Sound Bites - Issue #36 - August 2016

On the Cover 
3D Printing - Ushering in a Brave New World

By Gregory van Zuyen
(SMC Community Ed will host a special one-time workshop, "The World of 3D Printing," devoted to exploring the financial and creative potential of 3D printing for home and business. The workshop, taught by Photoshop instructor Gregory van Zuyen, will be held from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 15 in Room 127 at the SMC Bundy Campus, 3171 S. Bundy Dr., Los Angeles. Join us for this exciting day of discovery as we explore the methods, machines, and materials that visionaries are claiming will become our third industrial revolution. He will also teach "Introduction to 3D Printing" Oct. 27 - Dec. 8. For more information, call (310) 434-3400 or email commed@smc.edu.)

Imagine a day when you can repair your car by going on the Internet to download the computer file you need for the new part and printing it out on your home 3D printer. That day is here.

The world as we know it is quickly changing, thanks to the innovations of 3D printing. Everything from food to medical surgery to architecture is being affected by the developments made with printers that can produce objects through the precise application of materials in x, y, and z coordinates. What may be most surprising to people is how much these machines will change business and manufacturing as we know it.

For starters, it is already altering the way companies develop new products. The introduction of 3D printing to the field of engineering is already creating light-year leaps in how products are designed, according to Rich Bernard, director of marketing for Fusion Formatics, a company specializing in the newly developed field of rapid prototyping. In addition to rapid prototyping, Fusion Formatics is also the official representative for MarkForged 3D printers.

Bernard, a Lockheed Martin engineer specializing in material composition, explains how the 3D printing process accelerates the development time of new products, in everything from bicycle parts to running shoes to aeronautical components.

"In the past," said Bernard, "engineering firms would have to portion a good deal of their development money into hiring specialized engineers whose function was to analyze the loads and stresses based on the blueprints of the proposed new product. Now, with these devices, the products can be made, the stress points can be immediately tested and changes to the product design can be made instantly.

"This is because companies no longer have to send their designs out for theoretical testing or have to budget for expensive manufacturing of prototypes that may not be fully ready to go into production," Bernard said. "What used to cost thousands of dollars in product development is now in the hundreds. And getting cheaper. And on top of that, the time frame for development is now in terms of days and hours, not weeks and months."

The reason for these ongoing leaps in advancement is due in part to the continual perfecting of the 3D printers but also to the innovations in the materials these devices are using. Everything from pancake batter to concrete is being poured in unique shapes through the use of precise engineering, creating an array of products. Objects can be now made seamlessly enclosed with moving parts inside. They can be printed in clear plastic, or in a host of colors.

Credit for pioneering the 3D printer industry belongs to Chuck Hull, who patented the process in 1986. Hull formed the company 3D Systems, represented in southern California by Gary Diulio of 3D Rapid Prototyping in Garden Grove.

"The capabilities of the machines are incredible," Diulio said. "There are artists who have purchased the machines to turn out these fantastic creations. Shapes and things that weren't possible before.

Diulio displayed his business card, a two-inch clear plastic machine itself, complete with moving gears. He turned its crank as it spun and pumped pistons on a cam.

"Because these objects can be laid layer-by-layer, the printers can allow for gaps in the layers that make these moving parts possible in a single printing," he noted. "That's how intricate these printers are. It's only a matter now of what can be done with them."

Among the leading industries in using 3D printing is medicine. Because of these devices, doctors have made bold moves to apply them in a host of ways.

Boston Children's Hospital used one to make an exact-size 3D printout of a child's brain to help guide the doctors through the difficult surgery. In Italy, scientists for the company Ira3D are working with new compounds that will allow 3D printed parts to replace bones.

Gregory van Zuyen teaches a variety of design classes, including Photo Shop, Adobe Illustrator, and Design & Publish Your Own Websites. He is an award winning graphic designer and worked as the Creative Director for Language Magazine.

What's New
Instructor Recruitment Fair This Thursday!

from the desk of Alice Meyering
SMC Community Education is hosting its first-ever Instructor Recruitment Fair Thursday, Aug. 25, from 1 pm to 3 pm at the Bundy Campus, 3171 S. Bundy Dr., Los Angeles, 90066. 

The purpose of the fair is to orient potential instructors on the nature of the program, how it functions, and what is required to be part of the program. Since inquiries about teaching for Community Education have increased steadily in recent years, we thought that a recruitment fair would be an excellent way to reach out to interested parties as a group and present teaching opportunities with plenty of time for Q&A.

Individuals interested in attending the event should RSVP to Commed@smc.edu to receive important information prior to the meeting.  Please be sure to include your full name and phone number in the RSVP.         

We are so pleased that such high interest exists in teaching for our program; the community's interest and continued support are what keeps our program and our staff going. This meeting will be a great opportunity for us to incorporate meaningful classes in our program, whether personal or professional development in nature. We hope to expand in the direction that would most benefit our beloved community.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and other social media outlets for our latest news.

Behind the Scenes:
Formula for Success in Property Management

Do you have what it takes to manage rental property? If you are actively looking to purchase a piece of income property, or if you have suddenly become the owner of real estate, find out what you need to know about the most important aspect of rental housing management: keeping the unit occupied with paying tenants who don't destroy it or terrorize the neighbors!

You can learn all this and more in D. Angela Young's upcoming Property Management 101 class.

Learn how to prepare a property for rent, set rents and security deposits, develop a cost-effective marketing campaign, and show your rental unit to prospective tenants. Find out about techniques for good tenant selection, how to meet minimum standards required for a property to be habitable, proper insurance, how to work with contractors for maintenance, and how to deal with tenants who overstay (and don't pay).

Young is a real estate professional actively working in the property management industry since 1996. Currently she manages 729 homes and multi-family properties throughout Los Angeles County. Her real estate career started in 1994 with Century 21 as a realtor. She purchased a few properties and established a management business in 1998.

Angela has grown with the industry, working closely with the Los Angeles Housing Department, Rent Escrow Assistance Program (REAP), Rent Control and Section 8 subsidy, she has helped property owners navigate the paperwork required by the various County agencies for these past 16 years.

Inspired by the challenge to evolve and seeking to create a deeper, more significant experience than just the mere exchange of homes, Angela is committed to providing information and tools anyone can use to be successful managing one property or 200.

What are the rewards of property management?

Having the hands-on experience to oversee all aspects of your property investment is financially rewarding. Acting as manager you control expenses and build relationships with your tenants.

What are the challenges?

Knowing when to be firm and when to loosen the grip.  Community polices are necessary to reinforce but at the same time your residents must feel that their rental is a place they can call home.

With brisk apartment development in L.A., are there good job opportunities in the field at this time?

This question doesn't apply to what I teach, however my background started in large corporate communities.  My class is for the small investor 2-14 units, condos and single-family homes.  There are plenty of job opportunities in the larger environments, working your way up from leasing to community manager.

In Depth
Carmelo & His Students - Inspiration Goes Both Ways

[Part 2 of 2]
Community Ed mosaic art instructor Carmelo Fiannaca has had his share of devastating losses - but the two major constants in his life are his art and his teaching.

With Southern California in the midst of wildfire season, Fiannaca knows how disastrous the blazes can be. In 2007, a fire destroyed the Malibu house he owned with his late wife that had been built in 1937 as a hunting lodge. And he lost a lot of his artwork.

"I still haven't completely recovered from it," he says.

View images of Carmelo Fiannaca's work

But not one to complain, Fiannaca leads a full life in his new home built on the same site. The new Tuscan-style villa is filled indoors and outdoors with his beautiful mosaics, and he continues to get commissions and to create mosaic and other pieces, many of which are Pop Art.

And with five years of teaching experience at Community Ed, he continues to love being in the classroom with students, many of whom inspire him and his work. For example, one of his students created a mosaic violin, which stirred him to make mosaic David Bowie, Jimi Hendrix and other guitars.

"Most of my students are 40 and older and they are very dedicated and take the class seriously," he says.

The students come from all over Southern California - from as far away as Anaheim - and a wide variety of backgrounds. A group of African Americans from South Los Angeles have brought their perspective with them, he says. One student was coming off rehab. Another was fighting depression and found that the mosaic work was relaxing.

"I really love teaching," Fiannaca says. "I feel I'm naturally good at it."

His students agree. "Carmelo is a wonderful teacher," says student Susan Bernard. "He knows his material and he is an inspiration."

Fiannaca has another reason for wanting to teach. "I feel as if mosaic is a dying art, and we need it to survive," he says.

Although most of Fiannaca's artwork is mosaic, he is an accomplished artist in many media. As a child he gained attention through his comics and stories, whose illustrations showed advanced abilities in art. A native of Sicily, he grew up in Italy and Switzerland, and studied art both in a Swiss institute and at SMC.

He designs, fabricates and installs one-of-a-kind mosaics and sculptures for gallery, architectural, community and home settings. He recently completed a three-year-long installation at Duke's Point - the former home of John Wayne - in Newport Beach. His award-winning art is exhibited both nationally and internationally and is represented in private, public and corporate collections.

Fiannaca travels the world and is constantly exploring both classical and cutting-edge mosaics, sculptures and installations. He continues to draw his inspiration from the world around him, and his work reflects many of the masters: Picasso, Gaudi, Warhol, Klimt, Hundertwasse, Nikki de Saint Phalle, Simon Rodia (creator of the Watts Towers), as well as his own Italian mosaic art heritage.

Says Alice Meyering, Program Coordinator of Community & Contract Education, "Carmelo's class proves you can bring mosaic into your life."

Carmelo Fiannaca will teach Introduction to Mosaic Art beginning Sept. 10, Mosaic Art II beginning Sept. 10, and Mosaic Art II beginning Oct. 15. [Click here for part 1 of this article]