Young Cameroonian designs & builds a functional 3D printer from recycled material
After nearly a year in the TekZone Leadership Development Program, Nervis Nzometia won 1st place and took home the 10 million Fcfa prize money with his project E-Waste 3D Printer. Built with repurposed material such as DVD player motors, plywood and other recycled electronics components, the 3D printer uses the same type of filaments used by other commercial 3D printers. On the software side, Nervis leverages open source architecture making the device robust while maintaining costs low.
Originally designed and built as the project for his final year of engineering school, this device is an ideal candidate for Cameroon’s newly established ICT Innovation Week (ICT stands for Information and Communications Technology). This innovation-driven competition is organized annually since 2019 by the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications (MINPOSTEL) of Cameroon to boost the development of ICT-driven business projects initiated by youths. 2020’s edition of the ICT Innovation Week Had as theme of focus, “Young Cameroonians amidst the challenges of ICT Innovation in a context of health crisis”. The competition aims at providing long-term support for the emergence of a mature and sound digital ecosystem in Cameroon.
This win is a major victory for Nervis who faced multiple odds. With his mother as the sole provider having suffered hardship due to unrest in the region, Nervis had very limited access to the resources. Despite this challenging situation, Nervis persevered not only to bring this device to life, but also by contributing to his community. One of his main goals is to introduce as many kids as he can to robotics.
Below are photos of his design process.
