According to Simpson, who keeps his hives in Brackett because he does not have a suitable yard in Eau Claire, clean honeycomb is a number one commodity amongst beekeepers. However, the process of making that honeycomb can take weeks to months for bees to complete. He theorized that, if they printed synthetic honeycomb and coated it in beeswax, the bees would be able to spend more time gathering nectar for honey and pollinating earlier on in the season.

Additionally, Simpson said, the early advantage offered to the bees by the preconstructed honeycomb would reduce stress in Wisconsin's early spring months, which are oftentimes cold and unpredictable.

Vydrzal said in a CVTC news release it was the perfect project to take on.

"I just happened to be at work one day in the prototyping lab and Ted walked in and started talking," Vydrzal said. "I'm a mechanical designer by trade. I'm an instructor, so designing excites me. When Ted said, 'Let's try to create a way for bees to be more productive,' I was all in."

He added in the news release: "This is the testing, right? It's prototyping. It's what we're here for. That's what CVTC is in my mind — helping the community."

Vydrzal could not be reached by the Leader-Telegram for further comment.

Simpson and Vydrzal then went to work brainstorming design ideas. Eventually, the pair settled on two prototypes. At about 4 by 5 inches, each rectangle took approximately five hours to print in mid-July.

Simpson said the reusable prototypes were placed in one of the hives, which he estimates to hold around 50,000 bees, almost two weeks ago. He confirmed that the bees have begun to build their own honeycomb onto the printed comb after checking on the project Thursday morning. However, he said, it is still too early to tell whether or not the bees will use the 3D printed cells for storing honey.

"We're in the Thomas Edison phase of testing the lightbulb," Simpson said. "We really don't know what's going to work. We're going to continue to try and hopefully we'll figure it out. And hopefully we'll inspire other beekeepers and other people who can 3D print to try it themselves."

Simpson also noted that this has been an especially dry season, impacting nectar availability and potentially decreasing honey output. Simpson and his girlfriend, with whom he shares the beehives, gathered over two gallons of honey last summer. Simpson said they keep the honey for themselves or gift it to friends and family.

Should the prototypes prove successful, Simpson said he and Vydrzal aim to create entire frames of 3D-printed honeycomb. Simpson's beehives contains 10 frames in the brood box, or the lower level where the queen reproduces, and another 10 per honey super. Honey supers are additional levels that are added on as honey production increases.

"The beauty of this project is it's really simple," Simpson said. "I hope people try it. I hope a bunch of people go out and give it a shot."