NASA And 3D Printing: How NASA 3D Prints Tools in Space

In 2016, NASA 3D printed a multitool aboard the International Space Station that had been designed by a teenage high school student. The multi-purpose precision maintenance tool (MPMT) is a fantastic illustration of what 3D printing can do, as well as being an inspiring engineering story.

As 3D printing grows more commonplace and more capable, it's opening up new possibilities for manufacturing and design, particularly in 3D printing tools for different applications. What could be a more exciting frontier than 3D printing tools in space?

At Accu, we’re used to boldly going where no screw supplier has gone before. We offer our entire range of precision fasteners coupled with CAD files ready to be 3D printed. We’re keen to see how others are innovating in the space, or, in this case, actual space, so in this article we're exploring how NASA uses 3D printing to make the tools it needs in orbit, how far NASA 3D printing has come in a decade and what the technology might make possible next.

Contents:

• Exploring the Multi-Purpose Precision Maintenance Tool: NASA's 3D Printed Multitool

• How to 3D Print Tools in Zero Gravity

• Why NASA 3D Printing Matters

• A Decade On: From Polymer to Metal 3D Printing

• A Decade of In-Space Manufacturing Milestones

• Key Takeaways

• FAQs

 

Exploring the Multi-Purpose Precision Maintenance Tool: NASA's 3D Printed Multitool

The story behind the multi-purpose precision maintenance tool is as interesting as the tool itself. Contrary to what you might think, it wasn’t actually designed by NASA but by a high school student named Robert Hillan from Enterprise, Alabama. His design was chosen from the thousands of entries for the Future Engineers Space Tool design contest in 2014. The contest, run as a collaboration between NASA's Advanced Exploration Systems Division and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Foundation, sought to encourage the next generation of engineers and space enthusiasts to reimagine what a multitool might look like for zero-gravity applications. 

Hillan’s design, which you can see below, incorporates many useful tools and design tricks into one extraordinary package:

 

 

The multi-purpose precision maintenance tool features:

• Imperial-sized sockets for fastening hex nuts.

• Wire strippers.

• Metric ruler.

• Wire measuring gauge holes.

• ¼ inch and ⅜ inch drives for attaching different sockets.

• An ergonomic grip.

• Space to attach Velcro for secure retention of the tool and a hole to accommodate a carabiner for attachment, if preferred.

• A low overall weight, around 31 g, depending on the material used.

• The option to be printed in a range of materials to suit the application.

The genius of Hillan’s design is that it not only solves several engineering challenges associated with routine maintenance, but also cleverly adapts to the challenges of living and working aboard an orbiting spacecraft. 

Adjustable tools require moving parts, but that introduces additional tolerances, complications and room for wear, all of which add up to opportunities for failure. There are no moving parts on the MPMT, everything is moulded to the tool so can’t inadvertently come free. Aboard a spaceship in zero gravity, loose parts can quickly become lost or, worse still, become Foreign Object Debris (FOD). FOD is a major risk to exposed mechanical elements and delicate electronics. 

This also ties into the need for the Velcro and carabiner attachment points, which provide a way to secure the tool. Pockets don’t work in zero gravity like they do on Earth, tools need to be secured by affixing them to something. The attachment points are a smart way to stop the tool from floating off between uses.

Lastly, look at the shape of the tool itself. It’s boxy, despite the considered ergonomic grip. But the shape is no accident, it’s cleverly designed around single-handed use. Why? Because when you’re working in zero gravity, you need to anchor yourself to something in order to be able to actually use a tool. You can’t turn a screwdriver if the action of doing so instead causes your whole body to revolve and tumble. So, the multi-purpose precision maintenance tool allows you to keep a hand free to hold a bulkhead, handle or supporting strut while you tighten a nut, drive a screw or strip a wire.

It’s features like these, beyond just the practicalities of the tool itself, that make the MPMT such an engineering marvel. The file itself is also tiny, which allows it to be sent through a very familiar delivery mechanism: email. The file was sent as an attachment through a wireless data link all the way up to the ISS, where it could be downloaded and printed directly.

We’ve built a comparison table that illustrates how the multi-purpose precision maintenance tool and its features stack up against its more traditional counterparts:

It's worth remembering that resupply is never quick. NASA's launch schedule is tightly booked and SpaceX cargo flights are reserved months in advance, so any tool that isn't already aboard the ISS could take months to arrive. If something breaks or the crew needs a tool they don't have to hand, printing it on demand turns a potential months-long wait into a matter of hours.

How to 3D Print Tools in Zero Gravity

Hillan's design solved plenty of engineering problems on paper, but one enormous obstacle remained before it could be used: actually 3D printing a tool in space.

As part of the challenge, the winning design had to make its way up to the ISS, independent of any rocket launch. Using digital file transfer, the design was transmitted to the station, where the 3D printers in the Additive Manufacturing Facility (AMF) manufactured it.

3D printers in orbit are remarkably similar to their earthbound equivalents. They both use the same process, known as FDM (Fused Deposition Modelling).

FDM involves passing a plastic filament through a high-temperature precision nozzle, which is part of the printer toolhead. The toolhead moves on a three-dimensional axis to extrude the heated filament, building up the design in horizontal layers. This isn’t a new technology, but it had only been a theoretical possibility to use it in space up until the first microgravity prints were achieved in 2014.

There are some challenges to printing in zero gravity that aren’t present on Earth.

• Layer adhesion in microgravity: Gravity itself assists in the layering process, helping to keep the extruded plastic in place while it bonds. Without gravitational settling, layer bonding relies entirely on thermal control of the extruded bead and the print bed. The AMF uses a heated build chamber to maintain inter-layer temperature.

• Material containment: Material control is even more essential, as without gravity there’s potential for loose plastic to simply float away after it’s extruded. To solve this, the AMF prints inside a sealed enclosure, which isn't just for crew safety from heated polymer fumes but protects delicate instrumentation aboard the ISS from stray filament. 

• Convection: Heat dissipation from the printer is also a challenge that must be considered, as well as working with extremely limited supplies. On Earth, hot air rises away from a print, cooling the extruded layer. In microgravity, however, there is no natural convection. The AMF uses forced air circulation to manage this. Without it, the print head would sit inside a bubble of its own heat. 

Thankfully, the AMF printers are geared to solve these challenges. The print was a success and the multi-purpose precision maintenance tool has been put to use. It represents not just a fantastic way to engage future engineers but also opens up new and compelling options for low Earth orbit manufacturing.

 

Why NASA 3D Printing Matters

So, why does NASA 3D printing tools in space matter? The answer is one of utility and possibility.

One of the biggest challenges of space exploration is that, for an object to be available in space, it first has to get there. That might sound obvious, but when you’re dealing with launching spacecraft, it becomes a logistical nightmare.

On Earth, this is a solved problem. An engineer who needs a specific fastener can have it on the bench next day using AccuPro. In orbit, none of that supply chain exists… yet.

For a rocket launch, every single aspect and dimension of an object has to be accounted for and carefully engineered around. Not only does it take up space, which is already at an enormous premium, but it adds weight. That weight requires additional thrust to lift, which in turn necessitates more fuel. 

Every kilogram has a significant impact on the cost of reaching orbit and beyond. A kilogram of cargo launched to the ISS costs upwards of $20,000 to ship, according to NASA figures. This means a box of spare spanners shipped on the off-chance they might be needed represents tens of thousands of dollars tied up in 'just in case'. 

What all this means is that everything that goes to space has to earn its place. As much as it’s a joy to have a workshop stocked with every conceivable size of spanner or allen key, or multiple spares of every fastener, aboard an orbital spacecraft or a space station, it’s simply not possible.

Which is where 3D printing comes in. Rather than take spares of everything as a redundancy, once a need is identified for a tool or a component, it can be printed in the AMF. Rather than gamble on what might be needed and try to second-guess component failures or maintenance requirements, NASA can 3D print them as required. If a tool broke before now, it would be months of waiting before they could get a replacement. With this technology, they can make a new one on the printer in a matter of hours.

Not only is this far more practical, but it also cuts down on weight considerably. Instead of storing multiple spare tools, components and fasteners, NASA 3D prints them. This comes out of their stock of filament, which allows them to maintain a library of potentially thousands of possible items without needing to store, organise and maintain them.

 

A Decade On: From Polymer to Metal 3D Printing

Of course, not all tools or components can be made from plastic. Even high-performance engineering grades like ABS, used to print the multi-purpose precision maintenance tool, have their trade-offs. NASA tools must be made from a variety of materials, with metal being required for more strenuous and specialist applications.

Significant advances in 3D printing technology now mean that being able to print in metal rather than plastic is no longer science fiction. Unlike FDM printing, metal can be 3D printed using a process called Directed Energy Deposition. The metal, instead of a filament, arrives through the toolhead in a powder or wire form, where it’s melted and fused into a solid with a laser.

3D printed metal components are available in different alloys, depending on the requirements of the application. Titanium, aluminium and steel can all be used in an appropriate printer to produce a variety of tools or components.

What’s notable here, and how it relates to 3D printing things beyond the NASA multitool, is that it’s already in place. The Additive Manufacturing Facility has already been upgraded multiple times since its initial installation and, in 2024, the ISS took delivery of a 3D printer capable of printing metal objects. They’re already using it to produce test prints, so it isn’t a theoretical idea anymore. It’s a practical reality.

It’s a hugely important step. With all the durability of polymers like ABS, they can’t stand up to the conditions present on the outside of a spacecraft. Temperatures can vary between -150 °C in shadow and +120 °C when exposed to direct sunlight in low Earth orbit. Under such conditions, polymers would suffer creep at best or shatter at worst, meaning metal is the only material capable of withstanding the thermal fluctuations. It’s the only viable choice to produce replacement parts that can function under extreme load.

What's Next: The Decade Ahead for In-Orbit Manufacturing

If the first ten years of in-orbit manufacturing answered "can we?", the next ten will answer "how much?", "how big?" and "how far from Earth?" The multi-purpose precision maintenance tool proved that a polymer tool could be designed on Earth and printed on demand in space. The 2024 metal printer proved the same workflow could handle structural alloys through metal printing. Each milestone has shortened the gap between an engineer thinking of a part and an astronaut holding it. The work now is about closing that gap further and moving the workflow further from low Earth orbit.

Bigger Structures, Printed in Orbit

The natural progression is from printing tools to printing structural hardware. Trusses, antenna booms, support brackets and habitat panels are all candidates, particularly when they’re too large to fit in cargo for launch in their final form. Programmes such as Made In Space's Archinaut, since acquired by Redwire, have already extruded structural beams in vacuum chamber tests to simulate zero-gravity environments. The engineering payoff is significant as components built in orbit can be designed for the loads they actually face there, rather than the far higher loads of launch.

Closed-Loop Materials and Recycling

The 2019 Refabricator experiment proved that polymer waste on the ISS can be reground and re-extruded into fresh filament for 3D printing. Scaled up, this is the first step toward a circular materials economy in orbit. For Mars-bound missions, where every kilogram of feedstock is shipped at vast cost, recycling becomes even more essential. Failed prints or even tools that have served their purpose and aren’t required anymore can be recycled to become tools with new purposes.

Lunar and Martian Manufacturing

This is where the technology becomes genuinely transformative. NASA's Moon-to-Mars architecture has surfaced serious research into regolith-based construction, using lunar or Martian dust as raw material instead of aggregates shipped from Earth, similar to what’s already been used in concrete 3D printing. Habitats, landing pads and radiation shelters are all on the table. Terrestrial trials with regolith simulants are already producing structurally sound test prints.

The End of the Resupply Problem

The economic argument that justified the MPMT only gains weight the further a mission travels from Earth. A broken bracket on the ISS is an inconvenience. The same break on a Mars-bound vehicle is mission-critical, with no resupply option. In-orbit manufacturing is not just useful for long-duration missions. It may just be the only viable answer.

None of this happens without engineers willing to design for an environment they will never visit. Which raises the obvious question: where do those engineers come from?

The answer is from contests like Future Engineers that Robert Hillan entered and won. Students and the organisations, like Accu, that support and nurture them are supporting the next generation of engineers, who will be looking at the problems of space flight and finding innovative and brilliant solutions.

A Decade of In-Space Manufacturing Milestones

The past decade of in-space manufacturing breaks down into a clear sequence of firsts, from proof of concept to structural metal. Here’s an at-a-glance overview of the major developments in the field:

Key Takeaways

NASA's multi-purpose precision maintenance tool shows how far 3D printing has come: a design sent from Earth, printed to order in orbit and put straight to work. The same on-demand thinking is changing how engineers work on the ground, which is why Accu offers a downloadable CAD model for every standard component in the range of over 750,000 precision components we stock. You can 3D print a part to prototype and check the fit before committing to the finished item. Whether the workshop is a bench or the ISS, the principle holds: make what you need, when you need it.

• The MPMT was the first student-designed tool printed in space. It will not be the last student-designed tool printed in space.

• 3D printing tools in microgravity has moved from proof-of-concept to operational reality in just over a decade. The story of NASA and 3D printing is one of incremental but transformative progress.

• The economics that justified a polymer multi-tool in 2016 justify metal structural parts now and will justify on-Mars manufacturing inside the next two decades.

• The next generation of engineers is no longer designing for Earth. They are designing for orbit from day one.

Further Reading:

• The Space Race Report: Who’s Winning And At What Cost?

• The Space Debris Report.

• How to Build Your Own Lightsaber With Precision Engineering Components.

• Star Wars Spacecraft Ranked by an Engineer.

 

FAQs

Q: Who designed the multi-purpose precision maintenance tool?

A: The multi-purpose precision maintenance tool was designed by Robert Hillan, a high school senior in Enterprise, Alabama in autumn 2014. He was a sophomore at UAH (University of Alabama in Huntsville) by the June 2016 print. He designed the 3D printed multitool for the Future Engineers Space Tool design contest and was announced as the winner in 2015. 

As the winner, he got to go behind the scenes and watch the tool come off the production line via live video link from the Payload Operations Integration Center at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.

Q: What was the first 3D printed tool in space?

A: The multi-purpose precision maintenance tool wasn’t the first thing printed in space, or the first tool printed in space, though it represents a significant innovation over both.

The first object 3D printed in space was a small faceplate bearing the words “Made In Space”, the name of a company contracted by NASA to prove that 3D printing would work in microgravity. It was printed in 2014 and was designed to be affixed to the front of the printer itself.

The first 3D printed tool in space was a ratchet wrench, also printed by Made In Space on the printer they designed. It was designed by Noah Paul-Gin at Made In Space and emailed to the ISS, the same delivery system used to get the design for the multi-purpose precision maintenance tool to the station.

Q: What material were the first 3D printed objects in space made from?

A: Both the Made In Space plaque and the ratchet wrench were printed in filament ABS plastic, making them tough and durable. Importantly, the files to print them were created on Earth and sent to the ISS through a data link. 

This proved on-demand printing could be driven from the ground, where designs can be refined and prototyped freely before the finished file is sent up to the AMF to print.

Q: What 3D printer does NASA use on the ISS?

A: The International Space Station has hosted several 3D printers over the past decade. The current workhorse for polymer printing is the Additive Manufacturing Facility (AMF), built by Made In Space, since acquired by Redwire, and installed on the ISS in March 2016. The AMF prints in a range of space-grade polymers, including ABS, polyetherimide and high-density polyethylene. It's the printer that produced the multi-purpose precision maintenance tool in June 2016.

For metal printing, the ISS took delivery of a separate machine in January 2024. Built by Airbus Defence and Space for the European Space Agency, this metal 3D printer uses a laser to melt stainless steel wire and deposit it layer by layer. It has produced its first test samples and represents a significant step beyond polymer-only manufacturing in orbit.

Both printers receive their design files the same way Robert Hillan's tool reached the station: by data link from Earth.

Q: Where can I download NASA tools to 3D print?

A: The STL file for the multi-purpose precision maintenance tool can be found here on the NASA website as a free download. Why not print one and try it out for yourself?

You can also download and print your own version of the famous wrench, the first tool 3D printed in space.

Q: What 3D printing file formats does Accu offer and how do I access them?

A: Accu provides free 3D CAD models for every standard component in three formats: STEP (.stp), IGES (.igs) and STL (.stl). STEP and IGES import into CAD software like SolidWorks, Onshape and Fusion 360 for design work, while STL is the mesh format you send straight to a 3D printer or slicer, so you can print a component for prototyping and fit-testing before committing to the finished part.

To download one, sign in to your Accu account (or create a free account), open the product page for the component you need, select the '3D CAD Models' tab, choose your format and click Download. Free accounts can download up to 20 models per day. If you need a format we don't list, our Customer Solutions team can often supply alternatives on request.