Police Bomb Squad gets 3D printer

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — West Palm Beach Police have just added a new high-tech machine to their arsenal. It's so new, the public has not seen it yet.

Bomb scares, SWAT standoffs, threats to safety. Sadly, we see them all too often.

When they happen, the bomb disposal robot gets the call. But even he needs a little help from time to time.

That’s where this new machine comes in—a state of the art 3D printer.

It can make the small plastic parts such as brackets or attachments the West Palm Beach bomb squad needs before and after detonations. Costly parts.

“It just adds another tool to our toolbox and allows us to be better prepared when we are faced with a threat within the community,” said Sgt. Adam Myers, West Palm Beach Police bomb squad.

The 3D printer stands several feet high and looks a little like a movie theatre popcorn maker. Using a computerized image, it can create small lightweight plastic bomb disposal parts far cheaper than if police had to buy them from an outside company.

“The way it’s gonna make the public safer is just us having the tools necessary to deal with a potential device,” Sgt. Myers said.

Police say the 3D printer will normally stay at the police station, where they will use it to make plastic parts for the bomb squad. But if they had to, police could actually bring it to the scene of a bomb scare, to make a part at the scene.

“I’m super excited,” Sgt. Myers said.

The 3D printer uses plastic filament to make small pieces. It can take several hours to make a bracket or attachment for the bomb disposal robot, so they typically make pieces in advance that they would need at the scene of a bomb scare or for training.

“I think it’s great to give them the best tools that they can have,” said Gregg Weiss, West Palm Beach Police Foundation board member.

Weiss helped spearhead the effort to bring in the 3-D printer.

He says it costs about $7000.00, paid for by the West Palm Beach Police Foundation with money from grants and fundraisers. In other words, it didn't cost taxpayers a dime.

“I think it’s fantastic and we’re just learning how we might be able to implement it,” he said.

That 3D printer may also be used by the police SWAT team and the West Palm Beach Police Department’s drone team to make things such as camera mounts or plastic accessories that they need, and again it will save money.